How to Buy an Electric Smoker

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Charcoal and wood smokers are great for cooking delicious home-smoked foods, but it can be a real hassle to maintain the proper heat, temperature, and cooking time with these smokers. Electric smokers are much easier to use, but they have their drawbacks, as well. When you choose an electric smoker, look for some features that will make it easier to smoke your favorite foods, but still turn out a consistently tasty, well-smoked product, as well.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Idea of the features you'd like to have on your smoker.
List of smoker manufacturers or retailers, both online and in your home town.

Step1

Electronic temperature control or thermostat. Some of the cheaper electric smokers don't come with this feature, and it's vital if you really want to produce good smoked foods. Without a temperature control, you have no idea of the true temperature of the smoker, and it will be much more difficult to time the cooking process.

Step2

Type of fuel used. Electric smokers don't all use wood chips as their source of fuel. Many use an electronic element, much like the one on your oven for heat, and you just put in some wood chips to smoke while the food is cooking. This is a much less satisfactory way of smoking, and you won't get true smoked flavor unless you use wood or pellets for your fuel source. Look for a smoker that uses wood chips or wood pellets as the source of fuel for cooking.

Step3

Size. Some electric smokers are really quite small, and you can't cook even a good-sized turkey in them. Look for a larger electric smoker that as a full-sized grill that will allow you to cook more food at a time.

Step4

Versatility. Some electric smokers heat high enough so that you can use them as a grill, too, and some come with cold smoking attachments so you can cold smoke foods like cheese, nuts, and other items.

Tips & Warnings

Shop around before you choose the right electric smoker, and make sure you understand all the options available before you choose the right electric smoker for you.