Electric smokers won’t make food taste as deeply smoky, or provide as tender results as traditional smokers. But they’re very convenient, and the learning curve is minimal. We think electric smokers are ideal for cooks who don’t want to invest a ton of time and effort into babying a smoker, or anyone who wants pit boss pellets food that’s lightly smoked. However, as we learned during our recent test of electric smokers, the functionality and efficiency of these models varied greatly. Many missed the mark when it came to basic safety features—like an adequately long power cord—and others with low wattage struggled to perform.
The beveled racks earned big points during testing, and we liked the large temperature range, which offered cooking temps spanning 80° to 320°F. And with 711 square inches of cooking space, it’s one of the roomier pit boss pellets smokers we tried. This solidly built, moderately priced smoker has an incredibly generous amount of cooking surface area (970 square inches), which allows for adequate airflow in the cooking chamber.
From mouthwatering recipes to monitoring your dishes as they cook, our new Pit Boss app does it all. Simply connect your grill to the app using our proprietary Grill Connect™ technology, which allows you to control your Pit Boss from anywhere, anytime. If using a pellet smoker / pellet grill, simply turn the smoker to 200°F and lay the strips on the grill grates. Making Beef Jerky in a smoker, in my opinion, is the BEST way to make beef jerky. There is no adding liquid smoke, you let the wood of your choice infuse an intense flavor into your jerky. This smoked pulled pork recipe is worthy of your favorite barbecue restaurant, but it’s easy enough to make at home.
Two of the three Pit Boss smoker series are powered by a 1,650-watt electric element and also feature a pair of fully adjustable damper valves that helps you achieve exact temperatures and airflow. If you like checking the internal temperature of your food, these units come with a meat probe that can be stored in a dedicated control panel slot. With the front-loading wood chip tray, your smoking session can reach up to two hours. During our testing, the Masterbuilt was able to hold consistent temperatures, never deviating more than about 10 degrees from 225.
The Copperhead 3 Series pellet smoker, which has four height-adjustable racks and more than 900 square inches of cooking space, can hit up to 18 hours of cook time thanks to its 35-pound capacity hopper. For heavy-duty smoking marathons, the Pit Boss Copperhead 7 Series boasts a 60-pound capacity pellet hopper good for 24 hours of cooking. To top it all off, the digital controller has a smoke pit boss electric smoker button that jacks up the heat when you add wood chips and increases the smoke output before you open the smoker door. Whether you want to grill hot and fast or low and slow, pellet smokers and grills offer incredible flexibility. Shop Ace online now to find the best pellet smoker for your needs. If you aren’t sure which model is the right choice, head to your neighborhood Ace Hardware store.
We limited our fourth test, long smoking pork shoulder, to the nine grills that had performed best in our tests. Overall, we cooked over 300 pounds of meat and 20 pepperoni pizzas. This smoked pulled pork recipe is the correct way to smoke a pork shoulder with professional results — from the cider brine and sugar rub to the rave reviews you will receive. Smoke is the key to breaking down the fat, which adds flavor and moisture to the meat. Pellets are a newer option that have become popular because they don’t require wood chips, but some prefer a more traditional approach. Finally, electric grills are arguably the cleanest of all, but purists tend to look down on them.