Sometimes we get into new hobbies not necessarily for the sake of the activity itself, but because of the myriad options in accessories and complimentary options that hobby offers us. I have a friend who got into hunting not because he enjoys the pursuit of the solitude of the outdoors, but because it allowed him the ability to buy fancy new hats and boots and various gun accessories. While he still enjoys the primary pursuit, I think he secretly gets more joy out of going to the shop to buy ammo and a new shirt while the hunting is, charitably, a tertiary concern.
Now, I’m not suggesting everyone who dives head first into a new hobby acts this way. For some, it can be an unforeseen benefit the primary activity itself. Conversely, for some it can be a real pain in the ass to buy all of these extras that just end up costing money you didn’t want to spend; I get that, but we’re not talking to that person today.
Smoker Accessories
We like the idea of accessories, perhaps not as much as my hunting friend, but we still like being able to add complementary pieces to our hobbies. The art of smoking includes no shortage of accessories, some of which are necessary to successfully cooking a delicious, juicy piece of meat. While you can go wild purchasing all manner of unnecessary but fun pieces (i.e. A “Kiss the Chef” apron; while hilarious, it’s wildly presumptuous to think that someone actually wants to kiss you, especially after spending hours in a plume of meat smoke), sometimes you’re better off sticking to those items that are complementary to the smoker itself.
Today we’re going to jump into three products that will actually work in your benefit as a pit master. Two of these products are items we deem to be absolute necessities from a safety and taste standpoint. The third is an item that will can benefit you greatly when you’re looking to cook a specific item a certain way, but in no way is it a frivolous purchase akin to the stupid apron.
Each one of these products is a great way to further your success as the pit master of your backyard. BBQ smoker accessories are everywhere, but these will actually do something for you. Moreover, none of the three products we chose to review are going to hurt your wallet, the most expensive of the three coming in well under $100.
We’ll walk you through each product and why we feel it’s an important piece to add to your smoking setup. If you plan on being a serious smoker, or even a weekend warrior type, these three items are only going to provide you with an upgrade on your setup. Without further ado, here are our favourite BBQ smoker accessories, why we like them so much, why they’re necessary, and why you should be buying them as soon as you can.
Best BBQ Smoker Accessories
Camp Chef, Sante Series Turkey Cannon Infusion roaster
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The first piece of equipment we wanted to take a look at was this infusion roaster from Camp Chef. While this isn’t something we would deem to be an absolute must, we found it to be extremely practical and a great way for cooking chicken and turkey. What this accessory does is allow you to cook your poultry perfectly and evenly by allowing the heat to more easily enter the inside of the bird while roasting the outside- think beer can chicken. By loading up the roaster with beer or sauce or whatever flavour you like, it will infuse the bird with flavour and keep it moist by steaming it from the inside out.
While a lot of people are happy concoct their own contraption for this sort of meal, we’ve found that using something set up specifically for this use is much easier and works significantly better than any home job we’ve used ever has. For only $20 you can get yourself a great way to cook poultry.
This is an accessory that’s quite cheap, easy to use, works to great effect, and provides you with delicious and healthy poultry. It’s a bit of a no-brainer, if you ask us.
Grill Beast BBQ Grilling Cooking Gloves
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If you want to be a real smoker, you’re going to need to get yourself a proper pair of gloves. You can’t go rooting around in the smoker, moving meats around, touching the grill, what have you, with your bare hands like some sort of Neanderthal. These gloves, which you have to assume are going to be excellent because the company that makes them is called Grill Beast, perform quite ably.
They’re fire retardant and heat resistant while being able to withstand temperatures up to 660 degrees Fahrenheit. What all of this amounts to is being able to work with your meat and smoker with total impunity; giving you the utmost confidence that you won’t get burned. This is, in essence, all anyone is really asking for when they purchase a pair of gloves for smoking.
These are an absolute must for anyone who wants to try their hand at smoking, and for about $20 we highly recommend you grab more than one pair. These come with a lifetime guarantee as well, so should anything ever go wrong you know exactly what to do with your gloves. We doubt this will ever come to fruition, though.
ThermoPro TP20 Wireless Remote Digital Cooking Food Meat Thermometer
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Lastly, we wanted to discuss what is perhaps the most important accessory you can purchase if you plan to serve up a decent piece of meat- the meat thermometer. These are necessary for pretty much anyone who cares about the finished result of their smoking efforts, which is kind of the whole point of the process.
This particular thermometer, from ThermoPro, is really well built and done so specifically for smoking and grilling. With a digital readout, they’ve taken all of the guessing out of the process for you. not only that, but you it comes with pre-set temperatures for particular types of meat, guiding you through what can be a difficult part of the process at first.
For $50, this is something you need to get. It facilitates in cooking great meat and that’s not something that anyone should be sleeping on. Simply put: go get this.