Smoker or Dehydrator for Jerky – Which is Best?
There are lots of people around who usually ask that should they use smoker or dehydrator for jerky?
According to our experience, smoker and dehydrator both help you in preparing food for preservation purposes. They both let the life of the food increased. You can use them for making jerky as well.
Before talking about the smoker or dehydrator for jerky, let us give you some glimpse of both products.
In a food dehydrator, you can dry out the foods like vegetables, fruits, and spices with the heat by taking out the extra moisture from them whereas, a smoker utilizes the smoke for preparing food without losing the food’s flavor.
But which one we should use for making jerky: smoker or dehydrator?
To know the answer lets read out the below article in which we will compare both techniques for making jerky!
How does Smoker Works While Cooking Jerky?
The smokers are user-friendly products for the kitchen use. It is quite easy to use this appliance with the help of the start pushbutton or switches. It provides a smoky environment for the jerky while drying. You also get the digital control panel through which you can set its temperature for making jerky. While cooking food in the smoker, you get a sense of surety that the jerky will come out in the exact way that you desire.
The heating elements in the food dehydrator help in circulating the uniform flow of air over the jerky placed on the trays. As soon as the time of drying jerky gets up, you get a crunchy and delicious jerky for serving.
You can check out the below video link for making jerky in the smoker:
How does a Food Dehydrator Work for Cooking Jerky?
The food dehydrator utilizes the heated flow of air for removing the moisture content of the jerky. It offers you more consistent outcomes as you can set the temperature required for drying jerky quickly in it. It retains the taste, color, flavors, and nutrients of the jerky after drying.
The electricity inside the smoker provides a smoky environment to the foods. Its walls are 100 percent insulated so that the jerky stays protected and gets ample amount of heat while cooking. The temperature in the smoker is controlled thermostatically for making jerky so that it gets correctly smoked.
You can check out the below video link for making jerky in the food dehydrator:
Pros of the Smoker for Jerky
Smokers are quite useful for cooking jerky as it not only retains the flavor of the food but also enhances the taste more. It involves the method of burning or smoking for cooking food.
Below you can find few pros of the smoker for jerky that will help you in knowing more advantages of this product:
- Easy to use
With the help of the electricity, smokers use the smoke for cooking jerky. You can adjust the range of temperature as per the requirement. There are indeed fewer chances of uneven drying in the smokers.
- Works like a grill
It also works as a grill for the jerky strips. You can make try cooking some different recipes for the jerky in the smoker.
- Preserves the Original Taste of jerky
The smoker helps in retaining the original taste of the jerky. In fact, with the smoky environment, the overall flavor of the foods gets enhanced.
- Need limited power for cooking
Smokers required very less power for cooking jerky as it in energy efficient product. It does not need much time and power for food.
- Easy controls
While cooking jerky in the smokers, you don’t have to worry about the complicated controls at all. You have to place the jerky inside the smoker after setting the temperature and leave the rest to the appliance. It will cook your food evenly from all sides, and you don’t have to do any tray rotation in it.
- Cook large amount of jerky
You can cook a significant amount of jerky in the smokers for a night long party or gathering. There is no need to worry about serving jerky to lots of people at one time if you have a smoker at home.
Pros of Food Dehydrators for Jerky
The following are the pros of food dehydrators for jerky:
- Destroys the Microbes in jerky
It eradicates the water content from the jerky during the process of dehydration for the complete drying. It does not let the growth of microbes in the jerky, and you can preserve it for a longer time.
- Quick drying
It cooks the jerky quite fast and in bulk quantities. Now during the part of your home, you don’t have to worry about cooking vast amounts of jerky snacks.
- Increases the life of jerky
Dried jerky do not get spoiled quickly in comparison to the fresh one. Drying jerky in the dehydrator increases the life of the food along with the proper nutritional value and taste.
- Cook Healthy Jerky Snacks
You can cook healthy jerky snacks for camping or trekking in the dehydrator. You don’t have to do much preparation as only you need a good food dryer machine.
- Convenient to use
The dried jerky is lightweight, and you can conveniently store it any small place. Dehydrators speed-up the process of drying and dried out the jerky quickly in less time.
Cons of Smokers for Jerky
The following are few drawbacks of using the smoker for making jerky:
- Need to place outside
You can set the dehydrator in your kitchen, but the smoker needs to put outside the home.
- More Cooking Time
In comparison to the dehydrator, smoker takes more time for smoking food.
- Additional cost
They might be cheaper than the dehydrators regarding price, but the maintenance cost of the smoker is more than the dehydrators. So, while cooking jerky in it, you might have to bear this cost additionally.
- Cooking jerky might be difficult
It is not so easy to prepare jerky in the smoker. If you need some moistness in the food then, it would not be possible in the smoker.
- Limited Control over temperature
Smokers do not come with the comprehensive control of temperature range. In some smokers, there are no modifiable vents. Some of them might do not have insulation and manufactured from the thin metal which does not lead to the production of sufficient heat in the winters.
Cons of Food Dehydrators for Jerky
The below are few drawbacks of food dehydrators for jerky which you should know for sure:
- Needs longer time
Dehydrators need proper time and temperature control settings for cooking jerky correctly. If you do not complete the entire process, then this can cause microbes and mold in the jerky.
- Loss of Vitamins
It can lead to the loss of essential vitamins and nutrients in the jerky after drying.
- Less tasty
The jerky cooked in the dehydrator might be less delicious in comparison to the fresh jerky. They might become leathery due to the loss of the moisture content in them.
Final Word
If you ask us about the smoker or dehydrator for jerky then, our simple answer is that both of them have their pros and cons while cooking jerky.
Both of them not only cook the jerky in a right way but also enhance the overall flavor of the food. They increase the shelf life of the jerky by maintaining its nutritional value. These methods of cooking jerky are different from the traditional modes of drying food.
If you have a small budget and have good space at home, then you can go for the smokers for jerky. They also consume less power. But if you have no limit on the budget and needs a compact and innovative appliance for jerky then, the dehydrator is the best option.
We hope that you relished reading the article!
Did we miss out something? Then please let us know in the below comment box. We will appreciate a word from you. You can also share this information with more and more people who want to clarify the smoker or dehydrator for jerky.
References:
https://www.reddit.com/r/jerky/comments/489pgv/smoker_vs_dehydrator/
http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showthread.php?t=41658
https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/4647399/Jerky_Dehydrator_or_smoker