Weber SmokeFire EPX4 2022 review

For most individuals, or a minimum of most individuals I know, a barbecue is an easy, cheap out of doors cooker that entails cooking meals on a grill over charcoal. Both that or it’s a fuel barbecue which, although handy, doesn’t fairly give meals the identical barbecued style as charcoal.

However there’s a complete different world of barbequing and, simply as glamping is to tenting, you possibly can elevate your out of doors cooking to a very totally different degree with a beast just like the Weber SmokeFire EPX4.

It makes use of neither charcoal nor fuel, as a substitute burning compressed pellets of wooden. Weber recommends you utilize its personal model of pellets, which are available in a spread of several types of wooden to provide totally different flavours to your meals. You’ll be able to, in fact, supply different manufacturers of pellets, however outcomes aren’t assured.

In contrast to quite a lot of barbecues, you possibly can cook dinner no matter you want on the SmokeFire EPX4. Out of your commonplace BBQ fare together with burgers, sausages and kebabs to steaks, ribs and extra, the EPX4 permits you to cook dinner on the applicable temperature, from 200-600F (95-315C).

The low temperatures, together with the SmokeBoost perform, help you slow-cook ribs and different joints of meat which want many hours of cooking, whereas the very best help you sear steaks and even stir fry utilizing a wok.

The EPX4 is sensible, too, with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi so you possibly can modify temperature remotely, set timers and get alerts when these temperatures or occasions are reached.

To clear up any confusion, that is the model new 2022 EPX4 Stealth Version which differs from the common (and cheaper) SmokeFire EX4 solely in that the silver elements of that mannequin at the moment are black, together with the shelf, handles and brackets for the castors. Aside from that, it’s the identical barbecue.

Options & design

• Constructed-in display screen
• Helps as much as 4 core temperature probes
• SmokeBoost perform
• Constructed-in gentle for nighttime grilling
• Aspect desk

Although it’s the little brother of the EPX6, the EPX4 remains to be an imposing barbecue. Weber says there’s sufficient room on the 2 grills to cook dinner for six folks and that’s not exaggerating. You’ll be able to match three entire racks of ribs in an EPX4 for those who needed to. The decrease grills measure 610x460mm in complete.

The twin upper- and decrease grills are additionally helpful for those who’re cooking meals that wants totally different temperatures: the higher grill will get oblique warmth and is right for smoking meat, whereas the decrease one has direct warmth from the so-called Flavorizer bars.

The UK-specific mannequin that Weber despatched for assessment comes with three grills: one higher and two decrease. And due to the Connoisseur Barbecue System (or GBS for brief), there’s an additional grill that sits under the bigger of the decrease grills and which helps the choice equipment talked about already, together with the dual-sided sear grate.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

To the correct of the grill itself is a helpful shelf (although a bit of small) and a built-in display screen that allows you to see and management the temperature utilizing the big dial. The massive textual content is straightforward to see, even in vibrant situations, however the data is replicated within the app as effectively.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

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Beneath the display screen are 4 connectors for temperature probes that help you monitor the core temperature of no matter you’re cooking to make sure it’s correctly and safely cooked. The quantity you get within the field relies upon upon your area. Within the UK, you get one. Further probes are round £23 / $18.

To be clear, that is the second technology SmokeFire – Weber has modified a couple of issues following suggestions from the primary technology. Particularly, it added an insert to extend the angle of the hopper to 33° so the wooden pellets slide extra reliably into the auger (the half that feeds them into the fireplace pot), and likewise modified the way it manufactured the auger to scale back the possibility of a jam.

And if a jam is detected, the EX4 will try to repair the difficulty with none handbook intervention.

Construct high quality is great: the porcelain-enamel black end on the surface is hard and simple to wash. It’s additionally simple to assemble, primarily due to the actual fact Weber has put directions within the BILT app so you will have step-by-step directions in 3D. Plus, the assorted bins are labelled and the directions let you know which field the elements for every step are in.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

For anybody coming from a standard charcoal barbecue, the actual fact the EX4 lights itself is each superb and handy. Weber even offers two spare glow plugs within the field, which implies there’s no have to search out the precise sort if you want a alternative.

