(Part 3) Top products from r/smoking

Reposting my comment from the last time this came up:

I'll second the recommendation for starting out with a Weber Kettle 22" for a first smoker if you're looking to get started smoking. It's the most versatile outdoor cooker you'll find for a reasonable price and it won't fall apart on you even if you abuse it, unlike others. Also, parts and accessories are far, FAR easier to find for it than any other cooker.

You can fit a full brisket or a full rack of ribs (or two) on it as long as you're careful and you rotate at least once during cooking. It has enough space to feed family and friends. You'll only need a larger smoker if you're regularly cooking for large groups of people (10 or more).

Pellet smokers are very convenient, but they aren't as versatile as charcoal smokers/grills. Maintaining high temps for searing, for example, can be difficult to impossible, depending on the unit. And with an automatic temperature controller, charcoal smoking can be made pretty darned hassle-free as they (if set up and used correctly) can virtually eliminate the need to adjust your vents.

If you maintain a low temperature like 225, you can get 6-8 hours out of the initial load of coal you place in the unit at the start of cooking. To give you an idea of the difference: this amounts to about a 1/4 to 1/3 of a large bag of Kingsford blue on my 22" Kettle.

Here's the exact setup I would suggest for starting out for your first few years of learning this craft:

Weber 22 inch Original Kettle - $99

Hinged, Heavy-Duty Cooking Grate (Hinges are crucial for adding charcoal in the middle of a cook and this will last quite a bit longer than the grate that comes with the vanilla Original) - $20

Slow 'N Sear smoking kit (Not 100% necessary but does make the heat way less direct, which is a very good thing when smoking)) - $90

IQ110 Automatic Temperature Regulator (Also not 100% necessary, but almost eliminates the need to tend your vents when smoking) - $140

Thermoworks Smoke (do NOT cheap out on your thermometer! Get something cheaper and you will just wind up constantly replacing probes due to them reporting false temps. You have been warned!) - $100

With this setup, you can turn out BBQ every bit as good as you can on anything short of a full-on log-burning offset smoker with just a little bit of practice, and you won't have to "baby" it. You just dump more charcoal in every 7-9 hours (depending on desired temps, wind, and leakage).

And if you decide to go with a WSM or other charcoal smoker down the road, the temperature regulator can be moved over and will work just as well with it.

Even though I have had a number of dedicated smokers, I find myself still using my Kettle quite a bit when I'm just cooking for myself, my immediate family, and/or one or two friends. It's just more efficient and less of a hassle.

For smoking, generally, my suggestion would be to either start in on your rib technique; maybe split two racks of ribs in half for a total of four pieces and experiment with leaving each one on for a different amount of time to see where you fall on the tenderness=done spectrum. I like mine so tender they almost fall off the bone, but can still hold up to a knife when slicing them. Others prefer them less tender; almost like biting into a steak. To each their own.

Or you can move on to your hot and fast technique with some chicken quarters (which are more forgiving and tastier when smoked than breasts). I generally recommend 300-325 for 1.5-2 hours. Since most folks' palates are so used to the flavor of chicken and it's a relatively mild meat, this is where you can really get a taste for the differences between woods. Always, always err on the side of adding less wood than you would think. 1-2oz on a charcoal smoker is plenty.

Save brisket for when you've got everything dialed in. It can be the most difficult to get right and has gotten to be one of the more expensive pieces of meat to smoke. Even where it's cheap you're usually looking at $40-50 per full (prime) brisket at the lowest.

The most useful thing to get a feel for is how to stabilize the temp of your smoker; make small changes to the position of your vents each time and have the patience to actually give it time for those adjustments to have an effect. Get a feel for what to do when you get a temperature spike from too much charcoal lighting off at once, for example. Will closing off the bottom vents be enough or do you need to choke it off with the top vent, as well (avoid if possible but use if necessary)? Stuff like that.

As always, a good set of temperature probes and thermometers is invaluable here!

