Category: Kitchen Appliance

Great Pellet smokers are an increasingly popular type of smoker. They’re often marketed as a healthier alternative to traditional wood or charcoal-fueled smokers, but the truth is that they do have some downsides.

Many pellet smokers come with a tube that has a built-in fuel system. The pellets are put into this tube and it takes care of all of the work for you. This means that you can just fire up your pellet smokestack without worrying about where the fuel comes from.

But how does this tube actually work?

Here’s what you need to know.

The Basics of Pellet Smoking

In general, a pellet smoker works like any other smoker—you just place a small amount of kindling (or “pellets”) in the chamber and set the temperature control dial to whatever level you want. However, unlike a standard gas stove top, there’s no flame here. Instead, the heat source is a metal plate that glows red hot.

This plate heats up the air inside the chamber, which then rises and flows through vents at the top of the smoker. As the hot air passes over the kindling, it cooks the food inside of the smoker. Once it’s done cooking, the food falls down and gets replaced by more pellets so that the process continues.

When you have a pellet smoker, there’s really not much else to worry about on a day-to-day basis. You load the smoker up with food, turn on the heat, wait for the cook time, and you’re good to go.

But there are some downsides to using a pellet smoker, and one of them is the cost. Most pellet smokers start around $300 USD, and they tend to be heavy, bulky devices. That makes them less than ideal if you plan to use the smoker more than a few times per year.

And since these are usually electric models, they require electricity to run their heating element. If you don’t have an outlet nearby, you may end up having to use a generator instead—and that can get expensive pretty quickly.

The Downside of Single-Use Pellet Smokers

You might think of pellet smokers as being single-use devices. After all, once you open the lid, you have to replace the food with fresh stuff whenever you light the smoker again. And while this isn’t something you typically see when people discuss pellet smokers, it’s actually possible to purchase a pellet smoker that will last longer than its intended lifespan.

This is because most single-use pellet smokers are made out of cheap plastic rather than steel or aluminum. While these materials can be strong enough to withstand normal wear and tear, they can break easily under extreme stress. So if you drop a single-use pellet smoker on the floor or knock it against a wall, there’s a good chance that it will crack or shatter.

If you want to ensure that your pellet smoker lasts long enough to justify the hefty price tag, consider buying a multi-use version. These kinds of models are designed to work with several different types of foods. The most common ones are designed to smoke beef brisket, pork shoulder, chicken wings, ribs, and turkey legs. But you also find versions that are meant to work well with sausage links, whole turkeys, and whole chickens.

These types of pellet smokers are usually made out of stainless steel or high-quality aluminum. They also feature removable baskets that allow you to swap out the food when it’s finished cooking.

Buying a pellet smoker that can handle multiple uses is cheaper than purchasing a single-use model. You can buy a used one online for half of the original cost, and you can often find new units that sell for as little as $150.

How to Install a Pellet Smoker Tube

As far as installation goes, setting up a pellet smoker tube is easy enough. All you have to do is attach the unit to your existing grill grate using the included hardware.

However, there’s another option available if you prefer to install your own tube. This includes both an aluminum and stainless steel version. Both are sold separately and each costs roughly $100. Either option is going to make installing your new pellet smoker tube significantly easier.

Install a Pellet Smoker Tube Without Tools

Before we get started, take note that installing a pellet smoker tube is very easy. It only requires a few basic tools.

A screwdriver

Pliers

Wrenches

Wire cutters

Rubber gloves

Safety goggles

Some masking tape

Your new pellet smoker tube

First, remove the old grill grate from your outdoor cooker. Then, grab your new pellet smoker tube and slide it onto the top rack. Next, screw the pellet smoker tube securely onto the side rails of the grill. Finally, flip the entire thing upside down and secure everything with the safety screws.

Install a Pellet Smoker Tube With Tools

Installing a pellet smoker tube is slightly trickier if you decide to use a tool kit. Here’s what you’ll need:

Hand-drill bits

Screwdrivers

Allen keys

Tape measure

Crescent wrench

Chisel

Hammer

Lighter fluid

Masking tape

New pellet smoker tube

First, remove the old grill grate from your outdoor cooker. Then, grab your new pellet smoker tube and slide it onto the top rack. Next, drill two holes directly above the side rails of the grill. Use a hammer to tap in the Allen keys.

