Smoking or grilling food on charcoal, gas or electric is a fun and healthy way to cook food. People have been barbecuing their food for a long time. Usually they do it during parties outdoors on occasions like picnics, the Fourth of July, Easter and even birthday parties. The food tastes good and while some like cooking indoors, the heavy grills are not made for indoors.
So now that they have invented the electric food smokers, it really isn’t all that difficult anymore. They come in different sizes and shapes and while some are made for indoor cooking others are made for the outdoors. However, it can normally be used just on the patio or back porch when there is an electric outlet nearby.
But as with any other item you buy always read and check the instruction manuals. Ask the dealers to show you how to use and assemble. This is a very important step as these smokers need to be handled properly. Make sure there is a warranty and parts available if ever it breaks down and do some researching first. Check out the different products, along with the different brands available. Weigh the differences and keep an eye on your budget too. It could be tempting to buy something that’s hi-tech and expensive but if you don’t really need it, there’s no point wasting money on it.
Sometimes the different dealers sell the same products but they have different prices. So if someone sells it cheaper, you can always look into that.
Pros and Cons of electric smokers
The pros of electric smokers
- They are easy to start or light up.
- They can be portable.
- The cooking surface makes the heat distribute evenly.
- It can be used inside the house.
- Maintenance is easy.
- You don’t have to keep an eye on the food at all times because you can just set it and most of your work is already done. However, you will have to check food set with water based electric smokers just to make sure that the liquid does not dry out.
- There are some very affordable ones.
- Cheaper to use.
- With water based smokers you can add ingredients for flavor and the meat’s cooked moist and tender
- The dry heat smoker gives a nice crispy outer layer and takes less time to cook.
- Water based smokers take a long time to cook but are worth it.
The cons of electric smokers
- Some prices are expensive, but really depend on the model and size.
- Sometimes, it can be a hassle to assemble.
- Smoke can be a problem at times.
- It cannot be used outside if electric outlets are unavailable.
- You need to clean it so the grease collected on the plates won’t cause fire.
Electric smokers in the ancient times
So there are the pros and cons of using an electric smoker. But grilling or roasting has been the way of cooking long ago. Sometimes the meat would be smoked and hanged in a smokehouse to keep from getting spoilt and would be saved to eat later on. There were no refrigerators or freezers in olden times. During winter they would preserve the meat they caught by putting them outside in the snow or place them in containers packed with snow.
This was done to ensure that the meat wouldn’t spoil. However, summer and other seasons without snow were hard for them. They discovered that they could smoke meat like pork, beef or chicken and then keep them in a smokehouse to hang until needed as it would be preserved. The smoke houses were log cabins without windows. They would place the meat by hanging them and they would make a fire using wood, while leaving it in the house for a few hours, sometimes for days. This is what produced smoked flavors for meat. Fortunately, we have electric smokers now and it isn’t as troublesome as it was earlier.
So if you are craving for a flavored smoked meat, get your electric smokers today! Our recommended electric smoker is the Masterbuilt Electric Digital Smokehouse. If you get it now, you can enjoy a 20% discount by clicking on the link below:
