# Presto indoor electric smoker



## normanaj (Sep 11, 2020)

So I was in Wallyworld today looking at crock pots and came across a Presto crock pot and upon closer examination noticed that it is also an indoor countertop smoker.Never have I seen or heard of such a thing.Its limited in what it can do but for what does do it gets pretty decent reviews.

I'm intrigued.The idea of being able to do some type of  indoor smoke in the dead of Winter is something to think about.It was $84 but if I find it on sale I may just give it a shot and see if it really works and if it doesn't its still a fully functional crock pot.

Here's a link to Presto's site:








						Indoor Electric Smoker
					

Infuses food with authentic smokehouse flavor.




					www.gopresto.com


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## JC in GB (Sep 11, 2020)

Would like to hear a report from someone who has used one.  My guess is you won't get a lot of smoke flavor but who knows?

JC


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## thirdeye (Sep 11, 2020)

It looked like the chip cup held a tablespoon or two of chips.


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## gmc2003 (Sep 11, 2020)

Sounds interesting but I really don't think the wife would want any type of smoker smell in the house. 

Chris


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## mike243 (Sep 11, 2020)

I bought a indoor smoker that sat on the stove, used wood chips, didn't have it long, it went away while I was away deer hunting, I upgraded my stove exhaust since so another shot at 1 might be in order lol .


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## Bearcarver (Sep 12, 2020)

Hmmm---That would be Great, if it didn't smell up the house for Mrs Bear to Squawk about!!! Might even smell smokier that my clothes do when I come in from doing a long smoke. My Micro-hood is not vented outside, so any smoke would stay inside.

I'd still like to hear a report from anyone who tries this thing.

Bear


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## normanaj (Sep 12, 2020)

Bearcarver said:


> Hmmm---That would be Great, if it didn't smell up the house for Mrs Bear to Squawk about!!! Might even smell smokier that my clothes do when I come in from doing a long smoke. My Micro-hood is not vented outside, so any smoke would stay inside.



That's would also be an issue for me as well!

And it just occurred to me that my hood is not vented outside either so I guess this gizmo is a no go for me too.


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## Bearcarver (Sep 12, 2020)

normanaj said:


> That's would also be an issue for me as well!
> 
> And it just occurred to me that my hood is not vented outside either so I guess this gizmo is a no go for me too.




Yeah, I installed my Micro-hood when the house was new & I was installing the Kitchen I designed & built. I thought about venting it to the outside, but it would have had to go through the wall to the Garage, then about 12' to the back wall, and through the Log Wall to the outside.
Plus I don't like to suck heat out of my house in the Winter when cooking.
The only thing is, everything above gets a greasy film on it, like her stupid Longaberger Baskets.

Bear


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## Winterrider (Sep 12, 2020)

Bearcarver said:


> thought about venting it to the outside, but it would have had to go through the wall to the Garage, then about 12' to the back wall, and through the Log Wall to the outside.


We were in the same situation when we had our kitchen re-done. Lot of extra work and expense, but would have been nice.


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## SmokinAl (Sep 12, 2020)

Love the smell of smoked food, BUT not in the house. And in the winter when the house is opened up & the windows & doors are open, I have to be careful when I smoke something that the wind is blowing away from the house or we have to shut the whole house up to keep the smoke out.
Al


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## bill1 (Sep 12, 2020)

These remind me of the Chinese pressure cookers with inner chip crucibles that pop up now and then.  This one is non-pressurized but the most intriguing thing is it's from a very well-known brand, Presto.  
I'm no lawyer, but not only is indoor food smoking prohibited in most states, I think it's illegal to even sell these things.  Hence, if you want one, better get one now.  They seldom last on the market for more than 6 months.  I'm assuming that's because mfgrs/distributors get "cease and desist" letters, but maybe it's just a free market saying no smoke inside.  
If I'm off-base on my legal understanding of this, please correct me.  
It's somewhat ironic this post appears as my state is covered in wildfire smoke.  We battened down the hatches and ran our home AC non-stop for a while but with the cool nights have given up, opened up,  and just live with a house that's as smoky as the patio when the smokers are going.   And no, this is not the smoke flavor I'd have chosen.   :-(


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## thirdeye (Sep 12, 2020)

One Thanksgiving many years ago it was snowy and well below 0°.  I had a brisket in my smoker and a few of us met at a bar for a holiday cocktail.  A couple at the next table heard us talking about barbecue and told us they had just moved to Wyoming and were smoking a turkey for Thanksgiving in a brand new Little Chief electric smoker.  I own one of these, and they are not really a winter smoker, especially on a cold day.  

Anyway, these folks were getting pretty shined up on tequila shots and I mentioned that they should be keeping an eye on the turkey since it was so cold out.  The wife said "We thought of that, so we set it up in the spare bedroom".


