I'm asking for a smoker for my birthday at the end of the month. This will be my first experience w/ smoking. I've had a performer for many years and have done a few boston butts on it but thats about it. I'm considering ceramics, pellets, and the electric smoker. I've read numerous threads on texags regarding ceramics & pellets and it seems pretty split down the middle. My wife and I dropped by Foremans lawn & garden (colleyville) last weekend and Mr. Foreman loves his SmokinTex electric smoker(made in Plano). [url]https://smokintex.com/[/url] . He also carries the primo xl which I was impressed with. I then dropped by bbq galore and looked at bge, kamado joe, the green mountain pellet, and weber smokefire. I've also heard great things about rectec on texags.

I guess I need to decide whether I want something easy like a pellet where you set it and forget it or do I want more of a challenge like a primo xl, bge, or kamado joe.

Also is there a big difference in taste/flavor between the ceramic or pellet?

Thank you for your advice as always.

Gig'em!

Depending on which way you go, I'd check with BBQ Outfitters On 114 to see if they can get it and check pricing. I know the owners and they are great folks.

ok thanks! I looked at their site last weekend

It's really going to depend on what you can commit to. I have moved to a PitBoss Electric pellet smoker that looks like a mini fridge. I can set it and forget it, but the flavor comes out great. It's not near as heavy of a smoke flavor as a traditional smoker might be, but given I have 2 young kids, I don't have time to do that.

I struggle with the ceramics just because they seem to take too long to get going and lots of time I'm in a rush to do stuff. My BIL just got a Trager and the brisket off that came out great.

Also, are you looking to build something in or just have it on your patio? I can easily move mine back in to the corner when I'm not using it so it doesn't take up much room.

I have a big green egg and a Traeger. Have had the Traeger for 10 years and the egg for four. I use them both in combination 3-4 times a week. There will be many haters of both on here. The wood pellet grill is awesome. Stick burners are awesome. The egg is awesome. I used the Traeger with no issues since the day I got it. I did start to miss building a fire and wanted something for those weekends when you could sit outside drinking and tend to a fire, although the egg does not require much tending. But I cook all the meals for my family and most are done on the egg or wood pellet. Last night I put a 13 pound butt on the egg, slept like a baby all night, and pulled it off at 7:30 this morning before leaving for work. Those types of cooks are what I do very often, therefore a pellet grill is very convenient. I will also say I prefer the pork off the pellet, beef on the egg. Don't know why but have done dozens of butts and briskets/plate ribs on both and can definitely tell the difference. The Traeger I have is not an option for grilling. The new wood pellets grills have that capability but mine does not. Fish is outstanding on the Traeger but I go to the egg for burgers, steaks(reverse sear, best steaks ever), and anything else for grilling.

Can't go wrong with either one, the Ceramic grill is more fun, the wood pellet grill is very consistent and produces incredible food.

The primo you mentioned is a great choice, I went back and forth between that and the egg for awhile. I got my big Traeger as a gift, so never compared it to any other options out there. No regrets though.

Either way you will be very happy. I love them both and will never be without one or the other anymore. Next on my list is the Hamrforge. Those things are bad ass but I need to expand my cooking area a bit first.

thats the big question is how much time can I allocate to it. We have a 3yo and another on the way next month so I won't have a ton of time.

I don't have a "outdoor kitchen" so it will have to be on wheels so I can roll it out of the way.

I have a kamado joe. Love it. My friend has a pellet (don't know the brand). He has had nothing but trouble. It might be a cheap one but he has had to replace the feed mechanism and a couple other parts. My Joe has given me no trouble at all. Once you figure out the vents you can almost set it and forget it. I've left it unattended for 12 hours while doing a brisket and it was the same temp when I got home.

As stated above, ceramics are very consistent, but if you really want to set it and forget it, take a look at the Smobot. Works on all ceramic grills(I think), and works like a dream. With the young kids, you could add that and never worry. I use it for overnight cooks or when I'm taking the kids to the movies or something.

I've researched the smobot. Looks amazing.

side note: my next door neighbor has a traeger and he forgot to cover his one night and then it poured and the next time he went to cook he found the concrete like substance in the auger. Lesson: cover your pellet after every cook!

