Smoker Recommendations

[CurlyDave]

Well, the catch limit at my group's favorite lake has been raised this year because they are overrun with trout.

I know this is a terrible problem, but the issue we have is that we have been taking home more fish than we could eat fresh for a few years and we don't really like them frozen. Even if we release a lot of the fish we catch, we always keep the ones that aren't going to make it.

So, the thought of a smoker has come up. Any recommendations for a good quality smoker that will hold 30 to 40 trout maybe 14-16". If it would take a medium-large turkey also that would be a real plus.

We are more interested in a quality unit than a light duty Wally World special. Something that will last for years even if we use it a few times per month.

 

[Pete Judd]

I have used many home made smokers over the years, the next one I plan to build will be a cold smoker, with the smoke running through buried drain tiles from the smoke pit to the smoker. I am a big fan of cold smoking, the big box smokers are hot smokers. I have a number of friends that use the "little chief" smokers. I like to cut my own alder, de-bark it, and use it for most of my smoking.

 

[crash325]

Here are some pictures of the smoker I built about 4 years ago. It will last a lot longer than I will. A simple & fun project. Also good for a novice welder to sharpen up his / her skills. It has smoked a turkey & ham at the same time, even had some room left over.

Old hot water tank, hinges, 4" pipe, 2 elbows, a little 1/8" sheet metal, some pipe and odds & ends. The burner that I used is too large and hard to turn down enough. Going to play with a burner out of a hot water tank. The 3 gauges came from Ebay and were pretty cheap.

Basically the burner gets the wood and charcoal hot then gets turned off or as low as it will go. You don't have to have a burner, its just nice to get everything hot and smoking.

Fish do not take very long to smoke at 225 degrees and come out real good. Roasts & turkeys take 4 to 6 hours.

 

[MarkV]

Dave I do a fair amount of smoking and like Pete said cold smoking is what you want to do for fish if preserving is your goal. With cold smoking you are generally smoking for a long time, days in some cases, at low temps. The old smoke houses were for cold smoking where the smokers you buy at the store are for BB-Q type smoking. Not all kinds of fish work well this way. I do not know about trout though I wish I had your problem. Do a net search on cold smoking.

MarkV

 

[crash325]

A good site to look at is smoking-meat.com. Jeff is a real good source of information on smoking.

 

[deepNdirt]

I like the cabinet style smokers, I was going to build one, although while pricing the materials needed I came across an ad on CL where I guy was selling new smoker for 1/3rd of what I could buid one for, I figured for 100 bucks I'd give it a try, It is a propane heated smoker which I like, simply set the heat control and let it go, well got to check back about every hour to be sure water bowl hasn't dry up,

I plan to use this one for a couple years and build a heavier duty one using this same design, only a bit larger and on wheels,:thumbsup:

 

[Maynard Reece Byrd]

Curly Dave,

I am sorry you have this terrible problem. I would suggest you box those buggers and send them to me. It would be a tough job, but I can handle it. Oh, BTW, my smoker is a Traeger from Oregon.

Maynard Reece Byrd
c/o Pony Express Depot
Dodge City, Kansas

 

[studor]

I bought a Masterbuilt Digital electric last year and then read a bunch of reviews that called it a POS
Fortunately that has not been my experience and compared to the old Little Chiefs I used to use to smoke trout, this one is a dream. While previous posters are right about a cold smoke for fish preserving (those trout will come out like commercial smoked salmon) I also like a "cool" smoked trout. I heat up the smoker and get the chips smoldering, then turn it way down and let it smoke for a long time. With the right marinade, the Trout might not last long enough to worry about preserving .. although it will last in the freezer smoked for a long time and the flavour and texture are fine when you thaw it

 

[bevojoe]

take a look at the Bradley Electric smokers...can do hot and cold smoking. I have 2 wood smokers but use the electric more often. can't beat it. self feeds wood "pucks" for 10 hours of un-attended cooking. I'm on my 2cd Bradley and highly recommend. can get them at Cabellas or Bass Pro

 

[Alan L.]

Another good choice is the Weber bullet. I think they call it the Smokey Mountain cooker or something like that. Does a great job and requires little tending to once you fire it up. Has two racks 18" in diameter - they now also have a bigger one. Built very well and will last a long time. Mine is several years old and like new. All surfaces are porcelain. I think the smoker is $300-$400.

I just smoked two very large pork butts on it last weekend and they were great as usual.

Never done fish.

 

[Western]

Dave, that is an awe full problem to have! Are they natives??

Best smoked fish I ever had was from a lean-too over an open fire. One of the guy's I was hunting with learned it while hunting with a guide in Alaska. He smoked them most of the day while we were out "beating " the brush.

Can't recommend a store bought one, most of the smoked fish I've had out of the homeowner models ones was "OK". I think technique will be the biggest factor.

 

[CurlyDave]

Are they natives??

They are hatchery raised and released. But all of the stock for the hatchery is native, Oregon is really big on that.

The fish divide into 3 populations. 12-14 inches are this year's release, 16-18" are last year's and have survived a year in the wild. Over 18" are more than two years since release. There don't seem to be any under 12", which I take to mean that they are not breeding in the wild yet.

About 75% of the catch is 12-14" and 20% is 16-18". Bigger are rare, but not unknown.