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## Bearcarver (Sep 12, 2020)

thirdeye said:


> One Thanksgiving many years ago it was snowy and well below 0°.  I had a brisket in my smoker and a few of us met at a bar for a holiday cocktail.  A couple at the next table heard us talking about barbecue and told us they had just moved to Wyoming and were smoking a turkey for Thanksgiving in a brand new Little Chief electric smoker.  I own one of these, and they are not really a winter smoker, especially on a cold day.
> 
> Anyway, these folks were getting pretty shined up on tequila shots and I mentioned that they should be keeping an eye on the turkey since it was so cold out.  The wife said "We thought of that, so we set it up in the spare bedroom".




LOL---Little Chief in the Bedroom???
Uh-Oh!!

Bear


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## SecondHandSmoker (Sep 12, 2020)

The concept sounds good.  
However, I tend to think the unit would be more along the lines of a steam smoker due to it being sealed.  Thus producing lots of condensation which would inhibit bark formation.
I suppose if you want bark or crispiness, you would need to finish it under the broiler.


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## bill1 (Sep 13, 2020)

SecondHandSmoker said:


> The concept sounds good.
> However, I tend to think the unit would be more along the lines of a steam smoker due to it being sealed.  Thus producing lots of condensation which would inhibit bark formation.
> I suppose if you want bark or crispiness, you would need to finish it under the broiler.


The Presto will lift the lid before it reaches even the smallest fraction of a psig.  But the Chinese smoker pressure cookers should be pretty good at driving in smoke flavoring, even if you live in Denver, and with minimal wood being consumed.  You won't get a bark, but most conventional pressure cooker recipes recommend you sear the meat on the bare bottom of the cooker pot before you add the juicy stuff.  If smoking, _reverse _sear (in a cast iron pan afterwards) would be the way to go.


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## SecondHandSmoker (Sep 13, 2020)

bill1 said:


> The Presto will lift the lid before it reaches even the smallest fraction of a psig.  But the Chinese smoker pressure cookers should be pretty good at driving in smoke flavoring, even if you live in Denver, and with minimal wood being consumed.  You won't get a bark, but most conventional pressure cooker recipes recommend you sear the meat on the bare bottom of the cooker pot before you add the juicy stuff.  If smoking, _reverse _sear (in a cast iron pan afterwards) would be the way to go.



I reckon that is why Presto built a relief valve into the lid.  The condensation created during the smoking process probably creates a tiny bit of vacuum along the lid seal that would cause the lid to be difficult to remove for some people. 

The Presto does seem like a good option for people in the situation where the use of other types of smokers is out of the question.


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## bill1 (Sep 14, 2020)

SecondHandSmoker said:


> ...The Presto does seem like a good option for people in the situation where the use of other types of smokers is out of the question.


For now, I agree.  But every couple years, someone markets a true pressure-cooker smoker that lasts on the market maybe ~4 months.  This Emson should do a lot better job of smoking meat without completely smoking your house than the Presto.  But at $370 (ebay open box price, one available) it's about 6x the price it was on Amazon about a year ago.  

Note the pics for the Emson show it's the real deal.  Hot finger element extending in from the side with a stainless dish that straddles it for pellets or chips.  (One of our Forum Brothers probably bought it and Mrs Forum Brother threatened divorce, so Forum Brother decided I'll save my marriage AND turn a tidy profit!)  

I've been tempted to build one myself based on a stovetop model like this.  But most hot fingers (e.g. pellet grill starters) I doubt could be configured to hold the ~12psig pressure.  Hot water heater elements are sufficiently pressure-rated but they're rather big (and over-powered).


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## SecondHandSmoker (Sep 14, 2020)

Well heck, that Emson is still available at Wallyworld for $199.   https://www.walmart.com/ip/Emson-Sm...0=125210738&wl11=online&wl12=20604793&veh=sem

It pays to shop around.  

I've done a little more research on the Presto unit due to thinking it might be a viable cold smoker option for smoking cheese during my long hot summer months when the smoked cheese supply is running low. 
NOPE!  
The thing runs at 140 on cold smoke which is too hot for my preference. 

I remember those stove top pressure cookers.  
They made awesome Swiss Steak.


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## bill1 (Sep 14, 2020)

Thx 2ndHandSmoker.  Mrs. Forum Brother will just have to endure a bit longer.  WallyWorld here I come! 

Seriously, I didn't see any temperatures given (just times for various recipes) in the User Manual.  140F  thermostat setpoint for cold smoke setting is good to know...did your source list a hot smoke setting as well? 

Yes, it's a bit limiting these numbers aren't adjustable.

PS: I love the old pressure cookers.  Can't beat 'em for fast and tasty potatoes...unless you like crisp skin.


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## SecondHandSmoker (Sep 14, 2020)

Poor ol' Forum Brother. 

