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Need a Grill - Can I Smoke?

Patriot

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2019
Messages
842
Last night my wife destroyed our grill. Sigh. It was only one or two seasons old. She didn’t dump the grease pan and nearly burnt down our home so I guess it could be worse eh?

I have never smoked (meat:sunglasses:) before. I’ve never even cooked a roast. But I’m probably going to be butchering my own deer next year which would open up more options for me.

I’m thinking of a gas and smoker grill so I can cook both ways. but I have lots of questions Any advice?

Is smoking hard to learn? Is it a PITA and not worth it?

Pellet vs charcoal?

any advice on affordable starter grills? I’m not looking to spend a grand so the wife can turn it to ash.
 

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Also some people say it's a PIA to clean a pellet grill but I clean mine about every hopper refill and if you have a shop vac and a 3" paint scraper you will be done in 15 min.
 
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It is a little more work, but I enjoy the process.......but I would suggest looking into a charcoal kettle grill. you can grill, or smoke on it, and I strongly prefer the taste of charcoal over gas.
 
I’m about to buy a Pit Boss 1100 Pro Series from Lowe’s. Trying to see if they go on sale for Memorial Day.

I’ve done ALOT of YouTube and internet studying to see what would be the best for me, and Pit Boss is winning.


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I use my weber charcoal grill to grill and smoke and it works just fine. I smoke a 4lb pork shoulder and it takes me about 7-8 hours and isn't that difficult. Once you find the right vent settings to maintain temp all I do is check on the temp every 30 min or so. There are more expensive options with nice features but the weber works great. Plus charcoal makes the best steaks IMO
 
Mine just did the same thing but luckily the fire extinguisher was close by and saved the grill and house. Can't help you for entry smoker but I do love my Green Egg. Smokers are definitely more work but if you like the smoke flavour, you can't beat having a smoker...
 
Camp chief, Pitt Boss or Green Mountain pellet grills. You can smok or grill. I been looking at them for awhile and have some friends that have different ones . Do some research I did and I was told to stay away from Traeger grills.
 
I would suggest a pitboss as well. I bought the 700FB at walmart for like $300. I've never smoked before but this makes it super easy and it puts off quite a bit of smoke.
 
I can definitely reccomend the Chargriller Akorn Kamado. Awesome at searing steaks, cooks burgers chicken and hot dogs, and will smoke food well. The Tip Top Temp works really good with the Akorn as well as something like the BBQ Guru to help with set it and forget type smoking.

Very efficient with the lump charcoal too and you can usually find them for under $300 going into the fall.

Pic of firing up the Akorn for an overnight pork butt with the BBQ Guru.
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You can buy less expensive smokers and do some mods on it. Lots of info on the web on how to turn a cheaper smoker into a top notch smoker. Get the thickest metal you can find in your price range. Stack extensions, fire brick linings, wood stove gasketing, diffuser plates, etc. Lots to do and it's still cheaper than buying an expensive one. I have a pellet smoker and a wood smoker. I like the pellet for ease, and I love the results of cooking with wood and or charcoal. I've busted 55 gal drums in half and attached a side fire boxes and made good bbq. and smoked fish.
 
I have a Weber Kettle and recently built an Ugly Drum Smoker. I use the kettle for grilling and have smoked on it. You can smoke on a kettle but the UDS is more efficient for long smokes. I have about a $150 or so in mine. But people make them for like $50. I prefer charcoal and wood, plus I'm a tightwad and didn't want to fork out $500+ on a pellet pooper. I get the appeal if you are crunched for time and don't want to mess with charcoal.
 
I have a Yoder ys640 pellet smoker that's 8 years old and still in really good shape and it gets a lot of use, was not cheap but its built like a tank. I would definitely recommend it to anyone in the market.. Down my hunting camp I have a Weber smokey mountian 18.5, it's a charcoal smoker and I like that 1 a lot also.. you can not go wrong with Weber or Yoder.

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I have a Pit Boss Austin XL which is super convenient and perfect for smoking and grilling. I used to laugh at pellet smokers but not anymore, its awesome!


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@Patriot it all depends on how much money you want to spend. When you are going to smoke, are you smoking through the winter months in a cold climate etc. there are pros and cons to all the grills and smokers. A kamoda style grill probably offers the best of both worlds. I have heard nothing but praise from friends that own Acorns, Big Green Egg etc.

I personally have a Weber kettle that I outfitted with a slow n sear. https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai...wjSy6W_mbjpAhUdmHIEHUlWCQ0Q0Qx6BAgOEAE&adurl=

I use that Weber kettle once a month or so. I smoke with it and use it for cooking steaks. However, we also have a Weber gas grill that gets used 2 - 3 times a week, especially in the summer months.
 
Maybe just me, but I always like to buy stuff like that second hand (Craigslist, FB marketplace). I figure it's better to buy cheap and try, then be the guy selling the practically new unit because he's already ready to upgrade :)
 
I have used a Weber for grilling for several decades. You can offset the coals for slower cooks. I have had a “Pitbarrel” cooker for a couple of years now and its a kind of hybrid between a smoker and a grill. I recommend them because of ease of use and shortened cooking time. Look into them before you decide.
 
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