Tried a $30 offset smoker from Walmart and actually got better bark than my $800 pellet grill

Bought it on a whim during a road trip through Kansas last summer, figured it'd be junk, but after fighting with the fire for 6 hours the brisket came out with a crust so deep I couldn't go back to pellets - anyone else had a cheap smoker shock them like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

smith.matthew7d ago

Yep, my $40 barrel smoker from a flea market turned out way better than my fancy Traeger.

the_morgan7d ago

The "flea market barrel smoker" part really got me. That's the most relatable thing I've heard all week. I swear half the battle with smoking meat is just trusting the process and not the price tag. It's like people forget that barbecue was invented by folks using whatever they could scrounge up. I'm glad yours worked out so well, that's a win for all of us who like to keep it simple.