I have a KamadoJoe big joe II that I got from Ceramic Grill Store in Denton. I first started looking at Charred in Argyle, but CGS runs so many specials that I dont think anybody in town can touch their prices. I got a big joe, extended grate, and iKamand for $1,800 out the door.

you Are correct. I let my first cover get very threadbare and experienced that one night. It was difficult to clear that out but luckily didn't have to take much apart to do it. I bought a new cover that same day and will replace more regularly. Definitely not fun when you're ready to cook and have to take a pry bar and a mallet to clear the tube. Lessons learned!

If you want the easiest to operate because time will be at a premium, go with a pellet. All you have to do is set a knob and make sure there is enough pellets and thats it. Ceramics while easy, will still take a bit more work if you arent using any extra hardware like a digital controller.

Taste is going to be all over the place and really will just depend on personal preference. To me, pellet grills have a little more smoke flavor and are closer to an offset than a ceramic, but I bet you can find someone who thinks a ceramic with wood chunks mixed into the charcoal is closer to an offset. In the end I dont think it will make a huge difference and shouldnt be a big factor in what you go with.

IMO there are two questions you should ask yourself that dictate what you get.

1) Volume. How much will you be cooking? Make sure that whichever you get can handle the quantity that you will need most of the time. Both ceramics and pellets have multiple sizes between different brands. A large Kamado Joe or BGE will work plenty fine for a small family but if you find yourself cooking for lots of family events or hosting 10+ people you either need to go up a size or look more at a pellet as most models will have more cooking space than a large ceramic. I think a pellet makes more sense if you are smoking more meat at one time.

2) What else will you be cooking/grilling? Ceramics are a little more versatile in that they can get up in temperature more and go past 600 degrees so if you want to sear steaks, bake pizzas, etc. they are better set up for that than a pellet grill. Its not a deal breaker, but just something that makes cooking a little easier in that instance. I think a ceramic is a better choice if you are also doing a lot more of cooking/grilling than just straight bbqing.

You notice I dont talk about the electric at all. I've eaten something "smoked" in an electric cabinet a few times. Had an uncle that ran one for awhile, and it didnt taste like it was smoked at all. He pretty quickly moved to a pellet and that told me all I needed to know. I run a stick burner and a BGE for what it's worth.

Pellet all the way.

Rec Tec

Thank you everyone for the advice.

re: volume, the majority of time I'm only cooking for me, my wife, and 3yo. For birthdays and holidays its more like 10-12.

re: electric smoker, I was a little apprehensive when he showed it to me and it felt like extreme cheating (I know pellets are a bit cheating)

Don't worry about cheating. I'm sure people thought electric ovens were cheating back in the day, but every kitchen has had one for 50+ years. The goal is quality food; the exact tool is secondary (but once you make your choice, be sure to tell everyone else theirs is inferior). As far as flavor, you can get really good flavor from any of your options. You really can't go wrong if you get a good quality smoker of any the types you are aiming for.

I use an egg because it was a gift, but I do like it. Here are my selling points.

• Can grill on it (this is important to me personally).
• Smaller footprint than pellet.
• Cheaper than pellet (depending on brand).

You mentioned rolling your smoker. These things are heavy, so they roll fine over concrete, but most won't roll well on grass. If that's a consideration.

If you go egg, you might consider a Vision grill. They used to be sold at Sams (maybe still are) and are also sold at Home Depot. Half the price of some other brands, but solid quality in my experience. They have some extra features included because they are not known as well and have to do more to sell.

what size rectec do you have? How much can you get on it?

On the electric front, I have hands on experience with two. Masterbuilt and Bradley. The Masterbuilt is great and I love it. My only beef with it is having to add chips to the smoker box every couple hours. No biggie, but annoying. As such, one of my distributors was going out of business so I picked up a Bradley. I thought I was going to love it because it uses compressed wood pucks for the smoke. FREAKING HATE THAT DAMNED SMOKER! The pucks DO NOT feed well and if you aren't watching the unit constantly and one of the pucks misfeeds, IT SHUTS THE HEATING ELEMENT OFF. So, rather than just getting less smokey meat, which I could handle, you get non-smokey meat that has wild temperature fluctuations. I've sat and watched the damned thing all day and fed the briquettes in and it turned out wonderfully, but the whole point of doing it was to not have to constantly monitor it to make sure it's FREAKING ON.

Masterbuilt... great and you can get them on sale at academy a lot. Bradley... stay away... far far away.

