I've been talking about my Ugly Drum Smoker build for a while, but I finally finished it, and have had a chance to do about 4 or 5 smokes with it. I must say it has exceeded all my expectations. All together, I probably spent around $100 - $150 on parts to complete the build - not bad considering most good smokers costs $300 or more. The drum itself cost $17.00. I picked it up at a local co-op.
There are many advantages of using a smoker like this. For one, it has a large cooking space. Best of all, it is easy to control the temperature and requires very little oversight during the cook. For example, I smoked a Boston Butt this past weekend that took 10 hours. I never had to refuel, and probably could have went 24 hours on a single load of charcoal had I needed. Third, the flavor of the food is great because the juices of the meat drip onto the coals during cooking, which provides enhanced flavor, which is something you don't get with an offset cooker. Finally, they are inexpensive and building one is very easy. I have no experience in metal working at all, and I built this with relative ease (there is no welding required).
Anyway, here are some pics of my smoker, and also the result from a few of my cooks. Since I plan to use this for tailgating some in the Fall, I decided to go with Alabama team colors.
Also, because the diameter of the smoker is roughly the same as a 22" Weber Kettle grill, I can use the Weber lid for more height if I need to smoke Beer Butt Chickens which stand up, or if I need to cook on the top rack, which is about 1" from the top rim. I can use the lower rack that is 7" from the top rim for most everything.
Here is a pic of my Beer Butt Chickens right before taking them off the smoker. I smoked these at around 300 degrees, a little higher than I would with Pork, to keep from drying the chicken out. You'll see also I had some sweet potatoes and vegetables wrapped in aluminum foil...
Here are some chicken thighs that I recently cooked also. They turned out wonderful...
There are many advantages of using a smoker like this. For one, it has a large cooking space. Best of all, it is easy to control the temperature and requires very little oversight during the cook. For example, I smoked a Boston Butt this past weekend that took 10 hours. I never had to refuel, and probably could have went 24 hours on a single load of charcoal had I needed. Third, the flavor of the food is great because the juices of the meat drip onto the coals during cooking, which provides enhanced flavor, which is something you don't get with an offset cooker. Finally, they are inexpensive and building one is very easy. I have no experience in metal working at all, and I built this with relative ease (there is no welding required).
Anyway, here are some pics of my smoker, and also the result from a few of my cooks. Since I plan to use this for tailgating some in the Fall, I decided to go with Alabama team colors.
Also, because the diameter of the smoker is roughly the same as a 22" Weber Kettle grill, I can use the Weber lid for more height if I need to smoke Beer Butt Chickens which stand up, or if I need to cook on the top rack, which is about 1" from the top rim. I can use the lower rack that is 7" from the top rim for most everything.
Here is a pic of my Beer Butt Chickens right before taking them off the smoker. I smoked these at around 300 degrees, a little higher than I would with Pork, to keep from drying the chicken out. You'll see also I had some sweet potatoes and vegetables wrapped in aluminum foil...
Here are some chicken thighs that I recently cooked also. They turned out wonderful...
