Want to start Smoking Meat and Poultry..Anyone have some tips?

G.MONEY · Jan 24, 2011

Really like smoked and BBq meats and want to start doing it at home. I really do not want to spend more than 2-300.00 for a smoker and electric seems the best, but need some input as well as good recipe books or books to read. My guess it is by trail and error and you find out what is to your taste.

Ok guys help a Brother out!

gatorhater · Jan 25, 2011

Better get some sturdy wrapping paper. And Im guessing a food processor to get the meat grind up real fine

Good luck with your efforts, Id rather just smoke weed

djmatt · Jan 25, 2011

There's an art to it sure but even half ass attempts can be worth the effort.

What were you looking to smoke? you said mainly meat and chicken? If you're not going to be doing a lot of smoking electric is prob your best bet. You might get a lot of serious guys telling you not go that way but this might not be something you're going to fully commit to. Go with an Old Smokey

betmonkey · Jan 25, 2011

step one...get a bigger bong

G.MONEY · Jan 25, 2011

Figured I would get the answers above, Thanks Matt, I was thinking to start with Brisket and Pork Shoulders

betmonkey · Jan 25, 2011

I see a lot of backyard smokers using a normal charcoal bbq grill. Pile coals on one side of the grill and meat on the other (cold) side. Soak some wood chips (whatever type you like) and place on the coals. Cover and eat the results...cook time vary on meat size and type. There are more high dollar methods and grills but this works as well. Rubs, injectors etc also help beofre smoking but not neccessary.

Betallsports · Jan 25, 2011

called a friend who does a lot of smoking, he said get a Bradley smoker.. somewhere around $300

or what Matt said, that one is about $100+

viking611 · Jan 25, 2011

Since you are from the Chicago land area, I think it is imperative for you to use a Weber Grill.

http://www.weber.com/explore/Grill_details.aspx?glid=8&mid=121

The 22" is $350-400
The 18.5" is $275-300

G.MONEY · Jan 25, 2011

Betallsports said:
called a friend who does a lot of smoking, he said get a Bradley smoker.. somewhere around $300

or what Matt said, that one is about $100+

Thanks Betall

cstock · Jan 25, 2011

not really a big fan of the electric smokers, but whatever floats your boat, yes it is an art with trial and error and the rubs consist of lots of spices so basically its a season to taste trial and error, love the good ole smokers were u get like hickory or cherry wood and use that in the smoking, good ole low and slow makes amazing bbq, theres all sorts of tips and pointers available online and stuff that can help u in the way u choose, its a worth while investment for sure

1cheater · Jan 25, 2011

G. where will you be smoking? you own a home, condo, have neighbors close? you have to remember your probably gonna piss off your neighbors ...The first thing you need to consider is how much time do you have to put into this? You think you can just go buy an electric smoker and your up and running your dead wrong... There are things you have to monitor such as heat, wind control is critical when smoking. My neighbor saved his box from his fridge and on a some what windy day 15-20mph wind he'll employ the box; (place the box around the smoker for a wind breaker) It works great. The hardest thing to control while smoking is obviously temperature which coincides with trying to control flame/wind control. The next to consider is flavor. what wood marries well with what wood. People have different tastes and I guess this will depend on your taste and how good the wood for smoking is in your area. .If your serious about smoking do some research online. I found the best places to research anything is at forums; go check out a forum dedicated to smoking; there are many. I do not own a smoker my self; I employ the method of indirect mid to hot smoking on my gas grill which was mentioned by Betmonkey. I do not smoke whole turkeys or anything big like that so I don't need a separate smoker. I have smoked ribs using this method many times and it worked out great. I would go this route of indirect smoking and then see if you really need to purchase a separate smoker. I all ready have $900 invested in my grill so I didn't feel the need to purchase a smoker unless I was smoking huge pieces of meat or cold smoking which I never do so it wasn't worth the money for me.

betmonkey

"I see a lot of backyard smokers using a normal charcoal bbq grill. Pile coals on one side of the grill and meat on the other (cold) side. Soak some wood chips (whatever type you like) and place on the coals. Cover and eat the results...cook time vary on meat size and type. There are more high dollar methods and grills but this works as well. Rubs, injectors etc also help beofre smoking but not neccessary. "

djmatt · Jan 25, 2011

check back in every once in awhile I would like to hear how it goes!! I've been looking at plans for building my own brick bbq! over/under on how many cases I drink while screwing this thing up? haha

1cheater · Jan 25, 2011

djmatt said:
check back in every once in awhile I would like to hear how it goes!! I've been looking at plans for building my own brick bbq! over/under on how many cases I drink while screwing this thing up? haha

Wouldn't it be awesome if you built the whole thing and someone asked you if you used high temp bricks? (gulp)

djmatt · Jan 25, 2011

1cheater said:
Wouldn't it be awesome if you built the whole thing and someone asked you if you used high temp bricks? (gulp)

what are high temp bricks? lol just kidding!

Bushay · Jan 26, 2011

I own 6-7 different grills/smokers in my garage. Next to gambling on sports...it's my favorite hobby. If you really want to get serious about smoking meat without spending a fortune I would suggest a WSM [Weber Smokey Mountain] as previously mentioned. You can grill or smoke on this unit. In fact many championship tournaments have been won using a WSM. THEE most important thing to master about smoking meats is your temperature. Get that down pat and your home free. But getting there is a journey. I don't like to send people off this site but the best forum about this hobby is http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/. Everyone is willing to help there and you will throughly enjoy it. I put their RSS feed into my Google Reader. It's the best way to view this site. As well as others. I'm in the process now of attending this course in March. http://www.pelletenvy.com/classes/applications/Yorktown_VA_March_2011_OSvHT_app.pdf. Good luck..it's a fun hobby.

WorldNumberOne · Jan 26, 2011

someone's house will be burning down soon...

MagiCap · Jan 27, 2011

Betallsports said:
called a friend who does a lot of smoking, he said get a Bradley smoker.. somewhere around $300

or what Matt said, that one is about $100+

get the bradley. for sure.

MagiCap · Jan 27, 2011

me and a friend actually built a smoker out of an old fridge....kicks ass

msubulldog · Jan 27, 2011

do a google search for bbq forums; several out there with good info. not sure if I can post a link here but pm me and will send you several good ones. I perfer an offset smoker and grill with some modifcations I got on these forums.

1cheater · Jan 28, 2011

This is the one I'd get if I needed a smoker and it's about the same price as a Weber smokey mountain

Bradley Digital 4- Rack Smoker

The Bradley 4-rack Digital Smoker includes all the features of the Original Bradley Smoker, along with the benefits of digital technology. Temperature, time, and smoke are now completely controllable so you can decide how much smoke you want, how long your food is going to be smoked for, and at what temperature. Perfect for entertaining, creating gourmet foods in your own home, or just enjoying the flavor that smoking brings, the new Bradley Digital Smokers offer an easier and better way to automatically roast, smoke and barbecue in the outdoors. The exterior is Powder Epoxy Steel and the interior is Polished Stainless Steel Internal Cooking Vol : 2288 cu in Internal Heater: 500 watt cooking element / 125 watt smoking element Power: - 110 V 50 - 60 Hz , - 5.5 Amps (240 Volt Model coming mid 2006) ETL & CE Listed Max Temperature: Controllable up to 320F. Min Temp: subject to ambient Digital Controls : Temperature, Time, Smoke.

-Full Digital Control.
-4 Cooking Racks.
-8 hours of controlled cool smoke.
-Cooks meat, chicken, pork and fish.
-9 different flavors of hardwoods.

http://www.buy--it.net/Bradley-Smokers.html