I know you said you were thinking pellet or ceramic. But just because I feel like chiming in..... I have a propane stainless steel Landman I got from Academy 11 years ago. I works great, basically set it and forget it. I consider it cheating as well, but I'm getting too old to sit up all night with my stick burner. I am considering a ceramic just for the fun of it.

I get no complaints, unless you they just don't like smoked stuff.

Had to replace the regulator and blow the spiders out of the burner, but other than that it has worked like a champ. Probably use it twice a month and more during the summer for pool season.

I still use the Charmglow some buddies gifted me at my wedding 12 years ago, and an equally as old, Brinkmann red R2D2 smoker.

I am just here to read about my eventual replacement.

for those that have a ceramic, how hard is it to get the fire set? I've heard stories about it getting too high and then you're sol

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My wife and I dropped by Foremans lawn & garden (colleyville) last weekend and Mr. Foreman loves his SmokinTex electric smoker(made in Plano).

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That's because Mr. Foreman and Mr. Smith are probably poker buddies with some type of escalator built in for units moved.

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I guess I need to decide whether I want something easy like a pellet where you set it and forget it or do I want more of a challenge like a primo xl, bge, or kamado joe.

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For the most part, the premium ceramics (Primo, BGE, and KJ) are set it and forget it. You have to play with it to dial it into the temp you want, but once it's there, it's pretty much maintenance free. Also, after you cook on it a few times, you'll get an idea on where the vents need to be in order to get in the temp range you're wanting, so it'll be a minimal "play."

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Also is there a big difference in taste/flavor between the ceramic or pellet?

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To me, yes. My brother has an electric and the briskets and ribs I've eaten that he cooked on it were blah. The brisket was a roast with some rub on it and the ribs might as well have been cooked in the oven.

The pellet grills are much better when it comes to having a more authentic smokey taste, but still come up short vs. the ceramics...and the ceramics come up short vs. an offset. To me, there's a flavor cooking over charcoal and wood that can't be duplicated by anything you plug in.

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thats the big question is how much time can I allocate to it. We have a 3yo and another on the way next month so I won't have a ton of time.

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I have a 6 year old, 4 year old, and soon-to-be 16 month old, and cooking on the KJ isn't any different. With anything, you're going to need to be on guard when you're cooking on it and make sure their wondering hands don't get curious, but it's not bad. Both of my older ones like to go out there and help me get the KJ ready by bringing the charcoal over, dumping the ashes, etc.

You'll get the hang of it. You can use an electric starter, starter sticks, and electric billows systems to accelerate the start up. You and I are a lot alike in regards to family age, size, and cooking needs. Pellets are going to be easier, but not that much easier than a ceramic particularly after you get the hang of it or if you use a digital Thermo/billows to bring the temp up.

Ceramic will be more fun if you are looking for that authentic "making and cooking over a fire outdoor experience". I vote Primo XL. Made in USA and their ceramic is better than KJ.

Can't go wrong with a Primo. Get the XL.

Getting the fire set in a ceramic is not a problem. I start mine with a piece or two of paper towels rolled tight and saturated with coconut oil. I keep the firebox full of lump and start the fire in the middle. Takes maybe twenty minutes to get the coals going then close it up and set your vents. If you leave it open and walk away for too long you will come back to hellfire and then it's time to grill steaks or make pizza, cause you will be well over 500-600F.

If you ease the temp up, you can hit your mark, adjust the vents, and honestly probably won't have to adjust for 8-10 hours or longer. Once you get the ceramic heated up, it is very stable. One interesting thing I have found with mine, is a sweet spot about 240f. Will stay there all day. Buddies that have the same xl egg have different spots that theirs seem to hold. Weird but whatever works.

Hell, I even bake in mine. When we have lots of people over for gatherings and the big oven or stove top gets full, I light up the egg. You can set it at 350 or 425 or anything else just as easy and will bake or cook very evenly. Cajun meat loaf on that thing is amazing.

Just got rid of my egg after getting an electric. It's just to easy to turn it on and set the timer. Putting in wood chips is simple. You really only have to do it a couple of times to get a light, smokey flavor. Takes 30 seconds, so I just can't justify the cost of a pellet feeder.

I use the electric iron and a 8" fan to get mine started. After doing this a few times you get the hang of knowing when to move the fan away to keep it low temp, or if you are grilling I just let it go for a while and get it hot.