The flesh is pink, almost like a miniature salmon instead of white like most of the trout I have dressed. The taste is also more like salmon than most trout. The problem is really awful, but we are going to help as best we can.

Don't ask why the state doesn't just slow down on stocking. That would endanger some jobs.

 

[EddieWalker]

Back in CA, I have a buddy that would smoke everything that I gave him, and we'd split it in half. I was doing quite a bit of hunting, and he loved to smoke the meat. He built a cabinet smoker that was amazing. I never heard of cold smoking, and I never had him smoke any fish. Just a variety of big game animals that I hunted. The reason he built it was because he couldn't find anything of quality for sale that was big enough to be worthwhile. If you have that much to smoke, I would think that building exactly what you want would be the best way to get what you want.

Good luck and be sure to share pics of what you decide to do,
Eddie

 

[Brad_Blazer]

My Char Griller does pretty good. I remove the grate on the far right and build a little charcoal fire right at the air inlet. I use green maple branches laid over the fire and regulate the heat with the vent so the branches smolder and turn to charcoal. The fish lays to the left of the fire with the big end closest to the heat. I don't have the offset firebox but that should let you use the whole cooking area. It has cast iron grates and an upper wire grate that's a little flimsey but it works.
Char-Griller Grill and Smoker - Walmart.com

 

[NativeSon]

I have a Commercial smoker made by Cookshack. I've had it for over 20 years and have gotten my moneys worth out of it. Have smoked a lot of Brisket, Hams, and Ribs on it but never any Cold smoked fish. I've used it in several restaurants and now just do custom smoking here on the place. Cookshack makes a smaller version for the guy at home and they make some sort of attachment for cold smoking. The beauty of the Cookshack is the Temp. control and the small amount of wood needed, and the fact that you can set the controls and walk away from it. I can put Brisket on at 7 pm and come back in the morning and it's ready for lunch. It's really kind of "Stupid Proof".

I had some great smoked fish many years ago in Florida, but I think our fish here in Texas doesn't have enough fat content to smoke....even cold smoke. Look up their website the smaller version maybe what you're looking for.

Charlie

 

[MarkV]

Dave this may be a useful site for some research. Smoke it Up !

MarkV

 

[Car Doc]

If you have electricity at your place then I would mention a pellet smoker to you.

I have 2 Traegers from back when they were made in Oregon, one I modified for competition/catering with an insulated box and double stainless doors and they are excellent smokers so if you find a used etc one make sure its made in USA.

Now they are made in china and they are not the same as they were so I cant recommend a new Traeger just cheap tin and lousy fit and finish they work fine just feel cheap.

My friend sells the green mountain smokers (made in china also ) and although I haven't used one but they have used the Traegers and they like the green mountain better so I can only go by what they say and they sell a bunch of them!

I also have a modified for competition brinkman charcoal smoker and its fine but no where near as easy as the pellet smokers are to use. hth

 

[GGB]

I think you can get good results from nearly any smoker you buy or make if you practice enough times.

Some of the best smoked fish I remember came from an old refrigerator that my Dad and Uncle gutted-they simply took out the plastic interior pieces, and then cut a hole in the top, made a stack from a piece of sheet metal pipe (might have been a section of gas water heater vent pipe), and then used something I can't recall for a damper. They cut a few holes in the bottom to allow air into the bottom, set a pan of charcoal on the bottom rack, and threw some sort of wood chips or twigs for smoke. The first time they used it was to smoke catfish overnight-just set it and forget it. I'll have to ask my Dad what they used for a brine, but I think it was just a salt and sugar. It was some of the best smoked fish I've ever had, and usually didn't last very long-not because of spoiling, but because we devoured it pretty quickly.

One of the things I've learned is that if you are using a Bullet Smoker in the winter, you will want to either get a barrel larger than the smoker to drop over it to help insulate it from the cold wind, which can really affect smoking times. You lose a lot of heat when the wind is whipping around. Some guys just build a simple box from plywood to do the same thing.

I would like to have a Traeger type wood pellet smokers which have a built in thermostat to control the feed/damper. From what I understand, people who have them really like them. But again, I think you can get good product from almost anything if you work at it enough!

GGB

P.S. I just rebuilt my Weber Bullet after about 12 years of hard use-the bottom finally gave out where the legs attached, but just ordered the new parts directly from Weber-great service and saved buying a complete new one.

 

[elitepmc]

@CurlyDave​

We’ve owned a Big Green Egg for several years–when we bought our house after living in an apartment, it was the first thing we went out and bought. I have never been happier about a purchase.​

I use it mostly for smoking turkey and ribs. The results are amazing–the smoke flavor comes in as a subtle undertone, rather than overwhelming everything else. And, it requires much less cooking time than metal smokers. I can do a whole turkey in about 2 hours techwiff.

My most rewarding experience using it was last fall, when I smoked a brisket, using a dry rub, a wet baste, and mesquite chips. Although still took about 8 hours or more, it was worth every minute of my time.

My enthusiasm for the BGE borders on the evangelical. Just make sure that if you do buy one, you get the largest size, because the smaller ones supposedly don’t circulate the air as effectively, and the grill space is on the small size.

Now if only I can find a place near me where I can get one of those Texas-size briskets. []

 

[blackdog2086]

I'm a smoker guy so thanks for resurrecting a 10 year old thread.