Summary: This smoker is nearly a replacement for a proper outdoor unit. It's cooking method requires a unique strategy however (most likely relevant more to glasstop stove users). Some parts are rusting after second use after a typical wash and air-dry. 3 months later impression: This is great to add smoke, but not to cook with. After 1 too many disappointing pork shoulders and briskets, I decided to switch things up. I have a Ninja pressure cooker I use to precook the meat, which I then smoke on the Nordic for 30 minutes. Ribs, brisket, all of it comes out 100% authentic in taste, but not appearance although it's not bad looking food. I decided to take my review done to 3 stars for them using aluminum (which transfers too much heat, too quickly to the bottom of the food burning it to a crisp). That's a serious design flaw... I've been unable to cook a proper 8 hour, or even 6 hour brisket. This damn thing will generate creosote distillate after ~3 hours of use ruining the food. It tastes like old, stale smoke with concentrated nastiness. If I cook it less, then it's too tough. The way I see it, I'd have to cook like a .5 lb brisket so the cooking time remains short, or open the lid to get more air in. Either way, I'm done messing with it. I found pressure cooking THEN smoking with the Nordic makes 1:1 taste. The appearance isn't the same, but it's fine by me. If this ever gets replaced, I'll be trying something else. Trials: I smoked 3.5lbs of brisket for 8 hours after briefly reading the manual. I saw the manual called for about an hour or so of smoking. Thinking this unit, in concept, is not any different in temperature or methodology than a traditional smoker, I extended the smoking time. After checking on the meat after the manual's recommended time, I found the brisket cooked and smoked, but not tender. Thinking normally, you'd smoke for at least 8 hours, I kept it going. I checked on it about once an hour, sampling the flavor, except for the last 3 hours. This is where I made my mistake. 8 hours passed, and the bottom quarter inch of the brisket was completely hardened. NOTE: Generously oil the pan. Don't put a thin layer like I did this time. I had to shave a quarter inch off the bottom of the brisket :(. Also, I did what the manual asked in that I did not continue to add wood chips. The result was a lightly stale oak smoke flavor imparted on the meat. The meat itself ended up tasting good, but there was room for improvement. I found it very hard to control temperature with a large glasstop stove as it was either too hot, or too cool. My first bite impression of meat was it was too dry, great in its smoke flavor (although somewhat stale/burnt), yet delicious nonetheless. I found out later I had placed the wood chips dispersed across the bottom of the pan, instead of how the manual suggests (in a pile in the center). This may have overburnt the chips with the extended time. DISCLAIMER: I did not follow the recipe, so this is somewhat expected, but I did this because the recommended cooking time tasted too tough. The smoke flavor this unit is capable (key word) of producing however is, in my opinion, 1 for 1 with a real outdoor professional smoker. Update: I ended up having to buy a 10.5" stainless grill gate to put on top of the cooking surface. The unit gets too hot burning the bottom of the food if left too long. The solutions, as I see it, are ether raising the food over another grate which makes less contact, or using butchers paper with holes cut in it. Otherwise, you might yourself with a tough or burnt bottom side (if you're smoking for several hours). Final Update: I always used this unit with the vents closed. That's the source of my "stale" smoke taste and difficult temperature control. I assumed I needed to keep the smoke inside because of the little amount of wood. I found out you can impart a smoke ring if the vents are open. You can control the temperature as well, but be ready for a ton of smoke in your home... I'm not sure how to rate this product because it does its job well, but how indoor really is any smoker? Great unit however. Trial 2: I smoked wild Sockeye Salmon using maple wood after brining and drying in a brown sugar and salt solution. I tried to keep the smoker at a lower temperature this time (150-180), but found it hard to control once again. It's definitely doable, but the heat soak of the metal makes on-the-fly adjustments somewhat difficult without practice on a large induction burner. The maple wood was placed in a 3 inch arrangement, in the center of pan, unlike how the brisket was smoked. The drip pan was filled with water, and the pan was generously oiled this time. The smoker started to rise in temperature too quickly causing the albumin to rise. I tried to lower it, but this time the wood wouldn't smoke because the electric burner was set to low. I ended up puttingthe burner on full blast to smoke the chips, then sealing the vent after turning the burner back to low to maintain a lower heat. The first bite result was this was the best salmon I had ever made. This unit truly has potential for slow cooking tenderness and proper smoke flavor. Recommendations for electric glass top stove users: -Leave your vent closed for at maximum 1-2 hours. Any more and you'll get smoke condensate on your food which will destroy it. You should keep your vent open, but you will need all windows open, and even then you might trigger an alarm. You sure will smell it for the better part of the week even with ventilation. - With the vent closed, use the smallest or second smallest burner you have, and place the wood chips in the center of the bottom of the pan directly above the stove's element. This will ignite the wood chips, creating smoke without causing temperatures to skyrocket. This is an art. -With the vent closed, brisket cooking times, and also salmon cooking times are too short in my opinion. I smoked my salmon for 2 hours, and will be smoking my brisket for at least 5 next time. They come out too undercooked and tough using the recommended times.. To combat this, keep your meat moist. It would be recommended to wet smoke your food only, or wrap the meat in parchment paper/foil an hour or so in. What I have been doing is smoking for 1-4 hours vent open, then throwing it in the slow-cooker for 4. Works great. -This smoker is a more effective cooker with the vent closed. Use lower temperatures like 180 degrees to prevent drying out your meat. -Experiment with wood chip placement. Scattering them causes a stale, burnt smoke if left for 5+ hours. Piling them up generally helps, but will most likely burn through in 2 hours time. You can experiment with wetting half, and leaving half dry. -Oil your cooking sheet generously! I can't say this enough. I got an elevated 10.5" grill which works great. Cons: -Difficult to control on glass top stoves -Rust formed on the bottom of the vent after 2nd use -Cooking strategy is unique, and it will require a few trials. -If the vent is open, it sometimes blows more smoke than a cheating ex Pros: -Can impart a smoke ring if the vent is wide open; otherwise, it won't. -Imparts a 1 for 1 authentic smoke flavor compared to a real smoker -Cooks delicious food Opinion: Great unit for the money when constrained to cook inside. It has the potential to be a proper smoker, but requires creativity in your cooking strategy. If you don't have good ventilation, don't get this. I would recommend this if you couldn't buy a real smoker (like me).
