Does anyone else have a hard time shopping for the men in their lives??  I tell my husband all the time that I’m the easiest person in the world to shop for because I am easily pleased with things that would make a six year old happy, like lip gloss, nail polish, or a cookie.  But boys?  They like big things.  Expensive things.  And if your man is anything like mine, they often just go buy stuff when they want it, instead of inconspicuously hint dropping like I do.  So it’s always fun when you find something cool and unique, that they might not have thought of themselves, and this one fits the bill!  Kate and I really wanted to do something man-centric this Father’s Day, and what’s more manly than a sleek steel box filled with fire, wood, and meat??

I’ve been dying to get my hands on a smoker, and Outdoorcooking.com came through for me and sent over a Smoke Vault to try out.

This baby has a matchless-ignition system, fully adjustable heat-control dials, and 18,000 BTU’s of heat.

The 24″ Vault is even roomy enough to smoke a full turkey in!  And while this box is specially designed for smoking, it can be used without smoke as an outdoor oven to cook all sorts of things, like casseroles, breads and pies!

For my first go at smoking, I pulled out the big guns and went for the king of bbq: brisket.

You can easily control the heat on the Smoke Vault by adjusting the gas itself,

and using the three damper valves.

You can keep an eye on the exact temperature on the heavy duty temperature gauge right on the front.

For Mother’s Day, I just wanted to eat a giant hunk of beef.  Brisket is my cut, and my was it delish.

All that smoky flavor is absorbed right into the meat, and then it’s slow-cooked, this one for about 10 hours.  That crusty exterior is scraped off, and succulent beef is thin sliced.  Happy Mother’s Day to me!  You can smoke all cuts of beef, chicken, fish, jerky, you name it.

GIVEAWAY:  We’re excited to be partnering with outdoorcooking.com to offer a fantastic giveaway!  One lucky reader is going to receive a 24″ Smoke Vault Smoker, and in addition, you’ll get a Patio Cover as well, to keep it looking its best!  This would make a pretty killer Father’s Day gift to just about any guy on your list (or say forget it with the Father’s Day stuff and keep it for YOU!)  Leave one comment on this post to enter.  Giveaway ends one week from today!

DISCOUNT CODE:  And don’t fear, not everyone can win- but everyone can get a discount!  Outdoorcooking.com has so much cool stuff, and if you use the code OBB15 you’ll get 15% off your purchase (valid 5/22-6/22).    Start shopping!