Once you’ve drilled the holes, grab your crescent wrench and tighten the bolts until they feel secure. Now, flip the pellet smoker tube over and tighten it with the crescent wrench. Next, grab your masking tape and wrap it tightly around the edge of the pellet smoker tube. Make sure the tape covers every inch of the tube.

Finally, grab your hand-drill bit and drill a hole directly above the pellet smoker tube. Repeat the same process with the lighter fluid, and you should now be able to connect your pellet smoker tube with ease.

Take Care of Your New Pellet Smoker Tube

There are a couple of things you should keep in mind when you’re working with a pellet smoker tube. First off, never use soap, detergent, gasoline, oil, paint thinner, or bleach on your new pellet smoker tube. These chemicals could cause damage and render your device unusable.

Also, be sure to clean the area around the pellet smoker tube regularly. A buildup of gunk between the tube and the rail could make it difficult for the pellet smoker to properly seal the tube. When that happens, you could experience problems with airflow, which could lead to overheating and, potentially, a safety hazard.

Now that you understand how pellet smoker tubes work, you can pick out the right pellet smoker for your needs. But if you still haven’t decided on what to get, check out our list of best pellet smokers below!

We are advised never to play with sharp instruments as children. However, as is the case with all children, they always do what they’re warned not do and learn valuable lessons the hard way.

Even adults have to be careful in handling a knife, fork, screw driver and anything with sharp edges and hinges to it for it is sure to cause them serious injury if handled with carelessness.

Youngsters are quite reckless in such cases and are fond of playing with knives in their bid to emulate movie stars that they see on screen. Since we have mentioned knife, let’s keep our focus on this particular tool for this article.

A knife is many things to many people. For a housewife or cook, it is a tool for cutting fruits and vegetables while for young lads, as mentioned above, it is a tool for looking cool. For thugs and gangsters, it is a murder weapon to loot and kill their victims for personal gain or hatred.

History

There are many things that can be written about a knife set but we need to know about the intricacies as to how a knife set is based because it can be viewed as a weapon of destruction or a tool of convenience for people depending on how they want to use it.

The blade of a knife is quite sharp and can cause bleeding if the cutting edge is not managed properly which is why you have a strong handle/hilt to hold it carefully and use it with expertise.

This instrument has a history of a million years when in the olden days its handle was made of bone, wood or stone. People living in stone-age must have had an easier route for they didn’t need to worry about designs or blade to make things work out.

They would just need to take a piece of rock or wood and peel it until it became the knife that we know. As centuries and millennia passed, there were technological advancements in manufacturing and metals and we began to get knives of different blades made from silver, gold, bronze, copper, brass, cobalt and many more.

Although ceramic and titanium knives are quite popular in Southeast Asian regions, the western world doesn’t use it as much but today you can buy an entire knife set with different variety of knives available like hunting knife, combat one used by army men and pocket knife used for camping/hiking purposes.

Chosen One

If you’re looking for a knife set of topnotch quality then start looking up the ones made of stainless steel as its duration lasts longer than others although they have a limitation as they rust and color over a period of time as it is made of iron.

Nevertheless, the edges can be sharpened on a regular basis to maintain its sheen because the carbon blades make it easy to cut through numerous objects without affecting the blade.

So that concludes knives out session for the day where you now know how to differentiate between a kitchen knife, hunting knife and others and pick your chosen one.

There are many things that one can write a topic on and Kamikoto Knife would probably not in the list of many people as there are quite a few that wouldn’t have even heard of knives of this kind.

Where to begin with such a topic? For one, the name itself suggests that it must be a Japanese knife and it makes total sense because Japan is renowned all over the world for their culinary skills purely based on how they are at handling a knife while cooking and trust me they put it to good use.

Kamikoto is a Japanese word that many readers would not be familiar with so let’s get into what its knife is about without further ado as to what it is all about and the info would be of great use to all that go through it.

