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kshennya

Newbie
Original poster
Feb 7, 2016
3
10
CA Bay Area
Greetings to you all.

I am a lover of smoked meats.  Few things make me smile like the texture, bite and flavor of a well done rib (dry rubbed preferred).  I grew up with a father that grilled often, but smoking was mainly for fish in my household (salmon mostly), but I knew the flavor smoke can give and the look of satisfaction of being able to give that to your family my father had.  My husband is not much of a cook and grilling and/or smoking is not really something he enjoys.  Struggling through sub-par purchased smoked meats from restaurants and such, only finding that distant memory at cook-offs and competitions I finally decided I needed to learn this mysterious smoke alchemy for myself. 

We have a gas grill (because my husband will use that occasionally) but it is small enough that I deemed it unable to "second" as a smoker as any meat would be too close to the low flames to achieve the "low and slow" I wanted, even with wood chips added for smoke and an attempt at indirect heat.  I began searching for smokers.  In reading reviews online I found references to this forum.  I stumbled in, peaking around the corner like an intruder... fearful I would somehow be sniffed out as the "hen in the roosterhouse" (I know, backwards)... but as I read the threads here I realized I really had much less to fear than I had thought.  I found great information, a real lack of elitism or aggression towards "frequent/newbie questions" and a general welcoming feeling.

I have, through searching and reading here, decided that I needed the convienience of an electric smoker with my work schedule, and settled on a MES.  The information for the generations and which models were most reliable I was able to find led me to my smoker of choice - a 30" with BT gen 2.5 from Home Depot.  If I knew anyone with a Sam's Club membership and one were closer to me (They are not yet popular in the CA Bay Area where I live) I would have gone with the 40" for sale there... but with a small family of two at home and my extended family nearby as my test subjects, I mean audience, the 30" will likely be large enough even if I have to cut racks of ribs in half.

Today is the day - I will be heading to Home Depot to get, clean and season the new... somehow calling it just a smoker seems lack luster.  Something with the power to transform raw meat into the joy that is good smoked meat... it really is a transformation to  my mind.   From sustenance to satiation.  Perhaps I need to name it appropriately.  What do they use in alchemy... how about crucibles?  My smoker will be The Crucilble!  Much more appropriate - especially as I work in a science industry. 

All nerdy tenancies and flowery musings aside - Thank you to all of you who have worked to build up this wealth of information for people like myself to find.  It is invaluable and really made this a much less steep hill to climb.  I promise to search first before asking the same newbie questions you hear 100 times... but as I make my first steps you may hear a few from me. 

The condensed version: (tl;dr)

I live in the CA Bay Area - new to smoking.

Getting my new smoker today - 30" MES w/ BT gen 2.5

Thank you to all of you for this amazing resource!
 
Welcome to SMF!

Congrats on the new smoker!

Lots of MES owners on here to help you get going.

We love to answer questions, so don't be afraid to ask.

Al
 
Thank you!  The new smoker is indeed in house and should be cleaned and seasoned by the end of the weekend.  Picked up some ribs and a butt to do Monday if I can put together enough time tomorrow (husband might object) to get it ready to go!  Excited to give it a try.
 
The smoker has been cleaned, seasoned and is ready to go.  The first smoke will be ribs... just has to be a night when I have 6 hours after I get home to tend them, or Sat!

The anticipation... *chuckle*

~K
 
texas.gif
  Good afternoon and welcome to the forum, from a warm sunny day here in East Texas, and the best site on the web. Lots of great people with tons of information on just about  everything.

Gary
 
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