Mixed smokers?

[Jeffrey M Adams]

Curious,

Fairly new to smoking, but I am hooked. Just ordered Jeff's book.

I have a pellet smoker and an electric smoker. I like them both, but as many have pointed out every smoker has advantages and disadvantages.
For me, the electric smoker is a lot more work, as I need to tend to the wood chips every 30m or so, while if I get the pellet smoker going, I can leave it for hours.
I have found the electric smoker tends to get things a bit smokier flavoring, although I have gotten a pellet tube smoker and better 100% flavored pellets instead of the traeger ones, which helped a lot.

My question is, has anyone tried to do a long smoke of something like brisket or pork shoulder using both....part of the time in each. Say start in the electric for a few hours then move over? Are there any advantages or disadvantages to it? Not sure it is worth the trouble or not.
I plan on using both on Paddy's day, was gonna throw some wings in the electric and put a pork shoulder on the pellet grill.
Curious as to what people think.

Also, wings are not very big and probes are hard, do people throw a probe in a wing or just use instant reads after a certain amount of time. Also...did my first whole chicken the other night and it was great, but the skin was kind of tough. How do you handle that, because it seems that the skin also minimized the smoke absorption into the meat? (A boneless skinless chicken breast I also through on was smokier, but a bit drier).

 

[gmc2003]

I don't use either smoker you mention, however I don't really see any advantages of using both to smoke one piece of meat. As both types of smokers are considered set-it-and-forget-it type smokers. With the pellet smoker you won't get to much of a smokey flavor with higher heats, as the pellets are being burned to quickly to produce a flavorful smoke. You've already experienced the electric smoker refueling issues. Both of these problems can be solved with your external pellet tube. Wings need to be cooked at a higher heat(325*) for a crispy skin. I would say your pellet smoker is better suited for that. The pork shoulder is very forgiving and can be smoked at almost any temp(225 to 300*). I shoot for 250* when doing butts/shoulders. Same theory holds true for whole chicken, except you can smoke it at a lower temp for a short time then ramp up the heat to crisp up the skin. Be careful with chicken as it absorbs smoke quickly and can be oversmoked. Others will chime in with their experiences and knowledge. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Chris

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

I agree with what Chris said above. Wings in the pellet smoker and Butt in the MES. I don't use a pellet smoker either but I do have an MES40 and a Smoke Vault 24(propane smoker). I like to use the smoke vault on shorter cooks like chicken wings and pork tenderloins. I get a lot more smoke absorption and I can get the temperature in it way higher than I can my MES40. If I am doing chicken wings at 325 I can easily get that in the propane smoker much like you're pellet smoker. You might get an AMNPS and try in the MES. Works great for me and don't have to mess with the chip loader every 20 minutes. From what I hear works better than the tube in the MES.

Good luck and post some pics when you get done!

 

[Jeffrey M Adams]

Ok, it sounds like splitting time on the smokers isn't worth it. I wasn't sure it would be but thought I'd ask. I am interested in your recommendations though, as they countered what I planned on doing!
I had planned on putting the pork butt in my pellet smoker because I can walk away from it for hours at a time, while I really need to monitor wood chips in the electric every 30m or so.
I was planning on throwing the wings on my normal grill to try and crisp the skin after smoking them in the electric to get flavor.
In general, I was planning on low heat on everything, except when I throw the wings on the regular grill to char the skin.
On my pellet smoker, the smoke setting often hovers around 180, but can get up to 220 (wide variance)....and I usually try to leave it on that for a long time to absorb good flavor. The electric I will set to 225 or 250, as I've found it can be difficult to generate enough smoke at lower settings (below 225).....although the smoking tube helps a ton.
I was planning on putting a tube in the pellet smoker, and perhaps even the electric (i have a 12" and an 12-18").

It sounds like you guys are suggesting the pork in the electric though, and wings on the pellet. I don't mind that to a degree, except I planned on starting Thu night because I figured the butt would take 30hr or so and I don't want to stay up all night, so I should be able to let it go on the pellet grill, but in the electric I will run out of smoke without tending to it.
My intent is to use the boneless boston butt I can get at costco, expect it to be around 15lbs.

I haven't thought about the AMNPS since I already have the tube, and I don't think I have time for that on this smoke, but it's something to keep in mind for future. That being said, if everyone says it's gonna be way better that way, I can suck it up (although that makes me wonder if my pellet smoker is worth keeping?).