I have a Big Chief electric that I use for fish, vegetables, cheese and all non-meat items. It won't reliably maintain temp above 200F, but it's perfect for fish, which really shouldn't be smoked over 200F. And it's completely user serviceable, so if the element goes out, you can buy one at a fishing store and replace it. Unfortunately, it's unsuitable for meat, which needs to be smoked at 200F-350F, so I have a charcoal smoker for meat.

When it comes to an electric meat smoker such as you're trying to decide on, the ideas of a beginning (inexpensive) smoker and a good smoker are mutually exclusive. Both of the smokers you mention have a reputation for breaking down due to shoddy workmanship. If I had to pick between two evils, I'd go with the Masterbuilt, because Cajun Injector is basically a food company that has a reputation for a whole host of its spot-welded barbecue/grill products falling apart with normal use.

For an electric that won't break down in the first year or two, $300 is your beginning price point with the Smokin-It 1. The sweet spot, pricewise, IMO, would be the Cookshack Smokette at $675. Good electrics are pricey.

You'll get a much better beginner's value if you go propane. Char-Broil is a good choice. You might need to seal some cracks with high temp caulk and put a high temp silicone gasket around the door space to make it airtight, but this is the only issue I've heard about it. Camp Chef's Smoke Vault is another good one.

I understand the attraction of set it & forget it, but don't think propane needs a lot of skill to operate. No matter what type of smoker you get, you'll want to get a wireless dual probe thermometer (e.g., Maverick so you can monitor meat temp and smoke temp from your pocket clip-on monitor. You can't trust any thermometer that comes attached to the smoker. Anyway, the main thing to worry about with propane smokers is to keep an extra canister of propane on hand in case you use one up in the middle of a smoke. As far as insulation goes, if you live in the north and want to smoke after September, you'll need to use exterior insulation anyway, and a windbreak.

It just takes a little practice and building up confidence... while getting to eat way better BBQ than you get at most restaurants and way more fresh.

If you don't already have one, you really need to get a digital thermometer like this one.

And I highly recommend this book for some great recipes - smoked meatloaf was really good. The mac n' cheese recipe is ridiculous.. family/coworkers know me for it. It has a lot of other great tips for the WSM too.

Welcome to the club, it's such a delicious hobby.

I was in a very similar situation as you, actually. I started with a propane smoker so that I could more easily smoke overnight and not have to tend it. I now have a WSM, but I had the propane smokers for a few years before upgrading. The one I had was the Smoky Mountain Propane Smoker. I actually had two of them at one point.

My thoughts? The WSM (wood/charcoal) puts out better meat and maintains temperatures easier than the SM smokers did, but the ease of propane was quite nice. It has a wood box in it so you do actually get smoke flavor (although perhaps not as much). And being vertical meant I could do quite a bit at a time.

Overall I think they can do a very good job, but may not be quite as good as wood/charcoal. Obviously that is an opinion and YMMV, but those are my 2 cents.

If you're just doing a few pounds every once in a while, this is a good option:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OBXZ9EY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_dp_T2_9kHFzbGNBJ1JK

It's a scaled down version of the cast iron press my family uses to do our 250lbs per year.

Meat Grinder isn't really necessary, I'd take a look at how this guy grinds his meat if you have a food processor already, it's not great for really large quantities, but it's good for a few lbs every now and again:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=basFyoMSjds
He says beef, but I've done pork and lamb like this as well.

Edit: forgot to mention mixing, don't bother buying a mixer, a good bowl and your hands in some gloves (or just washed) will do just fine.

Also, if you have a local butcher shop, they should have casings for you to buy. Call me old fashioned but synthetic casings just seem gross to me, to make a good kielbasa or hotlink, pig casings are best, if you want breakfast sausage or little smokey links, lamb casings are good for that.

I have the Oklahoma Joe Highland and I like it. Fairly heavy construction for a low price. It weighs about 200lbs. It eats a lot of fuel but it is easy to maintain temperature and everything I have smoked on it has come out delicious. I generally have to feed it charcoal every 2-3 hours to keep it at temp so it requires some maintenance but not too much.

