Review: Smokin Tex Pro 1400 Smoker
While the other two electric smokers in our pick for the top 3 best electric smoker are packed with tech gadgets to help users produce great tasting smoked meats with minimal effort, the Smokin Tex Pro 1400 electric smoker sticks with the tried and tested design. The current Smokin Tex Pro 1400 design has been around with minimal changes for more than 15 years. The Smokin Tex Pro 1400 has a simple but sturdy fully stainless steel smoking compartment with a front door that is mounted on four castor wheels. Inside the smoker is an electric heating element and there is a temperature controller mounted at the top of the unit. While the Smokin Tex Pro 1400 doesn’t have the bell and whistles of an automatic wood chip feeder system like the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker or a wireless remote control like the Masterbuilt Electric Smokehouse Smoker, it has a design that has stood the test of time. In fact, many top end electric smokers use the same design including the Cookshack brand that costs many times more than the Smokin Tex Pro 1400. If you are looking for an electric smoker with a traditional design that has proven to be simple but effective, the Smokin Tex Pro 1400 electric smoker is the smoker for you. ModelSmokin Tex Pro 1400 Image Cooking capacity (lbs)Approximately 38 Adjustable racks (nos)3 (Capacity for 5) Temperature Controller TypeThermostat, analog Cooking Temp Range (°F)100 to 250 Heating Element Power Rating (W)700 TimerNo External Dimensions (in)17.5(W) x 21(D) x 29(H) Other featuresAll stainless steel smoker Comes complete with 3 grills, wheels, wood, drip pan, 6' power cord, cookbook, and instructions Warranty (months)24 What we like about the Smokin Tex Pro 1400 The Smokin Tex Pro 1400 has a fully stainless steel smoking compartment that has a double wall. The stainless steel construction means that this thing will last while the double wall provides excellent heat insulation. Heat gets retained effectively so that less energy is required to maintain the temperature inside the smoker. At the same time, the smoker is less affected by the outside temperature. Users have commented that they have used the smoker at temperatures of 30 below zero. The sealing on the door is very good with minimal heat loss. This also helps to keep the moisture trapped in the smoking chamber and prevents the meat from drying out. In fact the chamber is so well insulated and sealed, all you need is about half a cup of wood chips to smoke a fully loaded smoker. However, as with any smoker, you must learn to resist opening the door. Just load...
Review: Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker
Bradley is a well known name for producing smokers including a line of great electric smokers. Bradley Smoker’s top of the line electric smoker is the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker. However, if you are a technophobe, don’t let the word “digital” in the product name frighten you off. All that it means is that the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker is probably the easiest to use smoker ever designed. The strong point of electric smokers is that they are easy to use but Bradley took the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker to new heights when it comes to easy smoking. The Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker is a cabinet style electric smoker with a epoxy coated steel cabinet. It has a separate smoke generator that is attached to the side of the smoker cabinet. The smoke generator uses special Bardley flavor bisquettes that are supplied by Bradley themselves. The bisquettes are made from hardwood chips. A wide variety of wood flavors are available including Apple, Alder, Mesquite, Hickory, and Maple. The Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker gets our pick as one of our Top 3 Best Overall Electric Smoker because it is the only smoker that is truly set it and forget it. It is also the only electric smoker that allows for cold smoking. This makes the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker easiest to use and it is more versatile than the other electric smokers. ModelBradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker Image Cooking capacityApprox 35 lbs Cooking space (square inches)520 Adjustable racks (nos)4 Temperature Controller TypeThermostat, digital Cooking Temp Range (°F)Up to 280 Heating Element Power Rating (W)500 TimerYes, digital External Dimensions (in)17(W) x 14(D) x 31(H) 24(W) with Generator on side Other featuresSeparate fully automatic smoke generator Full digital control for temperature, time, and smoke Two smoking methods: hot and cold Polished stainless-steel interior Warranty (months)12 What we like about the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker The feature that allows the Bradley 4 Rack Digital Smoker to be a set it and forget it smoker is the smoke generator with the automatic wood bisquette loader. When in use, the generator will automatically load a bisquette on the heating element. The element heats up the bisquette to release the smoke that flows into the main smoking chamber. Each bisquette burns for about 20 minutes before it is disposed into the water tray and another bisquette is loaded into place. There is a bisquette magazine that holds many bisquettes for many, many hours of smoking without reloading. All other electric smokers will require replenishing of the wood chips if you want to do continuously smoking. With the Bradley, no...
Review: Masterbuilt Electric Smoker 40 inch
The Masterbuilt range of electric smokers are among the most popular electric smokers among BBQ enthusiasts. The fans of the Masterbuilt electric smokers range from BBQ newbies who have just started getting into smoking as well as more experience smokers who move on from charcoal and gas smokers to the Masterbuilt electric smokers for the pure convenience. Masterbuilt’s latest electric smoker is the new Masterbuilt Electric Smoker 40 inch with window. This is a cabinet-style smoker that looks pretty much like a small refrigerator or a wine cooler at about 40 inches high. Masterbuilt also has a slightly smaller version, the Masterbuilt Electric Smoker 30 inch. If you only plan to cook for small groups, the 30 inch version is a good choice as well. We picked the Masterbuilt Electric Smoker 40 inch with Window as one of our top 3 electric smoker picks because it is an amazing how many features that Masterbuilt managed to pack into the smoker for the price. Masterbuilt has put a lot of thought into the features that have been added. These features have not been added just to add another bullet point on the box or brochure. All these features add together to make smoking a simple task that anyone can do while producing great tasting food. Please take note that our featured model is the older version of the 40 inch Masterbuilt Electric Smoker that has a smaller window and the controller is located at the back of the unit. The newer version has a larger window and the controller is located at the front edge right above the front door. Other than the 2 main differences above, both versions of the 40″ Masterbuilt Electric Smoker are about the same. However, the newer version have numerous issues including a potential fire hazard issue caused by the design of the wood chip tray. Because of this, we do not recommend getting the newer version. However, Masterbuilt is releasing a newer version of the 40″ Masterbuilt Electric Smoker that is expected to be made available on 30 June 2015. We will review this newer version in due time. ModelMasterbuilt Electric Smokehouse Smoker 40 Inch Image Cooking capacity (lbs)Approximately 35 Cooking space (square inches)900 Adjustable racks (nos)4 Temperature Controller TypeThermostat, digital Cooking Temp Range (°F)100 to 275 Heating Element Power Rating (W)1200 TimerYes, digital External Dimensions (in)19.6(W) x 25.7(D) x 40(H) Other featuresRF remote control for smoker temperature, timer, internal light, and meat temperatures Built-in meat temperature probe Side wood chip loader Front access drip pan Built in wheels and handle Viewing window and internal light Front mounted LED display for internal light, temperatures, and timer Warranty...