This is a very dry time of year. We aren't under a burn ban, yet, but a good bit of caution is necessary when burning or cooking outdoors. We've had daytime winds off and on this past week and little time to work outdoors. I've have five days of trips into town, including one to drop off my chainsaw and one to pick it up. The wind dies down at night, but I can't get good photos of cooking over the fire, so I'll talk about smoking and smokers.
I've been doing almost all of my smoking in my big combination smoker/grill. Nearly any grill can be used for smoking, if the option of indirect heat is possible. My grill is extra wide for that purpose and I've seen gas grills with multiple burners that can be turned off individually.
The classic horizontal smoker has a separate firebox, making indirect heat the only option. They work great, even for long smoking times, but the firebox must be tended and the thermometer monitored. The worst that can happen is the cooking area won't stay hot enough and the meats can spoil. There is little chance of an indirect heat horizontal smoker getting too hot.
Since we have many hickory trees on our place, including a couple of dead ones in the backyard, finding good smoke wood is easy. Smoke wood chips and charcoal work just fine, but fallen wood is basically free.
There are a number of vertical electric smokers on the market, including large capacity models for commercial use. Most have large doors to provide access to the food and racks or drawers that can be pulled out for easy loading and unloading. The prices vary widely, but start out around the same as wood smokers.
My Masterbuilt electric bullet smoker normally retails for around $60, but I got mine for $40 on an end of season clearance. So far I've used it to smoke a large turkey and a bone-in ham and I was very pleased with the results.
Smoking meats for a long period of time (I smoked the turkey for 12 hours) would require constant attention and frequent refueling the fire in a wood smoker. An electric smoker is simply more practical.
The Masterbuilt came with assembly instructions and an owner's manual that included cooking instructions, temperatures and times for various cuts of meat and sizes of fowl.
If we begin raising our own hogs, a smokehouse may be in our future, but until then, I have what I need for the smoking that I do.
Stephen
I've been doing almost all of my smoking in my big combination smoker/grill. Nearly any grill can be used for smoking, if the option of indirect heat is possible. My grill is extra wide for that purpose and I've seen gas grills with multiple burners that can be turned off individually.
The classic horizontal smoker has a separate firebox, making indirect heat the only option. They work great, even for long smoking times, but the firebox must be tended and the thermometer monitored. The worst that can happen is the cooking area won't stay hot enough and the meats can spoil. There is little chance of an indirect heat horizontal smoker getting too hot.
My grill is an ideal mix. I can build a fire all the way across in order to cook for a large group, or I can build the fire at one end and place the food at the other in order to slow cook and smoke meats.
Since we have many hickory trees on our place, including a couple of dead ones in the backyard, finding good smoke wood is easy. Smoke wood chips and charcoal work just fine, but fallen wood is basically free.
Smoking catfish requires a temperature around 225 degrees F. Only a small fire is necessary. Getting the fire a little too hot isn't a problem. The fish will get done faster, but will be more baked than smoked.
Vertical smokers work especially well. Bullet smokers are great for smoking a single turkey, ham or brisket. I've owned several, including a couple of Brinkmans. Charcoal briquettes are necessary in the standard models in order to better maintain a steady temperature. Electric models are very easy to control and give consistent results.
There are a number of vertical electric smokers on the market, including large capacity models for commercial use. Most have large doors to provide access to the food and racks or drawers that can be pulled out for easy loading and unloading. The prices vary widely, but start out around the same as wood smokers.
My Masterbuilt electric bullet smoker normally retails for around $60, but I got mine for $40 on an end of season clearance. So far I've used it to smoke a large turkey and a bone-in ham and I was very pleased with the results.
The primary temperature control ranges from low to high. The actual temperature in the cooking area depends on the outside temperature and the amount of heat released through the adjustable vent. The thermometer is important for monitoring temperature during cooking. I smoked the turkey overnight with an outside temperature in the low 30s and the smoker maintained a cooking temperature of about 200-225 F. on high.
The Masterbuilt came with assembly instructions and an owner's manual that included cooking instructions, temperatures and times for various cuts of meat and sizes of fowl.
If we begin raising our own hogs, a smokehouse may be in our future, but until then, I have what I need for the smoking that I do.
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