The only modifications I made to mine was some self stick seals for the doors and some food grade high temp sealant for the joints between the firebox and the barrel. Without those it leaked a lot of air/smoke.

I would also recommend a thermometer because the one built into the lid always reads 25-50 degrees hotter than the temperature at the grate where your food is. I use this one and it works great. Just glance at it every now and then to check if I need to add more fuel.

So I didn't really use an 'all-in-one' guide kind of a method, mostly just creeping on here and then taking the best videos, sites, and recommendations from it all.

Best video to watch for trimming a brisket, I found was the BBQ with Franklin video; I watched it a few times, and watched it while I was trimming, and still feel like I didn't quite do it "right". It's intimidating once it's in front of you. Thought I knew what the point and the flat were, and it's pretty obvious, but once I started trimming, and it started looking more uniform, I kind of lost track of where I was a bit.

Brisket weight, I honestly went with the cheapest one they had at the butcher shop near my house - I didn't want to waste my money on something huge, or nice, but wanted to try a full packer and not a pre-trimmed cut. Went with a 9lb brisket for like $30.

I used a Maverick ET733 thermometer but like I said, between the two probes I've noticed smoking other things that they're off about 10deg between each other. From what I've seen on this forum, the WSM forum and other places, they're pretty accurate out of the box; I think I got a bad set of probes. I also have a thermapen for steaks and stuff so those got me in the ballpark on internal temp and smoker temp and the thermapen kind of helped verify everything at the end.

Smoked with hickory wood chunks. I would've used apple or cherry (out of preference), but when I went into my garage, that's all I had left, so that's what I went with. Used the minion method for wood/coals. Only really checked on it about 3x the whole time because I was working on other things and didn't want to keep checking and extending the cook time by opening and closing the smoker; didn't spray it, didn't wrap it during the smoke. Wrapped it in foil when I pulled it out for about an hour and a half on the countertop before I cut it. Chopped the point off and made burnt ends. :)

I picked up this indoor kettle smoker to do just what you described. So far we've done chicken, salmon, scallops, bacon, cod, and tilapia. It's super easy to use and clean, and the smell is nice and airs out within a day, faster if you have an exhaust fan over your stove or open some windows. We don't bother opening windows since we enjoy the smell.

It takes about 20-25 minutes to cook a whole chicken breasts, and 18 minutes or less for fish depending on its thickness.

I'm a big fan of Penzey's spices which you can purchase online. Also this Cranberry - Orange Seafood spice is my all time favorite seasoning for salmon, scallops, you name it.

I installed one of these last weekend and calibrated it to the probe temp at the grate. The iGrill2 wireless is great but its nice that I can just glance at this one from across the patio (at 5" diameter its pretty easy to see).

I've got opinions on a couple of these:

-1. pork butt is super forgiving...next closest I would say is a prime rib roast. It's a nice big chunk of tasty meat that smokes up nicely. Turkey breast is another tough to screw up option.

-3. You'll want a wireless like a Maverick and a decent instant read unit, the Lavatools Javelin is a very good and inexpensive option

Congrats on the new smoker! Weber smokey mountains are a great step up from electric.

These links should help:

https://amazingribs.com/weber-smokey-mountain-accessories

http://virtualweberbullet.com

https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Smoking-Smokey-Mountain-Smokers/dp/1624140998


If you don't have one, I would get a nice wireless thermometer since the one on the lid will not be accurate.

I think there's the foundation of a good idea here, but I think it needs more work. One of the attractions of al pastor is that it's broiled on the trompo, so the bits of meat are seared at high heat, which lends them a lot of flavor. I think it's great that you're smoking the meat, but after it's cooked, I still think you're missing out if you skip the sear. You could hit it with a Searzall, ideally, or just a plain propane torch.

I have one and it works great. I recommend it. I also have a Lavatools thermometer for those instant reads, also works great for probing meats like brisket.