From what I've read  from the mfgr's replys to questions on a website named after a jungle river, they state that the hot smoke setting alternates from 190 to 240 depending on the "combo" smoke setting...whatever that means?!

Yes, I agree that non adjustability on the temps is an issue. 

As for those old stove top pressure cookers,  they certainly are versatile.  
Though, I never witnessed one redecorating the kitchen despite all the horror stories and urban legends. 

You know, alot can be said for these new multi-function programable electric pressure cookers.  My wife and I started out with on old Revere Meal in Minutes that eventually got tossed when the non-stick coating on the inner pot started flaking off.  
We ended up with an Instant Pot with all stainless inner pots.  
Yes, we bought two inner pots.   It has performed pretty well over the years.
While you can't pressure can with it, it does make some darn good yogurt among other one pot meals. 
Pressure wise, it tops out around 13 PSI on the high setting.


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## bill1 (Sep 15, 2020)

SecondHandSmoker said:


> ...questions on a website named after a jungle river, they state that the hot smoke setting alternates from 190 to 240 depending on the "combo" smoke setting...whatever that means?!
> ...As for those old stove top pressure cookers,  they certainly are versatile.
> Though, I never witnessed one redecorating the kitchen despite all the horror stories and urban legends...


Ah yes, user reviews.  I glanced at a few and noted many said you have to turn off your home smoke detectors with it.  I think this is why local regulators eventually are able to create the legal pressure (no pun intended) to throttle back the Emsons of this world.  I predict the same will happen with the mighty Presto, so get it while you can, because _this _Forum Brother may be buying one just to resell it at $500 some day.  

Per the Presto Smoker user manual, combo means 40% of your set time (up to 6h max) is in Low Smoke mode, then the last 60% is at High Smoke.  

Alas those stovetop pressure cookers had a tendency to build up previous cooks' worth of food coating within the center diameter hole that the jiggler sat on.  The weight of the jiggler divided by the area of that hole was the pressure setpoint.  The jiggler would bounce up and down with a musical clatter maintaining pressure within a psi of that pressure point.  But as the hole closed off, well you could build up "excess" pressure.  (I think the new Chinese self-powered units have a gooseneck sort of vent that traps this food "spit" and keeps the final metered path out clear "for the life of the unit".)

Of course the Presto having two vents is not new...all pressure systems have such redundancy since steam locomotive days.  On old-school pressure cookers, the secondary relief is a half inch rubber pressed into an off-center position on the top lid.  It's supposedly designed to blow at 2x the normal pressure of ~12 psi.  But that old school rubber was notorious for getting hard and non-compliant with age so 5X is probably a realistic number for that time when my Dear Dad blew potatoes all over the ceiling.  Naturally my old school mom & pop cleaned up, replaced the rubber (heck, they might have re-used the original if they could recover it stuck to the ceiling with the potatoes.) 

I inherited and still have that pressure cooker,  although I usually use the larger stainless model my folks gave me as a young man out on my own.   But I still have memories of Dad meticulously cleaning the jiggler hole with a toothpick before and after each cook...at least _after _the  potato explosion.  

And I'm proud to say I've learned from Dad's experience.  I always keep a handful of round toothpicks in the bottom of one of these old pressure cookers as a reminder to never forget this critical  piece of maintenance.


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## old sarge (Sep 15, 2020)

Presto is a great company.  We have several old Presto appliances from years gone by still working well.  A fellow at work has an Oster  16 qt smoker/roaster oven.  He uses it quite frequently and until he retired would bring it to the office for smoked meat potluck.  I will say it does smoke.  Chips go into opposing corner pockets and that's all there is to it.  And no one has ever complained about the food except for the lone vegetarian.  Just another option to think about.  





__





						Robot or human?
					





					www.walmart.com


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## bill1 (Sep 16, 2020)

Nice find, and considerably larger than the Presto.   A few complaints of burned paint around the chip cups but reviews are mostly good.  (It's sold out on Amazon.) Interesting the Oster product literature is quite clear it's for outdoor use only as a smoker and for roasting only when indoors.  (A problem for apartment dwellers who aren't allowed to cook outdoors.)  I suspect Presto may have to add outdoor provisos to _their _literature at some point to avoid the ire of insurance companies not liking customers pulling the batteries out of smoke alarms.  

Nordic Ware and "Charcoal Companion" sell stovetop units that use sawdust (or ground pellets?) on the bottom, with a slightly elevated water pan and meat rack on top.  They don't work well on electric ranges (apparently smoke goes out when the burner cycles off) but you could probably make something like one yourself with any large pot with a lid.  Might try it the next time the wife's out of town!  :-)


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## old sarge (Sep 16, 2020)

I should have mentioned outside use only.  I suppose a really strong range hood exhaust might take care of the smoke. But I would not count on it.


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