Ready To Take Your BBQ Game Up A Notch? Here's How To Pick Your First Smoker

A well-smoked meat that just falls right off the bone from tenderness makes my mouth salivate, but achieving a cook like that at home can seem like a daunting task. However, with the right equipment and a little research, you can turn this challenge into a hobby. The first step to leveling up your home barbecue skills is to choose the best smoker for your needs.

You don't have to be a technically trained chef to smoke juicy meats at home, but you do need the right equipment. A quick Google search for "meat smokers" will yield a plethora of devices that look like varying models of alien spaceships to a non-meat enthusiast. But, thankfully, Adam Truhler of The Grilling Dad has some tips for picking your first smoker to make the process less intimidating.

Whether you have a smoker box you're not sure how to use with your grill or you're not sure what meat to choose for your first venture into smoking, we've got Adam Truhler's grilling mind to help guide you through it. Here's his expert advice for an aspiring pitmaster: start with a kettle grill or a pellet smoker.

Although using a grill to smoke isn't the ideal method, not everyone has the time or space to go out and buy a dedicated smoker. If you find yourself in that situation but also still wanting the ability to smoke your meats, you can rely on a grill to get the job done.

"It's helpful for the grilling area to be 1 ½ to 2 times larger than the size of the food you're planning to smoke," says Adam Truhler. "This allows you to get the food far enough away from the heat source that it won't be directly over the heat source and it won't be impacted by significant amounts of radiant heat."

In addition to the capacity of a dedicated smoker, other factors like your budget and the versatility of the smoker should also be considered. Think about the amount of money you're willing to spend and look at smokers that fall within that price range. As Truhler points out, a great smoker can be both a grill and a smoker in one. But, if your heart is set on becoming a pitmaster and experimenting with flavors, you'll want the right heat source.

"There is a distinct difference between the flavor of smoke that comes from a smoldering fire and one that comes from a more fully combusting fire (like that on an offset smoker)," Truhler explains. "The smoke flavor produced by an offset smoker is unbeatable in my experience."

Every pitmaster has to start off as a pit novice, and for that reason Adam Truhler suggests working your way up to a purpose-built smoker. "If you are new to smoking, I would recommend either a pellet grill for convenience or a charcoal kettle grill," he says. "If you think grilling and smoking is a long-term hobby for you and you like to play with fire (who doesn't?) then I would start with a charcoal grill."

Truhler explains Pellet grills are more user-friendly which is perfect for someone who's just starting out, looking for an easy, quicker smoke. On the other hand, a pitmaster in the making may want to opt for a charcoal grill. These can be used as a grill or a smoker. Working with a charcoal grill will help a novice to learn how to work with fire and better understand flavor profiles.

"For what it's worth my first smoker was a pellet grill," Truhler notes. "And I don't regret it." If an expert meat smoker can start their journey with a grill, so can you.