I've owned probably 5 of these, over the last 7 years. I kept buying them because they were cheap, and they ran the dual function of grill and smoker, and here are my thoughts for whatever they are worth:

• Depending on your climate, these things rust out really fast. I live in South Florida, and I would get about a year out of one before it was totally unusable. That said, at $60 a pop, it made sense to me.
  
  
• They work pretty well as a grill. They have a lot of surface area, and you can do some creative things with indirect versus direct, versus grilling with some extra fire and smoke in the fire box.
  
  
• As serviceable as they are for grilling, they are really hard to use for smoking. The design on most of them has the smokestack at the top of the half-barrel, which means a lot of your heat and almost all of your smoke will go from the firebox, up to the top of the half-barrel, then out of the chimney. As a result, the stuff closer to the firebox will wind up with VASTLY more smoke than the stuff farther away. This is not necessarily a bad thing if you are cooking a lot of different stuff at once, and want varying smoke intensity. It can be a bad thing, however, if you want consistency. Additionally, compared to other kinds of smokers, you need a larger amount of smoke to get the same flavor because of the inefficiency.
  
  
• It can teach you all of the principles of smoking, if only through troubleshooting its flaws.
  
  If it were me, with that budget, I would go with a classic weber kettle which is a hell of a grill, but also can produce some GREAT smoked foods with some accessories.
  
  If you find you're using it a lot, save up for a weber smoky mountain, and you'll have all the gear you'll ever need (but your smoker lust will have just started).
  

This is the kind I use - Smoky Mountain Vertical Gas Smoker: http://www.amazon.com/Smoky-Mountain-Vertical-Gas-Smoker/dp/B005KRZ4F4

Pros:

• easy to control temp
  
• propane lasts forever
  
• wood chips in box make great smoke
  
• grill space to smoke lots of stuff
  
• cheap
  
  Cons:
  
  
• refilling box with wood chips means uses heat-proof gloves (I use http://www.amazon.com/Charcoal-Companion-Ultimate-Barbecue-Mitt/dp/B003FZAVZ6/ )
  
  Personally, I like the simplicity of a gas smoker. Set up at dawn & I don't have to attend it much during the day. Keeps things warm without overdoing the smoke.

i have a probe thermometer similar to this one

and the smoker has a built in meat probe that i can track/be alerted via bluetooth, or by a readout on the smoker.


thanks for helping me to sort all this out. this meat is mostly for me and a couple friends that understand its my first time, so if i screw up, i will still have hopefully learned something.

1. I've heard this before from people, but it's nonsense. I can easily make things bitter from too much smoke if I want to using my Traeger. But there's no way I can go back to a non-pellet smoker giving the convenience. Sometimes I have a lot going on and the smoker is only part of that day, not the center of it. The hands-off nature achieves that. And the smoke flavor is plenty enough.
   
   
2. I wouldn't recommend trying it. I can get mine up to around 500F on a hot day, which is not nearly enough (and it takes a while). If you're just looking for something that will put a high-temp sear on a piece of meat (like for finishing it off, searing scallops, etc) you could try something like a Searzall. You could also just use the broiler in your oven (it's basically just an upside down grill). Or if you want to be a little more traditional, just put a cooking grate top of a charcoal chimney starter.
   
   I cook a lot of things sous vide the last few years. I've found myself searing the meat that comes out of the bag in a cast iron skillet on a portable butane burner that I can take out onto the back porch if I'm searing something like steak. I also sometimes will use that to put a crispy exterior on things that have come off the smoker. It's only 11K BTU, but it does a very good job at making the cast iron extremely hot.

My MES doesn't have an internal thermometer, nor do I know if you can calibrate yours.

What I DO know is that I bought this kit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075L7V6NZ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_A71RCbMMK1248 off of Amazon (with extra probes), and it's been amazing to me. It must be accurate enough, because everything I've cooked with it so far turns out damn near perfect. I highly recommend buying this, even if it's just for the convenience of getting alerts via BT on your phone.

