My online BACON course is perfect for someone wanting to learn how to make dry cured meats and cold smoking: eatcuredmeat.com/whole-muscle... Thanks for watching! Tom
I loved my Smokai 1 L to start with and still do. . . . but I admit that it is a PITA to clean. I have used alder; apple; and maple so far. The alder chips did not work out as the pieces were too big. They would jamb sidewaus and not fall down to the burn area. The apple and maple are wood "bits" and the perfect size. They stay lit. But even using the Simple Green that is recommended, I still fight to get all the gummed up creosote off. A steel brush on a drill if the only thing that can get atthe thick stuff especially in the smoke tube.
Yes I agree doesn need a clean out. I've found it really varies the creasote build up, depending on the wood. I've had less maintenance with lighter / fruit woods. I often just use a piece of thin wire and clear out the air hole and horizontal tube around the air pipe. Then it's all go! Cheers Tom
I bought a 3L smokai unit. So far I’m impressed. These guys reply quickly with great customer service. Fast shipping to USA from NZ! The unit itself is very well made. Very sturdy. I suggest tidying up the sharp edges though because it is a bit of a cut hazard. I live not far from napa valley (wine country) and the Northern California coast. The local fish market in half moon bay gets the best fresh Alaskan king salmon I’ve ever had. I’m converting a 59 gallon French Oak wine barrel into my little smoke house and should have some lox ready in about a week. I can’t wait. My wife thinks I’m obsessed lol.
@@eatcuredmeat took me a bit longer to get the wine barrel ready to go. Now I have a hinged lid, wheels, vent hole, and grate in it I also weatherized it with polyurethane on the outside. My first salmon smoke starts in 2 hours!
Great review! How about after 2-3hours of smoking? I have something similar but seems to get wet or draw to much moisture into the chamber and then it does not produce the same amount of smoke constantly. Maybe it's to much resin building up? hmm..
yeah smokai is the best one I've used and combustion/smoke is consistent. You DO need to clean regularly creasote builds up for any generator - cheers, I just used to smokai with the gas grill today to crank out a couple of smoked hams!
Hey, been offline! No smokai closed at bottom. Trust me it's a well though out design that burns CLEAN! I have confidently left it unattended for many many hours. Of course use common sense where you run it. I have put it in a pan just below the gas grill for cold smoking also (removing the gas bottle of course). Cheers Tom
Hi bud just brought a 1l smokai very awesome machine. Any tips on cooking just had it smoking some pork ribs for 8 hours and when it came time to eating they were over powering only good for the dog . Do I need to light some coals and only smoke at the end or is this 100% only a cold smoker ? Very confused 😕 thanks bud
Heya, it can be adjusted and it also depends on how 'lit' it is from the start. What size is the area you are smoking? Do you have airflow, if so how much? After 3-4 hours the meat doesn't really take on much more smoke flavor for me, so maybe too long too hard. Less smokiness is always better than too much. I have a smoking course coming out later in the year all about this! It will be cold and hot smoking. The smokai can be used to boost any indirect heat source like a gas grill or as an addition to a hot smoker.
@@eatcuredmeat . Awesome .I've just attached it to my Weber kettle drilling a hole in the bottom and fixing it.its a small area quarte m2 .I'm now thinking half an hour to start with then turning it off and leaving the Coals takeover. Looking forward to the new clip
Not sure, contact Yoder they are beasts! See if it effect the warranty first? Some pellet smokers are pressurised also - might want to check that. If you did go ahead, you will need to drill a hole or is there a rotisserie attachment hole on the side, from memory not on this smoker. smokai.com/pages/mount-to-a-bbq-grill Cheers Tom
Hi ! Smokai suggest warm water, detergent and a bottle brush or for DEEP clean citrus based cleaners -was thorough afterwards. They say oven cleaner also, but I wouldnt use that. All the best, Tom
Heya, haven't had those issues maybe your cranking up the heat too much or over lighting it at the start? Also the type of wood? Some woods burn hot! Cheers Tom
Hi, don't know if you have time to answer a question but here goes. I have seen similar smoke generators to the Smokai that have a glass jar or stainless container for collecting creosote, is this strictly necessary, and if not being removed does this end up on the food. I think they are called condensate trap smoke generators
Heya, I've researched them a bit in Germany, where they are popular. It does build up in these smokers - so its an idea. I've got to a get a few to test out for sure. Tom
Got one on the way, went with the 3 litre magnum because its medium size. Not sure what i will use for a smoke house yet. Thinking about one of them old barrels. Will be watching lots of videos on it now
Havent used it for a while, pretty sure you just unscrew the bottom nut, I like to use thing gauge wire to make sure the hole hasnt got creosote build up
Interesting idea! I would think it would have to be a blend of pellets/tea. I will contact Tony who owns Smokai and ask! Bet he hasn't tried it either. Salut! Tom
how clean should the smokai be burning, after 3 hours of burning oak pellets i have a 2" x 2" puddle of black tar that has dripped out of the end of the barrel, just wondering if thats normal?
Sorry just saw your comment, this is creosote and of course is a bi-product from burning wood, irrespective of method. It comes down to the wood you use. In summary: - Some woods produce next to nothing, while others can be very resinous. - Wood pellets produce more than wood chips. - Some wood pellets produce a lot..... There is a big difference between various brands of pellets. Some are really sticky - the dust is not dried before pelletisation, some have added artificial flavours, etc, etc. Unfortunately creosote is rather sticky and can be difficult to clean. Here is what I recommend: - dishwashing liquid - citrus based cleaner (what I use). The most effective in my opinion. - oven cleaner
I just bought a 3l magnum. I am amused by the safety suggestion: Do not leave it unattended. Pulling up a chair and attending it while my brisket smokes for 16 hours is really going to wear me down. Maybe Smokai should come up with some sort of safety screen accessory.
I bought a Smokai 1 litre recently and I’ve had to return it almost immediately. The pipe was much too wide to fit through the gap on my Weber Genesis II and would have required me to drill out the current gap. There was no way I was going to damage my BBQ for that, so be absolutely positive that these things will fit your BBQ before you order. Smokai advertise that you may need to drill holes to mount their devices, but that’s a bit different from boring out a tunnel for their pipes. And the next surprise was that I had to soak up the return postage of $40. It’s such a pity - we were really looking forward to using the smoker and instead it’s cost me $40 to return it without even using it once. Not happy!
Yeah, I guess you had the same issue as me - wouldn't fit through rotisserie hole, I used a flexible mesh pipe for a while which meant I could pump it through the rotisserie hole, then I decided to just drill a hole lower down, my grill has a adjustable shelf system so I could just sit the smokai on it. I have a $5K Beefeater SS5000 5 burner (old now, but has lifetime warranty). Cheers T
