I want to buy a smoker (5 Viewers)

[jja412]

Weber Kettle, either 22" or 26.5"...and a corresponding Slow'n'Sear. That combo made me sell my side by side, my Kamado, my propane refrig smoker, and my pellet grill. AS long as your not feeding 25+ the 26.5 will be all you need. And it can grill with the best of them. too.

 

[chutracheese]

Whew. Does it look like it in that pic tho????

They were still really moist. (Ughh that word.)
This is surely going to land in the out of context thread.
Just a nice glaze. Used the 3,2,1 method.

 

[Big Jilm]

this one lasted FOREVER

 

[joepro]

I have a Kamado Joe and I absolutely love it. I started off with a Char Broil ceramic grill like 10 years ago and it was ok but KJ or BGE are the way to go. I just made my first perfect medium rare steak last week and my first beer can chicken today. I'm a master of pulled pork but they take around 12 hours! It's a fun hobby except when you ruin the food. Practice makes perfect, I love this thing.

 

[DJ_Fett]

I’ll advocate for the Weber Smokey Mountain as well. It’s easy to use, gives great results, and you can tend to it all day or walk away (or sleep) for hours with out a problem.

I saw you mention having it at a cabin, not sure if that would be it’s permanent home but the WSM is very easy to transport if you need to do that.

 

[Lemonzest]

I have done burgers and stuff on my Traeger and it wasnt as good as going it on the propane bbq IMO

hmm interesting. Burgers on the weber cooked on charcoal taste different but still good.

 

[jja412]

I've done tri-tip, stuffed pork tender loin, pulled pork, smoked mac n cheese, ribs, Thanksgiving turkey, burgers, whole chicken, brisket, burnt ends, pork belly, etc...all on a Weber Kettle. I still may buy a 22" WSM for bigger slow cooks, but I've been very happy with the 22" Performer, and the 26.5" kettle. I've used a lot of different grills and smokers, but my kettles are the only ones I've kept for more than 2 years. They may not be the fanciest, but they are the best for my cooking.

 

[Amish Rabbi]

hmm interesting. Burgers on the weber cooked on charcoal taste different but still good.

I couldn’t get it hot enough for a proper sear, was like cooking them in an oven at high temp

 

[Lars]

@Lars

please help these weekend warriors...

Everyone here has listed great cookers. The number of options these days is incredible and with practice you can produce great food on any of them.

Based on what I know about Mel's style which includes love of classic/retro design I would recommend a PK grill. They are great looking, super light and easy to transport, and are made of thick aluminum for efficiency at cold times of the year. You can smoke at low temps or cook steaks/tri-tip/veggies/burgers at high heat.

 

[DoubleEagle]

This what I have. Yoder smokers. They are awesome!

 

[BladerR]

If you're handy, look into Ugly Drum smokers, pretty inexpensive to get into smoking and very flexible.

 

[natumes]

I have a green mountain grill, very similar to a traeger but feels less flimsy, is slightly cheaper, and has a much better temp control unit (the wifi model is worth every penny). I love it because it's easy to set it and forget it. Full pellet hopper lasts 4+ hours, I usually only have to refill once on 12+ hour brisket smokes. Lots of options for pellets and you can find them everywhere, I've even found pellets at the grocery store. Don't have to build and maintain a fire.

Here's the flat from the brisket I smoked today on it. Been wrapping them lately after about 6 hours to speed up cooking. Not as barky, but I get more sleep .

 

[ovo]

I have a Traeger pellet, works great

 

[FordPickup92]

I made it 35 seconds into this thread and began craving barbecue ribs

 

[Leonard]

I own a Big Green Egg and there are two pork butts on it right now. It's almost 8am and they have been on for almost 12 hours. My egg is over 10 years old and works like new.

All of the smokers above will work.
Kamados - BGE and Kamado Joe - work very, very well, but they have a bit of a learning curve and they are pricey. You will want a BBQ Guru temp controller. You can also grill steaks and burgers, make pizza, etc.

Webers are similar but not insulated so they require more work during long smokes.

Pellet smokers and cabinet smokers (see @k9dr ) are one trick ponies but are easy and reliable.

Giant offset smokers on trailers are a totally different beast. If you need one of these, then you already know a lot more about smoking meat than I do.

Fun links:
Stumps Smokers
Lone Star Grillz
Assassin Smokers

 

[jja412]

Have to bank the coals properly to get your temps for searing. Push them all to a condensed pile, or use a charcoal basket. I use a Vortex cone or a Slow n Sear filled to the top for searing.

I couldn’t get it hot enough for a proper sear, was like cooking them in an oven at high temp

 

[gopherblue]

For steaks and burgers I keep the charcoal in a starter chimney in my Weber, then put a small grate on top. Most of the time I put a rocket hot cast iron skillet on that and sear in the pan.

