Cabelas Electric Smokers
Contributors to this thread:General Topic
From: Stryker
01-Dec-18
Ok I’ve decided to try my hand at making some of my own sausages and whatever else I can come up with and have zero experience at this. Looking at an electric smoker from cabelas that would be best for a newcomer to this endeavor. Don’t want to invest a lot until I think I will enjoy this. If there is already a post out there that has the info I’m looking for you can guide me in that direction. Thank you in advance
From: Ben
01-Dec-18
I had a friend give me a Masterbuilt electric smoker. You can enter cooking temp and time. It has a temp probe but it is not reliable. No problem, as the rest of the functions work great and I have a remote probe that is reliable. I run it in thru the smoke damper. Yesterday I cooked and smoked a 20# batch of summer sausage, 1/2 with cheese. Works so good it is almost cheating. I've smoked lots of meat (beef, pork, chicken and venison) and snack sticks, jerky and summer sausage. Waltons seasoning has excellent smoking and sausage info on their sight as well as the best seasonings I've ever used.
From: NEIAbowhunter
01-Dec-18
My dad just purchased a Masterbuilt electric smoker. Seasoned it and cooked some chicken on it the first day. The probe seemed to work. I haven't smoked any deer on it yet but I have been making sticks, jerky, and summer sausage that last 5 years or so on a Pit Boss Pellet grill from Cabela's. Did 25#s of Summer sausage on Tuesday with the pellet grill. Great flavor from each unit. Will try the smoker in the next couple weeks.
From: cnelk
02-Dec-18
I have a MasterBuilt electric smoker and love it.
I smoke wings a lot, a couple weeks ago I did 19lbs of antelope summer sausage. Easy peasy
From: Ben
02-Dec-18
Cnelk, That looks exactly like my smoker when I did the 20# of sausage the other day! Great smoker isn't it.
From: Jaquomo
02-Dec-18
Masterbuilt. I've owned several different types and theirs is the best.
Their customer service is fabulous. An American in Georgia answers the phone.
From: midwest
02-Dec-18
Ditto Masterbuilt. Best bang for the buck.
From: Timbrhuntr
02-Dec-18
I should have asked this before I bought mine. I got a bradley smoker and have never been happy with it. Never got to temp and then started to crack and fall apart. I was talking to a couple buddies that also bought bradley and they feel the same way, same problems with theirs. Guess I need to try a masterbuilt as like was said above once you try it .........
From: cnelk
02-Dec-18
I did some smoked WT ribs last fall...... delish!
From: midwest
02-Dec-18
Bradley you have to use their proprietary "pucks". Masterbuilt uses chips you can get anywhere. You have to manually add the chips but you can control how much smoke you want.
From: TheTone
02-Dec-18
I'd strongly consider a pellet grill like a green mountain or traeger. Will do everything the others mentioned will, plus allow you to grill, etc.
From: T Mac
02-Dec-18
I have master built it’s ok....I don’t get a lot of smoke out of it....for those that do, do you soak chips in water before hand?
From: T Mac
02-Dec-18
Ok I just read to open the vent more which makes the element stay on longer to remain temp thus creating more smoke. I’m currently smoking goose breasts and it seems to be producing more smoke....Time will tell
From: midwest
02-Dec-18
I have a pellet grill. Prefer it for jerky but prefer my Masterbuilt electric for sausages.
T Mac, I don't soak my chips. I dry the sausage at 130 deg. with damper wide open for an hour or two before throwing in the chips (pellet grill won't go that low). When I throw in the chips, I crank it up to 150 deg to smoke, damper half open. When you throw in the chips, leave the hopper open a crack and I think you get better flow through. Someone on here gave me that tip.
I fill the chip hopper again in about an hour. After about 2 hrs. of smoke, I crank it up to 180 deg, damper completely closed, until finished cooking. Meat thermometer reads 160-165.
Pull the sausage or sticks out, put in a meat lug and hose down with cold water. This will keep the sausages from wrinkling if that matters to you. I think it looks better, nice and smooth if I'm giving some away.
From: Jaquomo
02-Dec-18
Yep, the open vent changes the smoke. Also, if I'm tending it I use fine chips to produce more smoke. If I have to leave for a bit I mix in larger chips. I don't soak chips anymore.
From: sdkhunter
02-Dec-18
I’ve got an electric masterbuilt smoker as well, works awesome - have used it a lot over the 2 years I’ve had it. I use small chips as Jaquomo mentioned. I like to soak about half my chips - the other half I go dry... has always put out lots of smoke ...
From: T Mac
02-Dec-18
Ok I just replenished chips and left hopper slightly open....thx for the tips
From: PECO
02-Dec-18
I have a Bradley with the hockey pucks. I have had no problems with it. It does not get real hot, but hot enough to get meat up to temp. We order the pucks online and keep a good stash of them.
From: cnelk
02-Dec-18
I drilled some small holes just unde the chip tray - above the burner to get a bit more heat to the chips
From: Dale06
02-Dec-18
I have had a Bradley for 15 years. I only smoke pork ribs, beef brisket, and chickens. Works great. True you have to buy Bradley compareseed wood pucks. But I keep plenty in stock and in the grand scheme, they’re not expensive.