However even higher than that, in contrast to fuel or charcoal barbecues, the SmokeFire will keep the temperature – identical to an indoor oven – so you possibly can pop your meat on the grill, shut the lid and do different issues till it’s cooked,  with out worrying it is going to burn.

App

The Weber Join app is cut up into three sections. Barbecue provides you management over the EX4’s temperature, permits you to allow and disable the SmokeBoost perform and set timers.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

It additionally consists of cooking programmes for a wide array of meats, fish and even fruit and greens.

For instance, underneath Pork is child again ribs, together with the time they’ll take. Faucet on it and also you’ll discover a breakdown of the assorted preparation and cooking steps, and the place applicable brief movies present you what to do with each the meat and the barbecue.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

Beginning a programme can even hearth up the EX4 to the right temperature, and also you’ll get alerts in your cellphone when it is advisable to carry out different steps.

One other part is Recipes the place you select the identical classes of meat, fish and greens, however there’s no search perform, so you need to scroll via and discover one thing you just like the look of.

Final, there’s the Extra menu which is the place you may get to the EX4’s settings, although these lengthen to solely altering its identify and connecting to a Wi-Fi community.

It’s value noting that for those who solely join through Bluetooth, you’ll should be inside Bluetooth vary of the EX4 to make use of the app. However for those who arrange Wi-Fi, not solely can you utilize the app wherever in vary of your own home Wi-Fi, you too can monitor and management the EX4 remotely from wherever with an web connection. And that’s particularly helpful for longer smoking classes when it is advisable to get on with different issues and possibly pop to the retailers for one thing you’ve forgotten.

Wooden-pellet grilling

The SmokeFire EX4 takes round quarter-hour to gentle itself and warmth as much as the temperature you’ve set. It’s superb at holding that temperature, however it is advisable to maintain the lid closed because it cools down quick shortly if you open it.

The pellets themselves are mainly compressed sawdust and look precisely just like the pellets you’d feed sheep and cattle. The entire level of utilizing wooden pellets is as a result of they critically improve the flavour of your meals, extra so than charcoal does. You’ll be able to select from varied hardwoods together with hickory, maple, cherry and blends of these.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

The EX4 burns via pellets at a fee of knots, particularly at greater temperatures. It’s finest to make sure the hopper is full for those who’re going to cook dinner low and sluggish for a number of hours. It’ll take a full bag – 20lb or simply over 9kg – with a little bit of room to spare, that means you possibly can empty a whole bag even when there are nonetheless a couple of pellets within the backside.

Luggage aren’t low-cost, at round £18 / $19 every, however ought to final a couple of classes every. Simply keep in mind you’re not going to seek out them in your native grocery store, so it’s essential to be sure to have sufficient handy earlier than you invite friends over.

Regardless of the steeper slope within the hopper, I discovered pellets didn’t all the time slide, particularly when the extent is pretty low. There isn’t a lot else Weber can do about it, however it will be higher if it was even steeper.

Like all wood-pellet grills, the EX4 has a fan which helps to maintain the fireplace going in addition to guarantee the warmth is directed across the complete ‘cookbox’, very similar to a convection oven.

It’s fairly noisy, particularly in the course of the shutdown course of which takes round quarter-hour and – annoyingly – has the fan spinning as much as most velocity and off repeatedly. Should you’re consuming close to the barbecue that’s sufficient of an issue to contemplate swapping it out for a quieter one and we’ve seen a couple of folks do that with Noctua PC followers with, apparently, nice success.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

Nonetheless, it is a minor gripe and it’s value enduring for the implausible flavour you get from cooking on the EX4. Whether or not you’re conserving it easy with conventional burgers and hotdogs or going for the complete smoked impact through the use of SmokeBoost for the primary couple of hours of a low-and-slow session, outcomes are mouth-wateringly good.