Knives Out

The above title has little to do with the great movie that came out few years back and more to do with Kamikoto, which is basically a steelmaking technique that specializes in knife sharpening.

There are many things it is famous for but when it comes to knives, Kamikoto is the undisputed king in Japan and other Asian countries would like to know about the technique as well.

The competition is rough when it comes to Japanese knives as all of them are vying for the top spot in the public eye and every company claim to be the best in order to show the other ones down.

But there are many folks that have expressed skepticism regarding Kamikoto knives on whether they’re truly a force to reckon with or simply a way for its makers to mint money through branding and advertising.

Kamikoto has a century old history to its name because the traditional crafting technique has been popular in many Southeast Asian countries since olden times because the craftsmen involved in carving them have done a phenomenal job that it is hard to believe that it happens such a long time back.

Crafting took place on Honshu islands that is the most in Japan and a tradition that started with little to no resources spanned many generations but the astonishing thing is that the blades are used even today because they retain the same potency as they did back then.

Brand Value

Kamikoto knives are perfect for the kitchen and while some people would claim that all kitchen knives are the same, the brand value of each one differs greatly from one another because there are certain blades that are heavy to manage that is extremely uncomfortable to the holder.

It can also cause grave injury if not held properly and due to its heaviness, the chances of dropping it to the floor too often is extremely high but Kamikoto knives are different in this regard as they’re balanced with perfection where you can pick and use them with ease.

Kamikoto is a company that has immense pride in creating the best knives in Japan along with excellent customer service that you can read about in numerous Knifeista Knife Reviews available online.

Choosing the best air fryer to buy is not that easy. You have to scour through a lot of options in the market to find the perfect choice. That’s why you should instead take the faster route by simply checking the best air fryers available today.

The list of the best air fryers carries top-notch options that are worth purchasing. Yes, they are costlier than cheap brands. But they have superb quality, durability, and features. Choosing from such options is just a matter of considering your preferences and needs.

What are the Best Air Fryer Choices in the Market Today

1. Instant Vortex Plus 

The Instant Vortex Plus is perhaps the favorite basket fryer of buyers today. It can carry up to 5.7 liters of food, which is roughly about 1.8 kg of chicken. Moreover, it comes with air fry, reheat, bake, grill, and dehydrate mode. That means the unit sure is capable of preparing different dishes.

In addition, such a machine is easy to clean. You do not need to worry about your dishwashing agent causing damage to the fryer as well. 

However, the Instant Vortex Plus is a bulky machine. Meaning it would consume a lot of space on your countertop. Moreover, microwave ovens do some cooking tasks better than Instant Vortex Plus, such as reheating leftovers.

2. Ninja Foodi Dual Zone

Ninja Foodi brings the best option if you want a twin basket machine. It can carry up to 7.6 liters of food and is great for air frying, reheating, baking, dehydrating, and roasting.

The dual compartment also lets you cook two different dishes at once. It has syncing features too. Meaning it can cook food in both compartments and finish at the same time. And that is convenient enough for any household.

However, such a unit from Ninja Foodi also takes a lot of space on the countertop. The thing is, it looks fabulous for any kitchen. It has a beautiful black exterior with stylish silver accents.

3. Tefal ActiFry Genius XL

This machine is perfect if you want one that focuses on air frying. Yes, it doesn’t feature plenty of cooking modes. But it can churn out more flavorful food.

That is because of its bowl fryer feature, which keeps the fats from the food. Such oil cooks the food and is the secret to its flavors. Moreover, the Tefal ActiFry Genius XL features a glass top for you to monitor your food during the cooking process.

However, the Tefal ActiFry Genius XL is not for you if you want one with multiple modes. It can only hold up to 3.5 liters of food, which is a lot smaller amount than other choices.

These are only a few of the best air fryers available on the market today. To make a choice, consider your preferences, needs, and budget, then see which option suits you well. For example, you need to cook for a big family. Then a large unit is necessary for your kitchen.

After making a choice, purchase your air fryer from a reliable seller, and start enjoying it in your home.