A Beginner’s Guide to Choosing the Right Electric Smoker for Your Needs

Once you’ve tried properly-prepared smoked meat, you won’t be able to think about anything else. For meat lovers everywhere, smoked meat is a wonderful delicacy. If you regularly BBQ, an electric smoker will enable you to take your dishes to the next level.

An electric smoker is definitely a good investment for anyone who enjoys smoked meats, but choosing the best electric smoker for your needs can be difficult and confusing if you’ve never done it before. Different people will be best suited to different smokers – what’s ideal for one isn’t necessarily right for another.

How Much Will It Cost?

An electric smoker can cost anywhere from $50 to $10,000 brand new, so what you spend depends on what you want from it. It is worth starting out with a relatively cheap and small smoker so that you can get used to how it all works. You can always move onto something bigger and better further down the line.

What Features Should I Look for?

The best smokers will give you reliable results with minimum effort. Once you have put together a shortlist of electric smokers that fall into your price range, you can then compare the features offered by each of them.

Of course, some people prefer to take a much more active role in their barbecuing. If you prefer to exert more control over your meat during the smoking process, you can find models that are better suited for more user involvement. If this is the case, then you can save money by foregoing automation features.

The right features are the ones that you will use – don’t spend money on features you will never use.

How Big Will It Be?

As with the price, an electric smoker can be as big as you want it to be. The cheaper units are smaller, as you would expect, and obviously, the larger units are better suited to smoking more meat simultaneously. The smallest smokers are designed to be used by individuals, whereas the largest ones can cater to as many as 20 people.

Again, there is no right answer for how big your smoker should be; it will depend on entirely what you want to do with it. There’s no reason that it needs to be bigger than any other portable kitchen appliance if you get the right model. Alternatively, it can be the size of a barbecue, or even bigger.

What Are the Benefits of an Electric Smoker Over Coal or Wood?

There are a number of reasons that an electric smoker is preferable to the now-outdated coal and wood options. First of all, there are obvious environmental advantages – an electric smoker doesn’t require you to burn anything.

But the benefits aren’t just limited to the planet; your wallet will feel the results as well. You don’t need to buy fuel for an electric smoker, so you won’t have to worry about running out at an unfortunate time. Combining an electric smoker with a portable generator enables you to smoke meat outdoors without having to worry about burning fuel.

Better quality electric smokers will be equipped with thermostats. You should check this before you buy, and always opt for a thermostat over a Rheostat. Thermostats will provide much more accurate temperature readings, which is a necessity if you’re going to get the most out of your smoker. Cheaper and lower quality smokers are more likely to suffer from incorrect temperature readings.

Not only will you save money by using an electric smoker over a fuel-based alternative, you will also be able to save a lot of time. Electric smokers can achieve the same results in less time and for less money. If you value efficiency, an electric smoker is the best option by far.

With electric smokers available at every price point, consumers are spoiled for choice. The great thing about having such a wide range is that you are able to find a machine that is ideally suited to your individual circumstances. If you are willing to forego some of the automation features that many smokers offer, you can save yourself even more money.

Conclusion

When you are trying to decide on the best electric smoker for your needs, make sure that you are clear with yourself about what it is you are looking for. You can have any size, any price and any features that you want – it is entirely up to you. The right electric smoker will completely transform your BBQ dishes and enable you to reach new heights with your cooking. If you already smoke your meats using another method, then this can be a simple way of saving yourself time and money with your cooking. For anyone passionate about smoked meats, a good electric smoker is a must-have item.