From: Stryker
02-Dec-18
Ok guys I’m leaning towards the Mastetbuilt and will refresh this post for all of your great ideas. Thanks again. Like always if you have a problem or need an answer for something just go to Bowsite
From: JL
02-Dec-18
I was just looking at the at smokers at our local Dunham's store today. They have the 30" electric digital Master Built and the 30" electric/digital Smoke Hollow with a glass door....both on sale for $149 each. The Smoke Hollow has wheels on the back to roll it around. I kinda like that idea.
From: Nimrod90
02-Dec-18
Masterbuilt for me too. I make all my own summer sausage and just pulled 20# or venison ham off of it an hour ago. Makes it easy with the digital time/ temp and then use a cheap thru the door temp probe for internal temps. CNELK, I like your idea with the drilled holes! stealing it
From: cnelk
02-Dec-18
Jaquomo had an old propane grill he wanted to get rid of so I took it off his hands. I stripped it down and rebuilt it with a frame to hold my smoker. Added new wood to the sides and secured it to the new frame. Now I can roll it around wherever I need to
From: midwest
03-Dec-18
I think I've had a few wings out of that thing. :-)
From: ND String Puller
03-Dec-18
I've had good luck with my electric masterbilt 40" with glass door Runnings had them for $350 a few years back. I always end up making sausage after archery season in January so needless to say it's been put to the test. It will hold temp even at -24 degrees outside temp! You can add chips without opening the door, and the wireless remote and meat probe makes it feel like cheating ! Way too easy compared to the homemade propane one my dad made from an old fridge.
From: Tilzbow
04-Dec-18
Cookshack is what I use. Maintains temperature very well and built like a tank.
From: Bowfreak
05-Dec-18
That's a great idea Brad.
You guys that are using commercially prepared summer sausage mixes, which do you prefer? Do you add hi-temp cheese too?
From: Ben
05-Dec-18
I use Waltons seasoning out of Wichita, Ks. , they have a great selection of all seasonings, hi temp cheese, grinders, stuffers casings and how videos. The last batch I used their Tons Summer seasoning with cure and it is great. Very savory and just a little bit of heat. I made half of the last batch with Hi temp cheese mixed at 10% the next time I will do 15% and I double grind on coarse. Next time I will single grind to give more texture. The double grind makes it more moist. I also mix about 20% pork fat and grind one fatty pork shoulder to a 20# batch. Really works well.
From: Factory rat
05-Dec-18
I have the 30 inch masterbilt electric it's worked well for me. The only problem I've had is it seems to get hotter along the back wall. If I do something smaller like snack sticks. I have to be careful not to put them there or they will get overdone. Has anybody else noticed this?
From: Nimrod90
05-Dec-18
Factory rat, yes me too with my masterbuilt, cooks good but I have been opening it up and rotating sausage sticks half way through because they are getting too done near the bottom and back wall.
From: Factory rat
05-Dec-18
Yea the bottom rack also. Thought I was doing something wrong . I'll have to try and rotate them next time.
From: midwest
06-Dec-18
Yes, rotate your racks. The Masterbuilt is not a high dollar unit.
I'm lucky, I have Curley's Sausage Kitchen in a nearby town. He's a great guy and sells off his website. Kody's Snack Sticks are a favorite as well as his Andouille Sausage. He sells kits with everything you need but the meat. My gf's brother just made some deer bacon with Curley's seasoning and said it was fantastic.
From: Bowfreak
06-Dec-18
Is it better to hang sausages or lay them on the racks of a masterbuilt? I assume it is best to rotate either way.
From: cnelk
06-Dec-18
Mark - I use LEM summer sausage seasoning mix for my stuff.
Ive also done both - hang & lay on rack. No difference
From: GBTG
06-Dec-18
I recently bought the Masterbuilt 40". Looking to make some whole meat jerky. I'm looking for advice for jerky esp. time and temp. I also have a slicer for consistent thickness. Thanks, Dave
From: ND String Puller
14-Dec-18
Best deal I've seen yet
From: ND String Puller
15-Dec-18
Best deal I've seen yet
From: lana
27-Nov-20
lana's Link
Looking for a 40-inch electric smoker with reliable features. And found a result.
From: Cut2Kill
27-Nov-20
Walton's Inc as mentioned above is a great source for equipment and supplies. Their seasonings are awesome. I did 75 pounds of elk snack sticks in my Traeger this season. It would be nice to have a dedicated electric smoker with a lower temperature range.
From: Cut2Kill
27-Nov-20
From: Cut2Kill
27-Nov-20
From: drycreek
27-Nov-20
First, let me say that I know nothing other than what I taste about smoking, but it is my opinion that the smoker is second to the recipe. The reason for my thinking is that my buddy has been smoking on the same electric smoker for about three years or so now, and his product has went from damn near worthless to rival the best processor meats that I’ve had. Same smoker, but different recipes for his product. His summer sausage is second to none.
