If you need a good entry point to grilling, this could be the perfect smoker for you. In my detailed review you will find out everything you need to know about Masterbuilt 20078715.
When you come across BBQ smokers, and especially electric smokers, you’ve heard of Masterbuilt.
They have been manufacturing incense burners since 1973 and their long history of producing quality, durable incense burners has made them one of the most well known incense burner manufacturers for centuries.
Digital electric smokers like this one are an entry point for people new to grilling. They’re much easier to start and control than their charcoal or wood counterparts, and they’re easy to use while cooking your food.
Charcoal smokers are notorious for big temperature swings, but their electric counterparts are a lot to control and are great for maintaining consistent temperatures over long periods of time. Perfect for the low and slow cooking required for grilling smoking. Proper temperature control when cooking meat is key, which makes electric smokers a great way to keep your food tasting great and, more importantly, staying safe.
Let’s see what Masterbuilt 20078715 has to offer.
Features
One of the Masterbuilt’s strongest features is the amount of cooking space it gives you. Provides 975 square inches of cooking surface on 4 cooking grates. Incredibly, this is enough for an impressive 12 whole chickens.
These racks are chrome plated which means they are not only durable but also designed for even heat distribution. They’re less likely to create hot spots, meaning your food will cook evenly no matter where you place it on the grates.
It has full foam insulation that ensures the heat generated stays inside the smoker. Grilling smoking, in particular, is entirely dependent on maintaining constant temperatures during cooking, which means that interruptions in airflow or heat in the smoker can be costly. Good insulation ensures that this does not happen.
One of Masterbuilt’s other strongest traits is its emotional control. This allows you to control the ambient temperature of your smoker as well as the internal temperature of your meat. One of the major downsides to smoking meat is that it takes hours, which can make monitoring the progress of the meat tedious. With a remote like this many of these inconveniences are built in,
It also has its own temperature probe to monitor the temperature of the meat, which is a great feature. Meat is extremely unsafe to eat before it has reached the ideal internal temperature of 140°F, so having a good meat thermometer is important. The fact that Masterbuilt provided one gives me a lot of points.
It also has a drip tray to help catch any juice or fat that runs off the meat as it cooks. This is located behind an easy-to-access door, so you can unload and reload it while cooking without significantly altering the internal temperature of your smoker.
Likewise, it has a wood chip loading system and an auto loader that allows you to add wood chips to further enhance the flavor of your food.
After that, its heating element is 1200 watts, which is an incredible amount for an electric rotisserie. This is strong enough to maintain good cooking temperatures for the hours it takes to cook the meat.
Outside the Box
Sometimes these types of products come unassembled and it can be frustrating to put them together. I haven’t experienced that with the Masterbuilt, and it was up and running in about 20 minutes. The manual walks me through everything and everything was clear. This is not always the case, so I was very grateful that the manual was thoroughly revised!
Before you do anything, it’s important to clean your smoker, just like you would any new kitchen equipment. While you don’t use the same company when seasoning & seasoning as with an offset smoker , it’s important to use dish soap on the cooking grates and at least scrub the inside of the chamber with a cloth.
I also like to dab a bit of cooking oil on the inside just to open it up. This is similar to the seasoning we do with offset smokers and only helps to put a protective coating on the smoker’s surfaces to prevent rusting during use.
Fortunately, this can be done very cheaply with spray oil. There is no need to spend specialists on anything. Then do a no-food test to help settle the oil and form the protective layer.
Should You Use Wood Chips for an Electric Smoker ?
How to Clean and Maintain a Masterbuilt Smoker
As with any kitchen utensil or kitchen appliance, it is best to clean it as soon as possible after use. Wait for it to cool and then get to work. It saves you a lot of work if you can get it on the inside surfaces of your smoker before food or grease(or worse) cakes.
The first stop is to take out all removable items. This includes the racks, the water pan, the drip pan and the smoker box.
Start the smoker box by pouring the ash into the box. Then use one part hot water to one part apple cider vinegar to spritz the box. Spray liberally and rub to clean.
Then proceed to the rest of your grill, using your unwanted apple cider vinegar and water mixture to spray down the smoker and using a brush to scrape off any residue or particulate buildup.
Use a sponge to clean.
Use soapy water to clean your grills. Rinse it off with a hose and then allow it to air dry properly before putting the smoker back in.
Writer & content creator. BBQ fanatic!
