Little Chief Smokers

[OutHouse]

I also use the box it came with slightly modified as insulation. I have the big chief and it will get to around 165 degrees but have had it up to 180 degrees. Perfect for fish if you ask me but I don't do other meat in it. And yes soak your chips first and don't over do it on chips. I only use two pans worth sometimes just one.

[BD1]

I have done truck loads of duck and goose jerky in a Little Chief back in the day. Takes awhile but but works!!!

[h2ofowlr]

Guys, thanks very much for your suggestions. So, these Lil Smokers don't actually cook the food, unless it's a salmon steak or a trout, correct? You could smoke them and eat them? Or would you have to smoke them and then cook them on a stove or in an oven? For instance, I have a large turkey breast in the freezer from a tom I shot this past spring. If I smoked it for a couple of hours would I them have to cook it in an oven? If this is the case then the smoker is used mainly for imparting smoky flavor to a cut of meat that's then cooked conventionally?

They are like a slow cooker.  They only get up to about 165F and if the wind is blowing or cold out it can get much lower.  I was smoking some fish this past winter and it was running about 127F, which was perfect for me as I just cooked it longer and kept an eye on it.  I will usually burn about 2 pans of chips in it during the smoking process.  If you are wanting a cooker, I would look at some of the other smoker options that are insulated and have temperature options.  A Bradley, Masterbuilt or Trager also are good options.

[Oldguy]

A tip someone gave me was to take two or three briquets and whack them with a hammer to get smaller chunks and place in pan. Then add chips to fill the pan and the first pan gets the process going with smoke and heat. Use normal pans of chips for finnish. An aluminum blanket the Little Chief sells really helps in cooler weather. The Little Chief site should provide directions and recipes.

[MeepDog]

Very dependent on outside temp. You could probably cook a chicken in August, but it'd be Salmonella Sashimi in January.

I've done salmon, ducks, sausages, and hams in my big chief smoker. Any warm blooded creatures need to be finished in an oven. Get an instant read meat thermometer. They're cheap and remove the guesswork.

[PsoasHunter]

Lots of good info here. Mine runs between 140 and 165 deg with the box it came in as insulation, depending on weather. Keep it out of the wind.

Those temps are good for fish and jerky, but don't cook thick cuts.

However, when smoking a big cut, they only take smoke on for flavor for 3-4 hours of smoke anyway, even on a big fancy pit trailer smoker. So smoke your turkey in the little chief for 3-4 hours, then finish it in the oven and it will be every bit as good as if you used a hotter smoker. I've done this with bear hams and small pork butts before I had bigger smoker.

[CastleRocker]

I've got two Little Chiefs, and use them exclusively for fish, and cold smoking cheese.  They work awesome for me.  They came with instructions for cold smoking.   Just don't do it when the ambient temperature is over 70°. 

[salish]

Thank you ALL for the additional comments since my last response. It is very much appreciated.

UPDATE: I tried the smoker yesterday for most of the afternoon, not cooking anything, but just trying to burn a pan of chips. The element got hot, but apparently not hot enough to burn chips. They're supposed to burn and create smoke, correct? The smoker itself got hot and I could feel heat, but saw no smoke. I ran it for about 4 hours. At one point I tried to dampen the chips just a little with a few droplets of water. It was a warm day and no wind. I'm using an old bag Little Chief chips & chunks fuel that came with the smoker. Maybe it's too old? Should I try brand new chips? If that doesn't work maybe buy a new element?

Thanks gain,
Cliff

[Oldguy]

If the heating element is bad, a replacement is available for most units. Mine was out of production so I called Little Chief and they sold me a brand new smoker with a huge discount.

[pianoman9701]

You can get replacement elements on Amazon for about $30.

[CP]

The Big Chief is my favorite fish smoker.  I should buy another before they are banned for wokeness.

[pianoman9701]

The Big Chief is my favorite fish smoker.  I should buy another before they are banned for wokeness.

Funny, I was just thinking about that. Hope they don't get woke and go broke. 

[Oldguy]

"Little Leader steamer" and the bigger version, "Large Leader steamer". These climate friendly smokers don't offend the tribes and care for the environment. No chips or smoke, but utilze boiling water to cook with hot vapor!

[CP]

"Little Leader steamer" and the bigger version, "Large Leader steamer". These climate friendly smokers don't offend the tribes and care for the environment. No chips or smoke, but utilze boiling water to cook with hot vapor!

 

[PsoasHunter]

Was your chip pan directly on the element? It should be resting right on the element.

Did you temp it? Maybe the element got warm but not hot?  I use a cheap meat probe sitting in one of the little vent holes in the top, it's OK to leave it there the whole time you're cooking.