Costco pork belly cut into ~2 pound sections. Cured using Meathead's Maple Bacon recipe for 6 days. Smoked on GMG Jim Bowie for 1 hour at 180 degrees and then at 225 degrees, until internal temp was 150 degrees (about another hour). Let cool until firm enough to slice. Sliced on a Chef's Choice 615 electric slicer (replaced the default serrated blade with a non-serrated blade). This morning, we baked a few slices at 400 degrees on parchment paper-lined cookie sheet for 15-20 minutes until done. Family loved it. I'm really happy with how it turned out.

I use this and am very happy with it: Maverick Wireless Dual Probe Thermometer . You can take the wireless reader around the house with you or set it in your kitchen, whatever your fancy. It's great.

-- Sorry for the wall of text.

Nope, it's just a preservative, though it also keeps jerky that "red"
coloring most people are used to. You've likely eaten tons of it, you just weren't aware of it.

____

[Edit: It's important to mention that cure isn't meant to keep your meat safe "for a long time". Many home cooks figure they'll eat their jerky well before it goes bad, so they don't care. That isn't how it works. You use a cure so that your meat doesn't go bad while you are processing/dehydrating/cooking it. You use a cure to keep it safe while you try to process it into a state that it can preserve itself or be protected by low temps.

Once your jerky is finished and tossed in a paper bag for your pantry or vac-packed for your freezer, the cure's job is "largely" done. That's where your salt, internal water content, humidity and temp come into play. Prosciutto for example is cured to hell and back and has been hanging around for months/years, but you wouldn't throw a slice on your counter and eat it even 2 days later (ok ... maybe 3 three days).

_____

Before sodium nitrite and other preservatives, you'd have to salt the hell out of meat and wash that salt out before consuming, or make pemmican which is completely dried and then usually ground and mixed with fats.

Jerky as we know it isn't shelf stable at "room temp". That is, not unless salted/candied, prepared in a sterile environment and vac sealed. Check out any bag of jerky (and many, many other foods), they all have have sodium nitrite or similar ilk listed under the ingredients. A few are "uncured", but that is a marketing gimmick as they get their nitrates from ingredients like celery powder or sea salt held at specific temps for a week or two for the nitrates to develop "naturally".

There are two types of cures btw, fast acting (Cure #1) and slow acting (Cure #2). The first is made for food you are going to process within a week (not including refrigeration time), like jerky and some sausage. It is also called Prague Powder, pink salt, tinted cure, butchers salt etc; it's all the same stuff. Cure #2 is used for items that will dry over long periods of time. That is basically used in any charcuterie items like salami and prosciutto, as well as traditional cured hams like Country Ham.

This is the stuff you want for jerky.

What to give the man that has everything? Something rare, something he probably won't think he needs...

1. Guava Wood! some darn hard wood for smoking. Great with pork and chicken as it is a fruit wood. Ok with beef. http://www.hawaiiguava.com/
   
   
2. a TORCH.. why not? Make creme Brulee, caramelize that sauce etc.
   
   Get the TS8000 and this :
   
   http://www.amazon.com/Booker-Dax-Searzall-Blowtorch-Attachment/dp/B00L2P0KNO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1419274787&sr=8-1&keywords=searzall
   
   
3. How about if he wants to cold smoke some cheese:
   
   http://www.amazon.com/A-MAZE-N-AMNPS5X8-A-maze-n-Pellet-Smoker/dp/B007ROPJ1M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1419274936&sr=8-1&keywords=wood+pellet+smoke+tray
   
   

River Country!!! To install in the WSM, I had to purchase a unibit and drill out the hole to 13/16" to fit it in, but this thing is affordable and bang-on accurate!!!! Stole the idea from T-Roy Cooks on youtube. Additionally, there's a set-screw type deal in the back where you can calibrate it - so if you wanted it to sit in the hood like I have but actually read what the temp is at the grate level, you can stick a probe in at grate level and calibrate the River Country to read what that reads- so even though it's placed in the top of the smoker, it will read the correct transcribed temp from the grate level. Couldn't recommend this therm enough.

