Oh, we bought a smoker this weekend

6fsn

We went to a friends house for ribs and DH has been drooling every since.  He's been price stalking but didn't want to pull the trigger on a $200 rib cooker.  We happened to be in Meijer and they had the same one at $160 with an extra 10% off.  The purchase brought me up to enough on an mPerks coupon to get $10 off my groceries next time.  Now I'm dreaming of a Saturday spent smoking meat.

We also wandered a furniture store and have a basic concept and colors for our new room.

*Barbie*

that's awesome - i've been considering getting a smoker for DK as a gift, sometime. I always use wood chips when I grill - love that smoky flavor. I'm curious to hear how you like it. 

PMeg819

We have a smoker. DH hasn't used it in ages (been too hot) but we love it. He's been wanting to do a brisket. My only suggestion is to use decent quality meat. We go to a local butcher shop for our meat and the quality is much better than grocery store meat.

mrsconn23

We have a grill with a smoker box, but I think H wants to upgrade to a real smoker.  I second PMeg on hitting up a butcher for meat.   

emmyg65

We got a smoker with some of our wedding money—the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker. It's awesome. I think my favorite thing is whole roast chicken because it's so dang easy, but we're trying to perfect our smoked salmon.

dharmabunny

I got a grill/smoker for my 5 year work anniversary and I love that sucker! I'm working on a few retrofits to make it more like an electrical smoker so I can do all-day meat smoking.

Other suggestion:

Do not trim off extra fat, especially tough cuts. You'll need every last bit for long smoking intervals. You can trim away whatever you want at the end

Also, for some meats, I would consider brining it prior to smoking it. It's definitely worth the extra hassle step, and helps to give you a succulent piece of meat and not a Gobi Desert mummy.

And, if you're running out of time, don't be afraid to pull it and finish it off in the oven ...if it gets about 1-2 hours of smoke time and already looks like it's getting cooked, you won't lose a dramatic amount by finishing it off in the oven wrapped in foil with a little splash of water Not as uber tender...but you eat on time

dharmabunny

And don't dismiss smoked veggies ...chuck some on there where you have space

6fsn

hmmm, I never considered smoked salmon or veggies.  My mom usually buys salmon for Christmas eve, but that would be awesome to make and to make for Thanksgiving.  I want to plug it in right now!!!

VarunaTT

My favorite from a friends house has been a smoked leg of lamb  That was so good.

*drooling at keyboard, is it lunchtime yet!*

*Barbie*

I'd second brining as well. I always do it with chicken and turkey on the grill (with the wood chips), and it ends up amazing. I make turkey legs and the flavor is very similar to the ones at the Ren Faire. I also started brining my Thanksgiving turkey and whole chickens before I roast them, and it's so good. 

Heffalump

Yes, brining for sure.  I am never going back.

mrsconn23

BIL built his own smoker (he's an engineer...There were CAD drawings and blueprints, LOL) and he smoked a turkey last Thanksgiving.

It was the best turkey I've ever had.  

6fsn

So what does brining entail?  Someone please describe or link for me.

mrsconn23

http://bbq.about.com/cs/barbecuetips/a/aa112000b.htm

short+sassy

My DH and I got a killer deal on a grill/smoker at Sam's Club a couple years ago. It was on clearance because it was being discountinued. Down to $140 from $220. We love it! We smoked a turkey covered in ham for Thanksgiving last year. Delish. But we primarily use it for ribs.

*Barbie*

my go-to brine is roughly 1 cup of kosher salt for every gallon of liquid. I use salt, water, white wine, oranges (i squeeze the juice and add the wedges into the pot) and (hand crushed to release more flavor) fresh rosemary

 i usually will leave the meat in the brine overnight, if not 1-2+ full days. (if I am defrosting a full chicken or turkey in the fridge)

another variation that i did once was salt/water/white wine/lime/strawberries/basil on grilled chicken. It was good, and reminded me a little of a margarita.

6fsn

thanks all! I can't wait to start this