I attempted SmokeBoost, which reduces the temperature to 165-200F / 74- 93C, with each ribs and a joint of beef – the sort we often cook dinner for a Sunday roast in a sluggish cooker. And each had a noticeable smoky flavour that made it that rather more gratifying to eat.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

For those who care about such issues, it additionally gave the meat a stunning smoke ring – a pink ribbon a couple of millimetres extensive across the edge.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

It additionally cooked all the things else we tried very effectively, with out burning it, and with out fixed consideration and turning of the meat. Clearly, it’s doable to burn issues for those who go away them on too lengthy at too excessive a temperature, particularly something skinny, which may additionally dry out.

Weber recommends utilizing a steel tray, half full of water, to assist maintain meat moist when smoking, and likewise to catch extra grease to cease it falling to the underside and probably blocking the drain holes.

Actually, it’s attention-grabbing that the design hasn’t modified between the primary and second technology on this respect: grease nonetheless drains via two small holes on the backside of ‘slides’ both facet of the burn pot.

And regardless of the claims of the easy-clean system with a detachable drawer that catches the ash and grease, you’ll nonetheless must scrape out grease from the cookbox each few classes, and that may be fairly messy.

However it’s essential to do it to make sure there’s no chance of a grease hearth. I had no actual issues throughout testing: the EX4 carried out virtually faultlessly. The one difficulty that cropped up was a solitary auger jam, however the barbecue sorted that out itself in a couple of minutes, presumably by reversing the corkscrew and forcing the pellets again into the hopper and making an attempt once more.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

Value & availability

You should buy a SmokeFire EX4 direct from Weber within the US the place it prices $1099. The EPX4 Stealth Version isn’t out there but for US patrons. You may as well purchase an EX4 from Amazon within the US for a similar worth.

The EX4 is costlier within the UK at £1,599 from Weber  and £1,899 for the EPX4 Stealth Version.

Availability within the UK wasn’t nice on the time of assessment, with the EX4 displaying low inventory and EPX4 fully out of inventory on Weber’s web site.

Nonetheless, you’ll discover each fashions out there at decrease costs from different retailers.

Within the UK you might decide up an EPX4 for £1619 from BBQworld, and the EX4 for £1439 from the identical retailer.

You’ll virtually actually need to purchase the fitted cowl to guard the barbecue from the weather, which prices $72.99 / £119.99 – once more, significantly costlier within the UK. It’s value searching round for bundle offers which embrace the duvet and different equipment relatively than paying full worth for them individually.

Picture: Jim Martin / Foundry

Verdict

At this worth, the SmokeFire EPX4 (and even the EX4) isn’t one thing you’re going to purchase on a whim. However based mostly on my time with it, it’s cash effectively spent. You’ll in all probability discover you barbecue much more than you’ll with a charcoal grill, too, and the actual fact you possibly can monitor temperatures from indoors means it’s no downside to barbecue even within the winter as there’s little should be exterior whereas your meals is cooking.

Additionally, the actual fact it could do all the things from low-temperature smoking to high-temperature searing means it’s extra versatile than most barbecues.

Lastly, as a result of you need to shut the lid and also you meals cooks with no need fixed consideration, you possibly can spend time together with your friends as a substitute of standing on the grill.

Should you’re after one thing comparable however on a significantly tighter finances, then check out our Masterbuilt Gravity Collection 560 assessment, which is lower than half the worth of the EPX4.

Specs

• Temperature vary: 95-315°C / 200-600°F
• Fires up inside quarter-hour
• Gravity-fed hopper
• Shops between 9kg / 20lb of pellets
• Higher and decrease grills
• 4270cm² complete cooking area
• Evening-time illumination
• Constructed-in temperature gauge
• 1 meat probe equipped (helps 4)
• Weber Related App (Bluetooth or Wi-Fi)
• 5-year guarantee