Smokers(Cooking)

[hampshirepuck 2]

Going to try smoking in the new year, any tips? What kind of smoker should I get with a low budget? What kind of wood should I use? any more tips would be greatly appreciated

[noodle3872 40]

I asked for a smoker for Christmas. I found this site a good place to start exploring smoking meats. Google searches turn up other useful info too.

http://smokehouseproducts.com/default.cfm

[Ltrain 0]

If you're just starting out, it's hard to ignore the tried and true "Weber Bullet". It's reasonably priced, well made, and a pretty no nonsense design.

Check out:

http://virtualweberbullet.com/

That site has tons of great info and support.

What type of smoking are you doing? Ribs, BBQ, etc? (If so, the weber is great) Not sure on jerky and cured meats though.

[hampshirepuck 2]

Trying to get into BBQ like brisket and ribs

[hampshirepuck 2]

But thinking of buying an offset since it has a bigger cooking space

[third man in 0]

If you're just starting out, it's hard to ignore the tried and true "Weber Bullet". It's reasonably priced, well made, and a pretty no nonsense design. Check out: http://virtualweberbullet.com/ That site has tons of great info and support. What type of smoking are you doing? Ribs, BBQ, etc? (If so, the weber is great) Not sure on jerky and cured meats though.

I will second this...the Weber Bullet is great, I bought one a few years ago and couldn't be happier. Everything I've made in the Weber has come out great.

[hampshirepuck 2]

The Fiance ended up getting me a brinkman vertical smoker similar to the weber bullet, read up more about it and going to make some slight modifications. has any one had anytype of experience with this kind of smoker

[hampshirepuck 2]

Yeah I am pretty stoked, once I get back from Ottawa and plan on seasoning it then trying my first cook and see how it goes, I plan on starting out with chicken then working my way up

[muddy 2]

I have a bullet type smoker as well. When you guys are cooking meat, are you finding that you have to add wood chips a lot?

It seems like I am using an excessive amount of them.

[stick&puck 1]

I use my webber kettle modified a little bit when i want to smoke meat, isn't the ideal setup but it works pretty well. I already have the gas bbq and the charcoal grill didn't think i needed the smoker also, maybe later on i will pick up an independent smoker.

[Justin Liedloff 13]

There are a ton of options for budget smokers. Then again, the term "budget" is a bit relative.

Before you start looking, you have to look at all the options and decide which is best for you.

1) Are you looking for ease of use over authentic BBQ?

If you are looking to be a "traditionalist", then charcoal or lump wood as a fuel source is your only option. If you are looking to get some great smokey flavors, don't care about being authentic, and don't want to spend all day babysitting temperatures, a propane smoker is the way to go.

2) How much are you planning to smoke at once?

If you are not trying to feed an army, a smaller vertical smoker would work best for you. It will provide more then enough coorking area to do anything you want for a typical meal. If you want to do a large variety of stuff at one time, or are looking to smoke for an entire party, then a larger vertical smoker, or offset make be better for you.

I personally have The Smokey Mountain series from Walmart. I think they are still available for $150 or so. The one I have is large enough to do 6 tri tips on the three standard racks, 8 if I add another rack in the empty slot. I've done turkey, tri tip, chicken, salmon, ribs, pork tenderloin, potatoes, and numerous other things in it.

Landmann also sells this series. They come in a multitude of sizes to fit any needs. The Landmann version comes in propane or charcoal, but, their branding is signicantly more expensive than some of the others.

Lastly, about wood. Wood will ultimately depend on the type of food you are smoking. Check out The Smoking Meat forums for some great insight into woods to use, smoking temps, times, great recipes and much much more.

[third man in 0]

I have a bullet type smoker as well. When you guys are cooking meat, are you finding that you have to add wood chips a lot?

It seems like I am using an excessive amount of them.

I use chunks rather than chips...although the end of the bag usually turns into chips. How many I use depends on what I'm cooking but I generally just use a few fist sized chunks when firing up the cooker and then I'm good to go for the entire cook.