🆚 Weber Smokey Mountain vs. Pit Barrel Cooker 🆚🆚🆚
Gilling is a favorite outdoor activity for many American families. The choice of the perfect grill is essential to make this activity pleasant and with tasty results. Charcoal grills are one of the most inexpensive grills on the market that can produce food with a nice smoky flavor.
There are many types of charcoal grills with direct and indirect heat zones, with different shapes and types. This article will review two famous competitors: Weber Smokey Mountain vs. Pit Barrel Cooker.
Face-to-Face Comparison Table
Main differences between Weber Smokey Mountain and Pit Barrel Cooker
There are many Internet requests asking what the difference is between Weber Smokey Mountain and Pit Barrel Cooker, as both these grills are in the same price category and have the same size. So, first, please check the main differences between models.
- Weber Smokey Mountain and Pit Barrel Cooker have different shapes with the same grill diameter. Weber is a bullet shaped grill; Pit Barrel is a barrel.
- Weber Smokey has a water pan inside to work as a heat deflector; because of that, you can work with a temperature below 275oF for low and slow BBQ (also you can grill without the pan). In a Pit Barrel grill, you have only the direct heat mode, so you cook only hot and fast.
- Weber has a dome thermometer on the lid to check the temperature when you can start cooking; Pit Barrel grill does not have one.
- Weber grill provides many cooking choices – it is a versatile grill. You can work on top or low cooking grate, install a rack and cook vertically, remove the middle section and cook on the grate just above the coals, and cook with direct or indirect heat. Pit Barrel only has the option to cook with direct heat and on the grate or the rack.
- Weber has two cooking grates, so the cooking area is twice more extensive than for Pit Barrel’s grill, but you can purchase a hinged grate for combined cooking – grate + rack.
- The Weber grill has a removable door in the middle section for easy refueling or adding wood chunks. You must take the food out if you want to add charcoal to Pit Barrel’s grill.
- Pit Barrel grill cannot control the temperature, but in Weber’s grill, you can control all four ventilation assemblies.
Conclusion
The comparison of Weber Smokey Mountain and Pit Barrel Cooker showed that the first grill provides more options for food preparation, and it is easier to change parameters during meal preparation. In contrast, the second one is easy to cook and clean, as no maintenance or change of parameters is required. So, if you prefer to control the grill and like different cooking styles, the Weber grill is the perfect option; for those who prefer to set and forget, the Pit Barrel Cooker is a better option. Anyway, the perfect result in both cases is ensured.