These are the ones I have. I have been using my traeger pellets to fuel the pellet grill, and supplementing it with lumberjack pellets in the tube. I am considering using lumberjack pellets in both for this though to see the effect on flavor (I like a really strong smokey flavor)
:
Masterbuilt 30" Digital Electric Smoker

Traeger Select Elite Wood Pellet Grill and Smoker
(Costco purchase at roadshow, so I can take it back if I'm not happy, got it recently). On the whole, I like it...after figuring out I needed better pellets and I got the AMZN tube.

 

[SmokinAl]

The only thing I would add would be to get a bone in butt, not boneless.
Your not going to find a butt that big. What you are looking at is probably a 2 pack.
Al

 

[Jeffrey M Adams]

I have to find a place to get one with the bone, but the ones at costco are roughly this size. I already tried one, and it worked great.....it wasn't 2 pieces as I cut the thing in half and froze 1/2 of it and cooked it in 2 different sessions. Once in the electric and once in the pellet smoker. They both turned out pretty good and I'm looking at improving it even more. Maybe it's not the boston butt but the whole shoulder minus the bone. The last one I had was 14 and change...

Do you have to go to a butcher to get the bone in? The butcher I'd normally visit is in the process of relocating and is closed for a month or so.

 

[SmokinAl]

That's interesting, I don't have a Costco card anymore. I get my meat at Sam's & they have bone in butts about 8 or 9 lbs. each that come in a 2 pack. You don't have your location listed, but if you live in the South, Publix has bone in butts also. I think you can even get Smithfield bone in butts at Walmart.
Al

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

If you get a boneless pork shoulder at 14-15 pounds you might consider wrapping it at the stall(160-165 degrees) otherwise that thing is going to take forever.

I have bought the boneless two pack from Costco before and they do come out good but I have never done one that size.

I get bone in boston butt's at krogers all the time. Usually any of the larger grocery chains sell them.

 

[gmc2003]

The last butt/shoulder I bought from Costco(last summer) turned out to be a twin-pack w/o the bone. Maybe they've changed or offer different packs in different locations.

Jeff the only reason I mention the butt in the MES and the wings in the pellet pooper is for temp control w/o having to transfer your meat from one smoker to another or grill. The MES will hold steady at 250(or 225 if you want) for as long as you have electricity. With the addition of the tube you should get plenty of smoke flavor. The tube isn't really needed after 6 or so hours. When you start the wings the tube can be placed in the pellet pooper and you can cook the wings at 325+ degrees or higher for crispy skin. With the tube you should have plenty of smoke. I would suggest smoking the butt at a higher temp around 250*. That way it will be done sooner w/o any loss of flavor or texture. The wings should be done in an hour or so. If your concerned about the doneness of the chicken(whole wings) then just prick the skin and see what color the liquid is when it flows out. It should be clear.

Chris

 

[Jeffrey M Adams]

Thanks for all your guys input, I love the info and assistance, it's appreciated. Great forum.

I think I'd like to try the pellet smoker for the butt, because I really want to make sure I'm keeping it, vs getting something else. I suspect I am (my wife likes that this looks like a normal grill and thinks most smokers are 'ugly'), but if I can't do a good pork butt on it then I'd rather get something else. (Costco had about $300 off, and gave me a rub and cover free, but it's still a thousand bucks...). I also don't want to monitor it every 30m for wood chips since it takes so long, which is why i'm reluctant to use the electric atm (gonna be doing plenty of 12 oz curls on on paddy's day). I did the first butt in the electric and the 2nd in the pellet grill. They were both good, the electric's was a bit drier, but smokier. Pellet's was nice and tender, but not smokey enough for me, but that was before I got the tube and proper pellets (all tips from here!). I originally used the traeger mix of cherry/hickory/maple, but plan on using hickory lumberjack pellets for this. Since I've tried a few other things, including a whole chicken, wings, hamburgers, and a brisket and they all came out pretty tasty.

So 6 hours or so and the tube doesn't help? So If I have an 18" tube and it goes for 6 hours, and it takes say 20 hours to cook the meat, does it not help to refill and do a second (or even third) refilling of the tube?

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

The shoulder is going to absorb the most smoke in the first 6 hours. Once it forms a hard bark its not going to absorb much smoke after that. That's why some people(including myself) tend to wrap it when it hits the stall. Also helps power through the stall. If you prefer the harder bark and have plenty of time you don't have to wrap it. Gives you more time to pound several PBR's!