River Country Therm


Unibit Set for drilling

For the hot non food stuff I have two Pitt Mitt gloves. They work great. For hot food handling I bought these off of amazon and they work well -

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K1L9SAG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_2fhDDbJKH5Y81

Found this on Amazon for $123 and has decent enough reviews.


Edit: This also seems pretty good for home use and is $100.

If you're looking for a compromise between electric and charcoal, go gas. I use a propane smoker and it's super easy to use. You don't need to baby sit it, just add more wood every 45 min-1hr. I have the Char-Broil Vertical Gas Smoker. It's the refrigerator type you're describing. Comes with 3 cooking grates.

I use this one: https://www.amazon.com/Char-Broil-12701705P1-Vertical-Gas-Smoker/dp/B004J66WWG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486686832&sr=8-1&keywords=vertical+gas+smoker+charbroil

This was what I was hoping. I've wanted to buy a sausage stuffer for so long now, and this is some definite incentive. Any recommendations on tools of the trade? I've had my eye on this guy for a while.

I am looking to move to a propane smoker myself. I was looking at the Masterbuilt unit you referenced above and then I came across an article that said this was rated best top end propane smoker: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006FU06M6/?tag=outdoorlivinggear-20

Reasonable price also. Anyone know anything about Smoke Hollow?

That last photo is amazing.

Also, for those wondering like I was, Prague Powder.

This is the one I got:

https://www.amazon.com/Smoke-Hollow-44241G2-44-Inch-Vertical/dp/B006FU06M6

Would love to get into making briskets and ribs! There’s only 2 of us so I think I jumped the gun space wise too it’s very big.

two of these

It’s definitely worth doing on any smoker, and if you haven’t I recommend a high temp silicon based sealant to coverup all the cracks on the outside.

Yes it works well. I had to use acetone to clean the surface before I stuck it on. This is the tape

The River County 5" seems like a good replacement

Get a digital meat thermometer, makes a huge difference in how easy it is to monitor internal temperature.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017613C3C/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Not necessarily this specific one, but would something like this be effective in what I want to do?

https://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-Indoor-Outdoor-Kettle/dp/B007ZKUVPC/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1479104503&sr=1-8&keywords=smoker

My dome thermometer doesn't work but I don't care because I have an Weber iGrill, 4 probe wireless thermometer. I use one for grill temp and the three others for meat temp. I bought the Cajun Bandit door because it looks and seals so much better. I was still losing a lot of smoke around the lid so I bought this gasket. All I did was clean the lip around the barrel and it sticks just fine. I also bought the grommet and drilled the hole for it. It's not necessary but I like it better this way.

I bought a Landmann used last summer and so far it's working like a champ. I did build a little hut for it to help it out in the cold, otherwise, I've got no complaints.

Sure,

• Pork Belly: $2.99/lb
  
• Pink Cure #1: $14.22
  
• Kosher Salt: $7.91
  
• Brown Sugar: $6.00
  
  Then some ziploc bags, pepper if you want, wood chips and a smoker. The curing salt lasts a very long time, and I don't think I paid as much for the salt and sugar locally.

I've got the Chugod which you can get from Amazon.

It's bluetooth only, but has decent range. I can still have it connected from the third story of my apartment. It can carry 6 probes as well.

My only gripe with it is that I can't figure out how to nickname each probe, or if you can at all.

Yes, the amount of coal you add is the determining factor. You might want to buy a [digital thermometer] (https://www.amazon.com/ThermoPro-Digital-Cooking-Thermometer-Stainless/dp/B017613C3C/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1491328348&sr=8-14&keywords=BBQ+thermometer) to monitor the temperature.

These are the handles: https://amzn.to/2LJaYJN I took a pair of sturdy pliers and a crescent wrench and bent the mounting tabs slightly to fit the curve of the grill. I think you can see what I'm referring to in one of my other pictures

And this is the thermometer: https://amzn.to/2JvcMn4 I get a couple cents in amazon referral on this...full disclosure

You really should use Food Safe Hi-Temp Sealant on smokers.

