Cookshack

Differences Between Elite and Essential Series Smokers

Feature	Elite	Essential
Electronic controller	Yes	Yes
Meat probe	Yes	No
All stainless steel	Yes	No
Black/stainless steel combination	No	Yes

See more detailed comparison here.

Cookshack developed a proprietary electronic time and temperature “IQ” controller for its commercial smokers in the early ‘90s. Since that time we have applied that technology to our home use smokers as well, replacing mechanical thermostat units with electronically controlled units.

Difference between Mechanical and Electronically-Controlled Units

The major differences between a mechanical thermostat unit and an electronically controlled unit are 1) the temperature variance in the units and 2) the ability for the user to view the oven temperature. The electronically controlled unit was designed to drastically reduce the variance in temperature in the oven when cooking small loads. It is not unusual with a mechanical thermostat to see temperatures of 70 to 80 degrees above the set point and then to watch the unit crash to 70 or 80 degrees below set point. This temperature variance causes the product being cooked to swell and shrink each time the oven goes through this process. With the IQ controllers Cookshack was able to take that temperature swing to just a few degrees over and under.

The AmeriQue

Our flagship home use smoker, the AmeriQue, includes an electronic cook-and-hold controller which allows the user to set a desired smoke-cooking temperature with options for 1) setting cooking time or 2) monitoring internal meat temperature with its commercial-quality meat temperature probe. When the smoke-cooking cycle has completed or the desired internal temperature has been reached, the AmeriQue will drop to a hold temperature of 140. The AmeriQue’s electronic controller LED display panel shows the set cooking temperature and the remaining time when using the timer, or the internal meat temperature when using the meat probe.

Cook-and-hold allows the user to smoke-cook a product and to hold it at a constant temperature until it is removed from the smoker at a later time.

Cookshack Elite and Essential Series

The electronically controlled thermostat unit on the Smokette Elite and Essential Series uses the same technology as the IQ controller that Cookshack has used for years in its commercial smokers. With this controller’s tight temperature control the product comes out of the oven with more moisture and tenderness. It has the advantage of allowing the user to see the oven temperature without opening the oven door or using an external thermometer.

The only difference between Elite and Essential smokers' controllers is that Elite models include a commercial-quality internal meat probe used for cooking meat to a user-determined internal temperature. Essential model smokers do not have this probe.

The Elite electronic controller allows smoke cooking by setting the desired cooking temperature and provides monitoring of the internal meat temperature with its commercial quality meat temperature probe. The Elite models have electronic controllers with LED panels displaying the cooking temperature and the internal meat temperature when using the meat probe.

The Essential electronic controller allows smoke-cooking by setting the desired cooking temperature, which is displayed on the controller’s LED display panel.