How To Choose The Best Charcoal Smoker

The charcoal smoker is one of the most common types of outdoor barbecue pits. The reason why many people love this type of a smoker is the aroma that charcoal adds to the meat. In addition to charcoal, you can use wood from trees like hedge, apple, and hickory among others. Currently, these smokers come in two main types.

The most common type is the horizontal barrel with an offset firebox. The great thing about this type of smoker is that you can either use it as a smoker or grill. More so, it has a lot of space for big pieces of meat like ribs or briskets.

Another excellent feature about this smoker is that it is quite easy to use. For instance, if you want a slow roast, all you have to do is build your fire on the end and place your meat in the middle. This should be followed by setting the vents on the top to maintain a constant heat. Essentially, you want to create a system that pulls both heat and smoke from the fire across the meat and out of the vent. If you are grilling steaks or hamburgers, you should build your fire in the main barrel, just below the meat like you would in any grill.

The other common type of charcoal smoker is the upright barrel smoker. This smoker has a special place at the bottom that allows you to build the fire. The main grill is usually the top part of the barrel. Many upright barrel smokers have a pan between the grill and the fire that you can fill with water, which ensures that your meat does not dry up. This smoker is ideal for cooking small cuts of meat like roast as well as chicken.

With the upright barrel smoker, it is quite difficult to cook larger pieces of meat like ribs or briskets. The reason for this is that the meat sits directly on the fire, which is not good for a slow cook. Chicken tends to cook a bit faster. Another great thing about the upright barrel over the horizontal style smokers is the price. Due to its smaller size, it is cheaper.

When shopping for a charcoal smoker, all you have to do is keep in mind the size of cuts of meat that you will be preparing. Ensure that the kind and size of smoker you are about to buy will be able to accommodate your needs and preferences. Finally, it is important to mention that there are electric and gas smokers out there but many people love the charcoal smokers due to the flavor they add to the meat.