OT: Smokers

[Matt (Chicago)]

I don't have a scorecard but has anyone in this thread provided a recommendation for an electric or propane smoker in the $100-$150 range?

sigh... these darn summer threads, they just get so off topic sometimes!

 

[temery]

I have a great recipe for smoked bluefish.

You need one bluefish, a smoker, an ocean and any other kind of fish.

First, as soon as you catch the bluefish, unhook it and immediately throw it back in the ocean.

Then, run home and smoke the other fish.

I find that really helps remove the oily, gamey, crappy taste of the bluefish.

You could just use the bluefish as bait.

 

[8893]

You could just use the bluefish as bait.

Bait for what? Rats?

Even other fish hate the taste of bluefish. Except other bluefish.

 

[TRest]

Craigslist is a valuable resource for lightly-used smokers that people decided to sell after a few failed attempts.

 

[CAHUSKY]

My partner and I had a gatorpit custom on a trailer.
I used BGE and and WSM too. Always had a few going. You had to. Never knew which one would p My best showing was in the rib category ( top 10) at a kcbs event in upstate NY. And the ribs that day came out of the WSM!

I do small time catering and was just about ready to make the leap to full time catering with a Gator or Jambo. Thankfully, I came to my senses and decided to stick with my small gigs around town I do with my UDS. That being said, the Stumps XL baby has been calling my name.

 

[August_West]

I have a great recipe for smoked bluefish. You need one bluefish, a smoker, an ocean and any other kind of fish. First, as soon as you catch the bluefish, unhook it and immediately throw it back in the ocean. Then, run home and smoke the other fish. I find that really helps remove the oily, gamey, crappy taste of the bluefish.

Like I said smoked until it is pretty much like jerky is the ONLY way I'll eat it. I make a salad out of it with mayo and stuff and have it on a bagel With Bermuda onion, tomato and cream cheese. It is a lot like smoked whitefish salad. Which as a born and bred NYC boy is in my blood to eat.

Even 8893's mayonnaise/ tinfoil deal ( which yes I've tried.) Hate it too!

In New England everyone says " yeah bluefish sucks but you've got to try my recipe".

I've tried them all, they all suck. Only smoking it until it's dry agrees with my palate and then I get sick of it after a couple days.

 

[Fishy]

If you have to smoke something to the point of non-existence before you can stomach it, you've wasted time you could have spent smoking something God intended to be edible.

It's truly a terrible fish to eat - it's a good thing, too. If they were edible, combined with how much they are to catch, we'd fish them into extinction.

Love catching them, but I'll never consider eating another one.

 

[8893]

It's truly a terrible fish to eat - it's a good thing, too. If they were edible, combined with how much they are to catch, we'd fish them into extinction.

Precisely what happened to redfish after Paul Prudhomme popularized blackened redfish. Tons of fun to catch and verrrrrry tasty. Now you need a license to catch them in Louisiana.

Loved catching snappers and blues and even snagging bunker as a kid, but never, ever warmed to the taste of bluefish. The mayo preparation I described allowed me to eat a few bites without gagging when it was served to me, and once we were "gifted" (i.e., burdened) with a friend's bounty and he insisted, despite my objections, that his mayo preparation made it tasty. He was wrong, but again it at least allowed me to politely get a few bites in before discreetly tossing my plate.

 

[Fishy]

The perfect fishing day is catching 50 bluefish...and two stripers.

 

[uconnbill]

Bluefish is awesome when it is smoked. You all are missing out on some tasty fish and not oily at all after smoking

 

[Huskybass]

If the smoker isn't made in New Haven, it can't possibly be good.

 

[Dougsts]

I have had a bradley digital, electric smoker for about 6 years or so. bradleysmoker.com I have had greatluck with it. It does a great job on ribs, chicken, brisket, salmon, jerky, pork shoulder, etc..

 

[August_West]

If the smoker isn't made in New Haven, it can't possibly be good.

Don't know about that ... But the least you can say is that sure as hell beats a smoker made in Hartford..........

 

[Excalibur]

Unless compared to a Big Green Egg, electric is fine. It allows for long smokes without constant monitoring. Deep is full of shi+.

But you have to get a decent one. Cookshack and smokn' tex are both good options.

 

[August_West]

Unless compared to a Big Green Egg, electric is fine. It allows for long smokes without constant monitoring. Deep is full of shi+. But you have to get a decent one. Cookshack and smokn' tex are both good options.

You won't find a decent one for 100-150 bucks though, which is partially why this thread went off the rails.,.. ( well that ... And it IS the boneyard summertime edition)

 

[Peacefrog]

Not at all what Tom is looking for but since we seem to have given up trying to actually provide him information within his given constraints....... for the more serious BBQ-er I suggest considering Backwoods BBQ smokers, these things work great and make some of the juiciest BBQ I have had. I hung with a team at Memphis in May that uses a really large version on a trailer and its awesome. These things might actually be more expensive than the BGE however.

 

[CAHUSKY]

Not at all what Tom is looking for but since we seem to have given up trying to actually provide him information within his given constraints.. for the more serious BBQ-er I suggest considering Backwoods BBQ smokers, these things work great and make some of the juiciest BBQ I have had. I hung with a team at Memphis in May that uses a really large version on a trailer and its awesome. These things might actually be more expensive than the BGE however.

Backwoods are awesome. Unfortunately, their entry level, The Chubby, is almost $1000.

 

[jackanddanny]

I am looking for a small electric or gas smoker (I'll be cooking for one). Charcoal isn't an option for me - too much work. But I have found my Weber Q320 grill just isn't right for slow cooking.

Suggestions? (And yes, I saw the recent post on grilling. Didn't answer my question)

After having read the thread, doesn't sound like you have the patience for the long, slow charcoal, etc process, nor the money for big investments on smoking equipment, which can be quite expensive, and, quite honestly, very infrequently used. Depending upon what you are cooking, why not try a product like Liquid Smoke. It's used in many restaurant chains to provide that smoky flavor for many applications. You can simply determine the right mix of Liquid Smoke, water, and any type of hardwood balance you'd like, pour it into the bottom of a 2-3 inch pan, bake in your oven to how you desire it, with meat on top of the liquid, separated by a rack of some sort. Then you finish it off on the grill you have. You can even hold it for a day or two before grilling and serving. You don't have to a) buy anything new, no matter your price range, and b) figure out where in the hell you're gonna keep, store, move that equipment. You can also try and ask suggestions from your nearest meat purveyor who rents equipment for smoking. But for me, even tho I know how to do it, smoking meat is best for a whole pig or lamb, and your doing it for one.

 

[CAHUSKY]

After having read the thread, doesn't sound like you have the patience for the long, slow charcoal, etc process, nor the money for big investments on smoking equipment, which can be quite expensive, and, quite honestly, very infrequently used. Depending upon what you are cooking, why not try a product like Liquid Smoke. It's used in many restaurant chains to provide that smoky flavor for many applications. You can simply determine the right mix of Liquid Smoke, water, and any type of hardwood balance you'd like, pour it into the bottom of a 2-3 inch pan, bake in your oven to how you desire it, with meat on top of the liquid, separated by a rack of some sort. Then you finish it off on the grill you have. You can even hold it for a day or two before grilling and serving.

BLASPHEMY!