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Specifications
- 15,400 BTU stainless steel gas burner
- 730 square inches of total smoking space
- Piezoelectric push-button ignition
- Four nickel plated cooking grates
- Two-door access
- Door-mounted temperature gauge
- Painted steel construction
- Double wall, non-insulated body
- Removable pan for wood chips or charcoal
- 59-pound total weight
- Model Numbers: MB26050412
- Made in China by Masterbuilt Manufacturing LLC
Full Review – Masterbuilt Pro MDS 230S Dual Fuel Smoker
PROS
- Can burn gas or charcoal
- Plenty of cooking space
- Inexpensive
- Dual door design
- Decent smoke production
CONS
- Lightweight
- Limited temperature control as a charcoal smoker
- Uninsulated
- Inefficient
Masterbuilt has been in the outdoor cooking business for decades. They know how to make grills and smokers. Sometimes they do a good job of it. Other times, well, they kind of phone it in. The Masterbuilt Pro MDS 230S Dual Fuel Smoker is really just a gas smoker. It can burn charcoal, but that is just an unintended feature.
Put simply, this is a double-layer black metal box with a 15,400 BTU burner at the bottom. As with any other gas smoker, there is a pan above the burner. You put wood chips or chunks in this pan and it smolders. This produces smoke, making this a smoker. You can put charcoal in this oversized pan and use the gas burner to get the charcoal burning. Now, turn off the gas and it’s a charcoal smoker. Vents allow for a bit of temperature control, but whether running gas or charcoal, this will hold a temperature in the smoking range we want for making barbecue.
Is this a great unit? Hell no. It is competent. It will get the job done. And it will probably work for a few years if it isn’t stored outside in the elements. The burner is lightweight and will burn through. But then the whole unit weighs under 60 pounds. You get what you pay for and this model runs around $250 at Home Depot. They say it’s a best seller and it probably is. You can’t argue with the price.
The Bottom Line
Looking for an inexpensive smoker? Something that is easy to use and doesn’t require fancy wood pellets or lump charcoal? By this unit. Not only is it cheap, but it is cheap to use. Propane is the least expensive fuel you can cook with. This unit will make barbecue. It will do it easily. And it can do a lot of it. You could cook four briskets at the same time.