For my wife’s bday this week I’m going to do a variation on this: we have 70-day dry-aged 2.5” prime ribeyes, that I’m going to reverse sear: in the oven at 250F until internal temp hits 105F, then rest, then sear 2 min on each side for a crust. Serve immediately.

 

[boltonguy]

I have a cookshack amerique with a pork butt in it right now. Went in at 8pm last night set at 225F. I bought this used from a friend who moved to a monster gravity fed competition smoker. When I researched the big debate is between electrics and charcoal. I am lazy so I like the set it and forget it nature of the cookshack. When the probe hits target temp it will drop to 140 and hold so I don’t have to continually monitor it. Makes great ribs and pulled pork! Many do think that electrics “aren’t really smoking”

 

[Lemonzest]

I couldn’t get it hot enough for a proper sear, was like cooking them in an oven at high temp

Thats weird same thing happened to me. I assumed it was just cause I was new at using charcoal.

 

[Indyscammer]

I have an Oklahoma Joe Offset. I read a lot online before I bought it 5 years ago. Purchased a sealing kit online (to seal the doors up). It really needs to be sealed. Worked great until I lost the seals now it is a LOT of work to keep up to temp. My next smoker will be a BGE or Kamado most likely. THEY SEAL well.

 

[RowdyRawhide]

once you get your idea set on what you think you want, then scour FB marketplace. You can find quite few decent deals on barely used smokers.

 

[RainmanTrail]

You will want a BBQ Guru temp controller.

I just bought one of these! I've been delaying getting one because I wanted to learn how to control temperatures myself first, without one. But I'm pretty stoked to be able to try it out once it arrives. Sleep is too valuable to give up on those long overnight cooks.

 

[Lemonzest]

Get one of these. Worth every penny.

https://www.thermoworks.com/Thermapen-Mk4

If I was buying right now I would buy a Kamado Joe or WSM 22.5" (largest one). WSM being the more budget option while still being awesome. The KJ is way more expensive but also burns fuel more efficiently so you will save some money there.

I haven't used the KJ or BGE but everyone I know who uses them loves em. I do really love the WSM and it works awesome. Start a brisket in the morning early and have it ready for dinner time. I do want to try the KJ and would pick one up used maybe sometime down the road. @RowdyRawhide advice of searching for used ones is so true. I got my WSM for like 1/2 price from FB and it was only used a couple times. Smoking is like exercise equipment. Lots of people buy them and don't use em so you can get great deals on used equipment.

 

[Amish Rabbi]

Have to bank the coals properly to get your temps for searing. Push them all to a condensed pile, or use a charcoal basket. I use a Vortex cone or a Slow n Sear filled to the top for searing.

I was talking specifically about the traeger, so pellet grill and not a charcoal bbq. The temp it gives is the temp I get. Charcoal for sure you should be able to hit shear temps

 

[Amish Rabbi]

Everyone here has listed great cookers. The number of options these days is incredible and with practice you can produce great food on any of them.

Based on what I know about Mel's style which includes love of classic/retro design I would recommend a PK grill. They are great looking, super light and easy to transport, and are made of thick aluminum for efficiency at cold times of the year. You can smoke at low temps or cook steaks/tri-tip/veggies/burgers at high heat.

I’m just curious why thick aluminum is good? I mean better than thin aluminum but I would think that the heat conductivity of the aluminum would just help it suck the heat out vs steel or ceramic

 

[RainmanTrail]

I was talking specifically about the traeger, so pellet grill and not a charcoal bbq. The temp it gives is the temp I get. Charcoal for sure you should be able to hit shear temps

This is the main complaint I read by a lot of pellet grill owners. Even the Yoder guys with the adapter plate still say it doesn't get hot enough to sear. That's what ultimately pushed me away from a Yoder pellet grill and toward the Kamado Joe. I'm glad I went with it. They're kinda weird looking, but they're the most versatile cookers and they produce the most consistent results from what I've read and experienced.

 

[Amish Rabbi]

This is the main complaint I read by a lot of pellet grill owners. Even the Yoder guys with the adapter plate still say it doesn't get hot enough to sear. That's what ultimately pushed me away from a Yoder pellet grill and toward the Kamado Joe. I'm glad I went with it. They're kinda weird looking, but they're the most versatile cookers and they produce the most consistent results from what I've read and experienced.

Yea I would never have one as my only bbq but I’m fine with just needing to final sear on the propane grill. It also lets me smoke something a grill at the same time which is handy for family stuff

 

[Taghkanic]

Does the Green Egg work well with wood, or just charcoal? I have SO much wood <<< Gratuitously noted for citation in that other thread

 

[Justin Olson]

Traeger smoked meatloaf today

 

[RainmanTrail]

Does the Green Egg work well with wood, or just charcoal? I have SO much wood <<< Gratuitously noted for citation in that other thread

Yes and no. It depends on how much you like the smoke flavor. It'll burn the wood just fine, but if you're using all wood and no charcoal, your meat is going to get absolutely cloaked with smoke since it sits directly above the firebox.