Time to get a smoker...

[Tmcw]

My wife discovered Gator Pit smokers out of TX. Commercial quality. Expensive but really nice. I traveled from CO to TX to pick mine up - about. 500 lbs! Love it. The one that they built for us is a smoker, propane grill, and huge burner with a stainless griddle that hinges down. A really Skookum unit.

[Aloha_Shooter]

GMG says vacuum out the fire box every 2-3 bags of pellets. I do it every time because I line the drip tray with foil and since I have it apart, might as well use my sweet little DeWalt cordless vacuum.

I have noticed a big difference in the amount of ash left between pellet brands. I tried Traeger and Pit Boss before settling on Lumberjack. The latter produces much less ash and more smoke flavor that the other two.

I seemed to remember being told to clean out every time I used it. It is much more convenient if the cleaning is every 2-3 bag of pellets. However often you clean it, just can't beat the combination of convenience and taste of a pellet smoker. I did a whole brisket (roughly 10 pounds -- smallest one available in the commissary) and 4 pounds of German sausage yesterday -- family polished off about 2/3 of the brisket and 1/2 the sausages.

[Gman]

I find I burn less pellets, temps are easier to maintain, and I can get higher temps for grilling if there's a little ash in the bottom. I also bought a pellet grill for convenience. Cleaning it after every use doesn't pull the convenience lever.

Made a whole packer brisket last Friday in the snow with the blanket on. I think I used fewer pellets than in normal weather.

[Justin]

It's a well recommended smoker, on a few cooking forums i'm on.

How are they for grilling? From what I see, a lot of the hardcore bbq guys don't care for using smokers because they don't get hot enough to get a good sear.

The Pit Boss does have a sliding cover that allows you to apply direct heat for searing, but I'm wondering how well it works, and what the pellet consumption looks like.

That's really the only thing that seems questionable, and why I like the Camp Chef setup with the propane-powered Sidekick.

Also, any idea on how it does for cold smoking? I'd like to try my hand at smoking fish and cheese, and based on what I'm seeing, a lot of smokers, even pellet smokers, aren't capable of doing those sorts of low temperatures.

[Bailey Guns]

...and why I like the Camp Chef setup with the propane-powered Sidekick.

The Sidekick burner is fantastic for steaks. And the pizza oven. I love that thing.

[eddiememphis]

Also, any idea on how it does for cold smoking? I'd like to try my hand at smoking fish and cheese, and based on what I'm seeing, a lot of smokers, even pellet smokers, aren't capable of doing those sorts of low temperatures.

Correct.

Cold smoking is usually considered anything under 100F. Most guys that do this use an external smoke generator or a pellet tube and the smoker is just a chamber. My GMG will run at 150F which isn't technically cold but I did a salmon this week and did cheese this summer with good results.



The cheese was a bit tricky. I put a pan of ice on the grate, insulated by a couple wooden shims. The the cheese was on a grate on the ice pan.



Smoked for two hours, let it sit in the fridge overnight, wiped the excess oil off and wrapped it up. Stuck it in the fridge for a week to temper the taste. Turned out great.

I think I want to try some crab legs next. It that works well, it sounds great!

[Gman]

I had my Traeger on Smoke for 2 hours and an insulating blanket and temp was running at 130. Still not 'cold smoking', but figured I'd drop that in for a reference.

A stick burner with an offset fire box is usually the 'go to' for cold smoking.

[colorider]

Correct.

Cold smoking is usually considered anything under 100F. Most guys that do this use an external smoke generator or a pellet tube and the smoker is just a chamber. My GMG will run at 150F which isn't technically cold but I did a salmon this week and did cheese this summer with good results.



The cheese was a bit tricky. I put a pan of ice on the grate, insulated by a couple wooden shims. The the cheese was on a grate on the ice pan.



Smoked for two hours, let it sit in the fridge overnight, wiped the excess oil off and wrapped it up. Stuck it in the fridge for a week to temper the taste. Turned out great.

I think I want to try some crab legs next. It that works well, it sounds great!

I did 15# of king crab legs on my RecTec a few weeks ago. Results were amazing. I did not smoke them though. Thawed them till still cold and rubbed them with olive oil and garlic. and put them on the RecTec at a temp of about 400. Turned them after about 10 min and let them go for another 10 or so. They were unreal. Slight smoke taste, perfect wood grilled taste, and juicy as can be. Won't ever steam them again.

[Justin]

The Sidekick burner is fantastic for steaks. And the pizza oven. I love that thing.

Yeah, that setup looks like it's really ideal for being able to get a good sear, or something you can fire up on a Tuesday night after work to grill a handful of burgers for dinner.

[Justin]

Correct.

Cold smoking is usually considered anything under 100F. Most guys that do this use an external smoke generator or a pellet tube and the smoker is just a chamber. My GMG will run at 150F which isn't technically cold but I did a salmon this week and did cheese this summer with good results.



The cheese was a bit tricky. I put a pan of ice on the grate, insulated by a couple wooden shims. The the cheese was on a grate on the ice pan.



Smoked for two hours, let it sit in the fridge overnight, wiped the excess oil off and wrapped it up. Stuck it in the fridge for a week to temper the taste. Turned out great.

I think I want to try some crab legs next. It that works well, it sounds great!

Yeah, I've seen the various different setups; the pellet tubes seem to be very reasonably priced; any idea how well they work?

When you smoked the salmon, did you do the whole process where you pack it in sugar and leave it in the fridge for a day or so beforehand?

Traeger has a video on Youtube that shows the cheese smoking method you describe, and I'm glad to hear that it works well.

Also, what about smoking vegetables? Last time I went over to a buddy's house, after we were done smoking turkey, I threw some olive oil-covered garlic cloves on the smoker just to see what would happen, and they turned out incredible. Did I get lucky, or is smoking vegetables a fairly straightforward thing?