I bought this one: New VIVO Sausage Stuffer Vertical Stainless Steel 3L/7LB 5-7 Pound Meat Filler ~ by VIVO (STUFR-V003) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OBXZ9EY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_TOCOybBBBM161

Works great. I don't know that you're going to be able to avoid the $100 price tag for anything decent

There are stovetop smokers that give off very little or no smoke. This is the one I use: http://www.amazon.com/Nordic-Ware-Indoor-Outdoor-Kettle/dp/B007ZKUVPC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1419693170&sr=8-2&keywords=stovetop+smokers I find it works great. They can be used indoors or outdoors.

like Alt4sniper said, it is a high temp gasket. here is the product I bought

[here ya go buddy. make sure you follow the instructions to a T. ](fireblack hi temp bbq smoker gasket self stick 15 ft high heat 1/2 x 1/8 black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TAJW0QE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Nb9WBb8VFVMXP)

Chef'sChoice 6150000 Food Slicer https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0058VCYWS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_9To6BbV4Y6NX3

I use it exactly as you describe. It works well.

Artisan Griller Gloves These are really fine gloves. I’ve had them for years. They’re heat resistant and you can wear them while cleaning under your faucet.

I just did the same thing, and used the food grade stuff good up to 500. I went with it to be sure that I wasnt eating any off-gassing crap that wasnt food safe.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0114AERBM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I use this quick read one. It’s similar to ThermoWorks, which is what people with money to spend buy. It’s just a little slower and less fancy I guess.

https://www.amazon.com/Lavatools-PT12-Javelin-Thermometer-Chipotle/dp/B00GRFHXVQ

For long smokes though, I will admit, I use a Fireboard. And it’s the Cadillac of wireless temperature monitoring.

Without a doubt the Maverick ET-733.

Fireblack Hi Temp BBQ smoker Gasket Self Stick 15 ft High Heat 1/2 x 1/8 Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TAJW0QE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_T4a6BbVTCR8V8

Secret's to Smoking on the Weber Smokey Mountain and Other Smokers" by Bill Gillespie.

BBQ Meat Thermometer, Bluetooth Remote Cooking Thermometer, Digital Oven Thermometer with 6 Probe Port for Smoker Grilling (Carrying Case Included) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075L7V6NZ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_zQQgDbEGGYN64 I just got this. I’ve only used it once, but it does what you’re looking for. I have a Smokey mountain too, usually zip tie the actual unit to the lid handle.

I have this and it hasn't let me down yet.

https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Thermometer-Bluetooth-Grilling-Supported/dp/B075L7V6NZ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519331864&sr=8-1&keywords=chugod

This one - a vertical propane smoker.

If you don't already have one, a leave-in meat thermometer: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017613C3C/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Could Prauge powder 1 be used on dry cures? Its what I use now for my wet rubs. This cure is mixed in cold water 1tsp per 5# of meat.

These are the gloves I use to handle big hunks of hot wet meat - https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00K1L9SAG/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The Smoking Gun

Ohhhh i thought you made that setup inside your smoker. You can try a [Smoking Gun] (https://www.amazon.com/Smoking-Gun-Handheld-Food-Smoker/dp/B00K572J8O) and an upside down pot.

Boom.

I settled for a 22.5 kettle because I didn't want to spring for a whole smokey mountain.

That was 5 years ago and I still use it for everything.

Just bought this myself on Monday. If it ever stops raining, I'll try it out.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TAJW0QE/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My guess is they blasted the heavy cream with a smoke gun prior to whipping.

http://www.amazon.com/Smoking-Gun-Handheld-Food-Smoker/dp/B00K572J8O

For small meals, I have this Stovetop smoker that I use in my apartment with the vent fan on and windows open. Tricky to get the temperature right and still missing some of the charcoal flavor, but no issues with the neighbors.

Picked up this probe therm for $15, orig $24.99: Lavatools PT12 Javelin Digital Instant Read Meat Thermometer (Chipotle)

I almost bought it previously but didn't love the price. Put it on the Honey drop list and received an email notification today.