Ranch 91

[ranch 91]

Howdy.....I'm just beginning to get into the wonderful world of smoking. I have absolutely no idea on where to begin. I'm buying a smoker with the intent of smoking meat from square one, that is not just smoking previously "cooked" meat. I've heard terms of "cold" smoking and "hot" smoking (which I believe is what I'm after). Where do I start and what kind of smoker should I be looking for? I'm not worried about the cost as I want quality. ANY advice would be appreciated.

 

[deejaydebi]

Hello Ranch 91 and Welcome -

There are all kinds of smokers it's kind of like having someone tell you what kind of clothes to wear - kind of a personal thing.

That being said:

1) start with a price (keep in mind this may not appeal to you - it happens)
2) Style - automatic temperature controls or chopping your own wood?
3) Fuel - Charcoal, wood, electric, propane, natural gas, pellets, biskets
4) Cooking grate size - 1 or 2 people or a banquet size?
5) Foot print size - do you have a place to keep it?

Look around the forum a bit and see if you can get an idea what others are doing and what appeals to you. You can start smoking for just a few dollars or spend thousands.

WARNING: Smoking food can be addictive try it at you own risk!

 

[tonto1117]

Welcome to the SMF Ranch 91. Like Debi said do a bit of looking around the forum and see what sounds good to you. We have folks with all different kinds of smokers so if you have a question don't hesitate to ask, chances are somone will have an answer for ya.

Glad you found us!!

 

[tom]

Welcome to the site,

I'm pretty new to smoking myself, and new to the site. I decided to get a Weber Smoky Mountain after looking here, and at the virtual weber bullet site. I've only done a couple smokes, with marginal success, but no regrets about my choice. There are a great number of types of equipment, and a lot of the folks here are happy with theirs, even cheap smokers.

When you say price doesn't mean much, that really leaves it wide open. Anything you decide will probably produce good results, at least it sounds that way from the posts here.

Tom

 

[meowey]

Welcome, welcome. Glad you found us!

Please consider taking TulsaJeff's 5-day ecourse on smoking basics. That will get you started.

Take care, have fun, and do good!

Regards,

Meowey

 

[smokincowboy]

welcome from Ohio

 

[Dutch]

Welcome to SMF, Ranch. You have found yourself in a wealth of Smokin' Knowledge with this group. One thing to consider on your smoker- do you want to be able to haul it around or will it have a permenant home on the patio? Lots of good advice has been given to you, all I can add is "Enjoy!!"

 

[deejaydebi]

Ranch -

I probably said this a millon times but ...

The smoker doesn't matter as much as the cook! I smoked in a cardboard box with a light bulb and tin pie pan for years and made great Q.

 

[teacup13]

welcome to SMF

 

[short one]

Ranch, something to think about when deciding on a smoker is the availability of the fuel you will be using. If you have good accessibility to wood or can purchase it readily, and at reasonable cost then you might spend some time researching and looking at a stick burner if storage space is not a problem at your place. But if getting and storing smoking wood would be a problem, look into an electric or gas smoker. By the way welcome to SMF, they're a bunch of good folks around here.

 

[larry maddock]

yo ranch 91,
im glad to meet you...

at least 3 of our canadien forum brothers have purchased from canadien tire a unit called centro or something like that---in last month or so..

they say its canuck version of masterbuilt electric smoker...

electric with digital control makes it easy....

no matter which fuel type you choose--
theres fplks around here that can advise you...

look forward to good eating...

 

[pigcicles]

Welcome to SMF ranch 91. Glad to have you here. Guess you have a lot more to think about now with all the advise you've been given. Once you have narrowed down your choices, check back with more questions to help you decide what you need. Good luck and looking forward to your posts.

Keep Smokin

 

[cajun_1]

Welcome to the SMF

 

[cheech]

And whatever unit you think you want always go the size larger and you will not be disappointed

 

[deejaydebi]

Good point Cheech!

Look at some of the meat you'll be smoking too and that'll give you an idea how big you need.

 

[cajunsmoker]

I agree wholeheartedly. Good smoked meat doesn't have to come from an expensive smoker. The secret is controlling the heat and the smoke.

 

[ultramag]

Welcome to SMF ranch 91!!! Are you more confused about what you want than when you started yet?

If it helps, it's not a big decision, they're like tater chips. No one can have just one.

 

[msmith]

Welcome to the forum Ranch.

 

[ranch 91]

Mucho gracias to all who have sent me a response.....I appreciate it...looks like I'm leaning towards an electric Bradley smoker....automatic fill thing is included so it looks like it might be easy to learn....I'll be keeping it on my back deck (close the eating table, where it should be) and I don't plan on moving it....once it's in it'll be permanent....has anyone (I don't know why I'm asking this) ever done any smoking in the extreme cold of winter....and where I live I do mean EXTREME....or is smoking basically a 3 season thing....anyway, thanks to everyone again and I'm looking forward to spending more time in here once I get everything set up....happy trails and happy smoking to all....p.s...loved that Texas barbeque we enjoyed last week in Austin while on vacation...."y'all" do it right and are lucky to have it at your fingertips every day....

 

[gunslinger]

Welcome to SMF.