So I'm getting back into a house again this week and one thing I want to do is grill now that I have the space. I'd like to be able to grill the usual stuff, plus I'd like to have the option to smoke as well. I saw a couple of pretty good combo smoker/grills at Home Depot today just by coincidence (haven't been shopping yet, haven't done any homework). I'm assuming that you pretty much have to get a combo setup if you want to do both (unless you want to buy seperate grill and smoker). Any thoughts on necessary options? I saw a rotissierie setup that looked pretty cool but not sure how much it would get used. Also one had a searing surface(or something like that, forget what it was called exactly) that was supposed to let you sear the meat before putting it back on the grill. Does anyone use one of those? Anyway, any input or recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!
Other than the convenience of popping on the gas grill for hamburgers and hotdogs I would recommend the Big Green Egg. It will do just about anything from smoking to cooking a pizza.
The combos that I have seen at HD and Lowe's seems to be fairly thin. That means potential for fairly rapid change in temp while snoozing in the afternoon. I doubt any of them are actually going to rust out all that fast if you don't let rain get on old ashes. I built myt own smoker and I doubt that is something for everyone's style, but I bought a Paulie Jr. (the smart sassy kid from some motorcycle show) for about $100. It is a ******* flamethrower and I love it for grilling. Gets up to 500 degrees in about a minute with a 1lb propane tank. My way of thinking about grilling is lots of very high heat and sturdy grates and it has both. Everyone has their own mantra. On smokers, you could probably get away with one of those bullet shaped deals (Mr. Smokey?). Most of the combo units strike me as jack-of-all trades master-of-none, but maybe I'm too picky or too untalented. I cannot move my smoker out of sight, but the grill deal is a little bigger than a suitcase when you collapse it down for storage in the garage closet.
BGE. I have an electric smoker, but it wont last long as a BGE is in my near future. I use my brothers and its amazing. If you buy one, get the digiQ. Helps regulate airflow (ie. temp)
I have a separate gas grill and off-set smoker and love them both equally. I use the gas grill 2-3 times during week for quick grilled chicken, pork chops, burgers, ect. I bust out the wood and keep it low and slow during the weekend with a frosty beverage in my hand. I couldn't live without either as they both have their advantages. If you do go with an off-set type smoker be sure to pay attention to the quality of the welding and thickness of the steel used. Make sure to buy the thickest gauge available even if it means spending a little more. I have an Oklahoma Joes "longhorn" smoker and it is a great pit for a moderate price.
You can always grill on a smoker with a lower fire box, in fact, steaks are great at 300 degrees F for an hour or so. Academy has some reasonably priced smokers for around $300. In addition to a smoker, I have a typical $150 gas grill when I don't care about a smoke flavor or don't want to go through the 10 minuts to prep the wood and start the charcoal can thingy with newspaper.
Yeah, I do like it well done... Closer to 1 hour say, two does seem unreasonable. I'll see about documenting my next steak smoking on my Oklahoma Joe's.
No shoe leather. Just tried it last night again. 1.5 inch thick New York cuts took about 1 hour and 10 minutes at 350 F plus or minus 50 F to reach medium done.
