This ‘Brisk It’ Smart Smoker Has Changed How I Cook, and It’s Under $300 for Prime Day

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I’ve never been intimidated by much in the kitchen, but smoking food seemed tedious. Friends who smoke meat crow on endlessly about sleepless nights tending the meat with specialized wrapping procedures and expensive equipment. No thanks. But last year I tested five smart grills, and although a few were good, it wasn’t hard to determine that the Brisk It was a seriously ingenious invention—and it’s on sale right now for Prime Day for under $300.

Brisk It Zelos-450 Electric Wood Pellet Smoker Grill

$296.99

$349.99
Save $53.00

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Get Deal

$296.99

$349.99
Save $53.00

I don’t take AI in cooking very seriously—the recipes it suggests are often uninteresting and limited. The Brisk It app is different, though. You can ask the AI engine in Brisk It’s app (named Vera) for absolutely anything, and it’ll serve up a number of recipes. You can refine them, too, which is nice. But most importantly, it develops the complicated smoking schedule for your food, which involves a slow ramping, power smoking at intervals, and ways to beat “the stall” (a common problem when smoking meat where the temperature doesn’t climb for a while).

The app will tell you what to prep; you simply put the food on the grill when told to, and insert a temperature probe. You light the grill by sliding a button on the app, and then the grill takes over. It might ask you to flip something or add something, but the grill handles all the cooking, and when the food is done cooking, the grill shuts itself off.

If you prefer to handle the smoking on your own, you can. You don’t have to use the AI at all. Just turn the grill on and set temperatures, add in power smoke if you want. Control things manually from the grill, or the app. The grill uses standard pellets you can pick up at the store, so there’s nothing proprietary. Use any wood you’d like.

I wish I could explain how much the Brisk It has changed how I cook from spring through fall. Lighting the grill isn’t a bother—it’s a swipe of the phone. Barbecuing isn’t something I have to plan ahead—I can grill on the fly. And at this point, I’ve smoked everything from the obvious (meat) to cheese, vegetables, and even salt.

This model, the Zelos, is the smaller of the grills, so if you want more real estate for grilling, consider the Origin-580 or 940. I’ve tested them as well, and they’re all spectacular.

Looking for something else? Retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, and Home Depot have Prime Day competition sales that are especially useful if you don’t have Amazon Prime.

• Walmart’s Prime Day competition sale begins at midnight on July 8 and will include deals up to 50% off. It’s an especially good option if you have Walmart+. 

• Best Buy’s Prime Day competition sale, “Black Friday in July,” runs through Sunday, July 13 and has some of the best tech sales online. It’s an especially good option if you’re a My Best Buy “Plus” or “Total” member.

• Home Depot extended its 4th of July sale through at least July 9, competing with some amazing deals of its own. It’s an especially good option if you’re looking for power tools, appliances, or outdoor equipment.