Primo XL
Just added an Assassin smoker. Pricey but bad ass smoker.

Man, I'm just about at paralysis by analysis.

I had a BGE for years, but sold it before moving to Oregon because I didn't want to risk it breaking while going cross country. Looking to get a replacement now and am stuck between a KJ and the Camp Chef Woodwind. When I had the BGE, I dismissed pellet grills because I could make a brisket on my egg turn out great, so I didn't really need to get one. Pretty much only used my BGE for smoking and grilling steaks, chicken, etc. With the side propane burner on the Camp Chef, the problem of getting a good sear is solved.

I love my BGE. Versatile and easy. A fan controller makes long smokes nearly automatic. Load, light the fire and set the temp.

Still grill quick and lazy on a Weber too.

Texmid said:

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I have a kamado joe. Love it. My friend has a pellet (don't know the brand). He has had nothing but trouble. It might be a cheap one but he has had to replace the feed mechanism and a couple other parts. My Joe has given me no trouble at all. Once you figure out the vents you can almost set it and forget it. I've left it unattended for 12 hours while doing a brisket and it was the same temp when I got home.

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I have one as well, and I love how it keeps temperature. I may need to add coals when smoking two briskets at once. I just add the extra costs using the ash tray. Don't even have to open the lid.

Wait. Are you saying that you add charcoal using the ash tray? How? I have had a Kamado for years and if I find out there is a way to add charcoal without removing the deflector plates my mind is going to be blown.

I've got a Traeger and use it frequently. It smokes the best briskets, ribs, burgers, steaks and pulled pork I've ever made. Best part is that you set it & forget it and control/monitor what you are cooking on an app on your phone. Not cheap but worth every penny. One of the best things I've bought myself in a long time.

I just add new coals (that I already have going on a piece of tin) in the tray, slide it in, and you're done.

This will probably shorten the life of the ash tray, but it can be replaced relatively cheap.

Traeger here as well. It's great, and I really have enjoyed those beef dino ribs from the local meat market. I recently began smoking salmon on it as well. Overall, the versatility was what made my decision. Good luck!

I use a XL BGE. I do not use the BGE plate setter, instead I use the XL Woo/Adjustable rig combo with a pizza stone and drip pan from CGS. In addition, I have a kick ash basket with an open bar ring (also from CGS) welded into it. I also have a smobot and 3/16 inch grill grate from The Burn Shop in Wichita Falls.

Here's how I use what I have, I'll start in the firebox and move up.
- The kick ash basket/open bar ring is basically a stainless steel basket that sits in the firebox and allows me to shake out the ash and reload quickly. The open bar ring is tack welded in the center of the kick ash basket and allows me to shrink down my fire box for shorter smokes or quick grills. Basically these two reduce lump waste and allow for faster "cook ready" fires.

-The woo/adjustable rig/pizza stone combo give me tons flexibility. First, this set up allows for two simultaneous cooking surfaces for smoking more meats. Basically there is a 24" grill sitting over the deflector (pizza stone) and another 18" grill sitting on the adjustable rig. Or I can remove the AR and have the single 24" surface. I can also use AR grill surface by itself and push the cooking area higher up in the dome where there is more airflow - this is great for baking or making pizzas.

-The grill grate is a 3/16 stainless steel grate with a cut out in the middle. The 12" cutout has 2 inserts - a solid piece of 1/4 stainless or a continuation of the grill pattern. I basically only use this grate when cooking directly over the fire. The cutout in the grate is directly over the open bar ring. This is really nice because I can manage the fire and temps so much easier - basically there is a really hot 18" spot directly on top of the fire and some cooler areas on the outside (about 5 inches) to move meat around. I use the solid piece for searing steaks (I also use a sous vide for most red meats) and warming up tortillas.

-Finally the smobot. It's the best. It holds temps super steady and makes the BGE a set it and forget it deal. I also really like the meat probes and the ability to minister it from anywhere. It's an excellent tool and always performs flawlessly. It's only used for long smokes.

I use a MAAP torch to start my fires and can have the egg ready to cook anything in 15-20 min.

I can cook damn near anything with this set up. I've done a 40lb pig, pizzas, fries, steaks, pies, cakes...and old probably cook anything else you can get honk of. Hope this helps.