How soon are you pulling the pork after you pull it from the smoker? If you pull it too quick it will dry out the meat. I like to leave mine wrapped up and toss them in a cooler full of old towels for a few hours. It lets the juices in the meat redistribute and yields a more moist product. Still piping hot when you get it out. Also can pour the juices from the foil over the pulled pork tastes great!

Another idea on the chicken wings. I have done them plenty of times in the MES before I got my gasser and my preferred method is to toss them in a deep fryer for a minute or two once I pull them from the smoke to crisp the skin up. Always turn out great.

If you like the traeger I would for sure keep it! I have never used one but seems like the guys that do seem to love them as long as you are using the right pellets.

 

[Jeffrey M Adams]

i wrapped a brisket at the stall and it worked great. no issues doing that. Good idea on wings, although i don't have a deep fryer.

 

[amlong88]

The tube should give you enough smoke in the mes. I wouldn't add chips if using the tube in it. That helps make it so you don't have to monitor every 15-30 min and makes it set and forget.

 

[RiversideSm0ker]

Here is s tip I got from a co-worker who is a sponsored competition bbq team member. He suggested to me that I prick the skin on chicken before smoking. I used a corn cob holder to puncture some thighs before smoking them and it worked really well. His explanation was that the pin holes slow the fat to leak through the skin as it cooks on the smoker. He says that they actually have a tool that is pretty much a plate with large rectangular pattern of pins that they use to puncture an entire thigh in a single stroke. If you are so inclined you could try that on your wings for more bite through skin from your smokers. Enjoy ;)

George

 

[indaswamp]

With wings...though I do not use TWO different smokers, I do use TWO different cooking appliances. I smoke the wings first low and slow and pour the smoke to them. Then, I pull the off and deep fry them. Talk about smokey wings with crispy skins!!!!

 

[Jeffrey M Adams]

Thanks for all the good advice. Was very happy with how everything turned out. I ended up using my Pellet smoker for the Pork Butts. I did find a 20lb one at Costco Business Center that had the Bone In. (It was actually 2 ~10lbs). I did them both and had them low and slow for about 30hrs. Started Thu Eve about 10:30pm and pulled 1 off at around 5AM and another off around 7AM (the one at 7AM I had in a cast iron pan on the grill, the other was directly on the rack). Pulled them off at 205. Rotated 4-5 times during., and sprayed some apple juice on it when i did that. Put some of the pan drippings on the one on rack too. Had a hard time flipping later, as it was tender enough it started to break apart.
Bone fell out once I was ready to pull it. I double wrapped and put in oven at 170(Lowest I could get) to keep warm because It finished earlier than I wanted. Next time I'd start around 3am instead of 10:30pm the night before.
I used Lumberjack hickory pellets and had a combination of hickory and apple in an AMAZN tube up top. I did the tube for about 12 hours (3 times)...I have 2 of them so I just rotated them. Let the rest after pulling out of the warmer for a good 3hrs or so before pulling.

Did the wings in the Electric and was happy with them too. Had 1/4 with leftover rub from the pork, and the other 3/'4 with just salt/pepper. Pulled the salt/pepper ones off at about 150 and rolled in butter/flower and fried real quick then didpped in various sauces. Left hte rubbed ones on till 165. Had 4 type together, buffalo, sweet baby rays, the rubbed ones, and a custom one i winged it on. They were all pretty tasty. The pork was the champ though.
The beginning:

The end:

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

Butts turned out awesome man that’s some good looking Q!

Glad it all worked out!

 

[SonnyE]

I have done a split with Chicken thighs, skin on.
She doesn't like smoked. I do.
I read where some folks were wanting smoked, and crispy skin. So I accepted the gauntlet.
Smoke my chicken, finished in the air fryer.
Best of both worlds.
The only wrong is if you don't eat the evidence. ;)

Get you an AMNPS, and you can smoke till you choke. I fill mine and get 11 hours of smoke, no touch.
I figured going in I would be modifying mine. I need more versatility than box stock. I do cheese's and nuts, and Salmon and fishes. And I love the 3,2,1, method.
So I needed to go from cold smoking to hot, reliably.
You are in a great place to learn the tricks.

Welcome to SMF!