Smoker- anyone have one to recommend?

[elliput]

I'm thinking about getting DH a smoker for FD and am looking for recommendations. Not sure exactly how much I want to spend right now, so any price point is okay to investigate.

If you have one or have used one, please fill me in on what you like, don't like, would/not change, etc. Thanks!

[geophne]

DH has a Big Green Egg in the XL size and loves it. He considers it pretty idiot-proof as far as smokers go. He really only uses it to make large amounts of meat, like when we're having a party, so I don't think you would need such a big one if you were going to use it more for family meals.

[Binkandabee]

I've never smoked anything in my life, but DH does and he has a Weber Smokey Mountain that he raves about.

[pinay]

I just bought DH a Traeger Lil Tex during a Costco road show- it was just under $700 IIRC. He hasn't tried it out yet but had been lusting after it, so I really hope it makes him as happy as he claims it will :)

[BDKmom]

I've never smoked anything in my life, but DH does and he has a Weber Smokey Mountain that he raves about.

This is what my DH has. He researched it tons before buying last year. From what he read, it's the best thing if you don't want to shell out the $$ for a Big Green Egg, which we didn't. Everything he smoked on it last year was great.

[elliput]

I should have mentioned that we have been lusting after a BGE for years, but right now I know that is out of our budget. My parents have a 50+ year old unglazed kamado grill (which is what a BGE is based on) and it is the standard by which I measure. LOL

[Jen841]

We started with the @$100 Charbroil electric one when we were rookies, then we got a Cookshack one - LOVE IT! It looks like a college beer frig. It was @$500. We bought it 2 years ago and try to use it a few times a month.

Love
Love
Love

Our smoker. Our friend is on his second Cookshack one, he moved up to the BIG kahuna one. We are happy with our smaller one.

We use it for salmon, ribs, turkey, chicken, pork, sausages,...

Ok, I am hungry and going to go plan something to smoke this weekend.

Holy cow, it is pricier now. We have the 2 year ago version of this:
http://www.amazon.com/Cookshack-Smokette-Elite-Electric-Smoker/dp/B000KMH2D6

Whatever you get, I highly recommend buying the cover right away. The $10 cover from Lowes lasted a short time.

This is our priceless cookbook that we use all the time. A friend recommended it: http://www.amazon.com/Paul-Kirks-Championship-Barbecue-Lip-Smackin/dp/1558322426/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1339119605&sr=1-1-catcorr

Read the reviews on-line. We did not want a pellet one. You can get a Charboil one for < $200 the upgrade down the road if you want to (that is what we did.)