Cooking food in Minecraft using a regular furnace can feel painfully slow—especially when you’re surviving on meat. That’s where the Smoker comes in. A smoker is a specialized utility block designed to cook food twice as fast as a furnace, making it one of the most useful crafting stations in Survival mode.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to make a smoker in Minecraft, how it works, what materials you need, and why it’s better than a furnace for cooking food. This tutorial is beginner-friendly and works for Minecraft Java Edition and Bedrock Edition.
What is a Smoker in Minecraft?
A Smoker is a functional block introduced in Minecraft 1.14 (Village & Pillage update). It is used exclusively for cooking food items and is the fastest way to prepare meat and fish in the game.
Smoker vs Furnace (Quick Comparison)
| Feature | Smoker | Furnace |
|---|---|---|
| Cooking speed | 🔥 2× faster | Normal |
| Cooks food | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Smelts ores | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
| Fuel usage | Same as furnace | Same |
| Villager job | Butcher | None |
Materials Needed to Make a Smoker
To craft a smoker, you’ll need just two items:
- 1 Furnace
- 4 Wooden Logs (any type: oak, birch, spruce, jungle, acacia, dark oak, mangrove, cherry, etc.)
✅ Important: You must use logs, not planks, to craft a smoker.
Step 1: How to Make a Furnace (If You Don’t Have One)
If you already have a furnace, skip to the next section.
Materials for Furnace
- 8 Cobblestone
How to Craft a Furnace
- Open the crafting table (3×3 grid).
- Place 8 cobblestones in all slots except the center.
- The furnace will appear in the result box.
- Move it to your inventory.
Cobblestone is easily mined using a wooden or stone pickaxe.
Step 2: How to Make a Smoker in Minecraft
Once you have a furnace, crafting a smoker is quick.
Smoker Crafting Recipe
- Open your crafting table.
- Place the furnace in the center slot.
- Place 4 wooden logs in a diamond shape:
- One above the furnace
- One below the furnace
- One to the left
- One to the right
- Leave the four corners empty.
- The smoker will appear in the output box.
- Drag it into your inventory.
🎉 Congratulations! You’ve crafted a smoker.
How to Use a Smoker in Minecraft
Using a smoker is very similar to using a furnace.
Steps to Use a Smoker
Right-click (or tap) the smoker to open its interface.
Place raw food in the top slot:
- Raw beef
- Raw chicken
- Raw porkchop
- Raw mutton
- Raw rabbit
- Raw fish or salmon
- Potatoes
Place fuel in the bottom slot:
- Coal
- Charcoal
- Wood
- Blaze rods
Watch the progress arrow fill faster than a furnace.
Collect your cooked food from the right slot.
What Can You Cook in a Smoker?
Smokers can cook all edible food items that a furnace can, but faster.
Cookable Items
- Beef → Steak
- Chicken → Cooked Chicken
- Porkchop → Cooked Porkchop
- Mutton → Cooked Mutton
- Rabbit → Cooked Rabbit
- Fish & Salmon → Cooked versions
- Potatoes → Baked Potatoes
🚫 Smokers cannot smelt ores or non-food items.
Why Use a Smoker Instead of a Furnace?
Using a smoker offers major advantages in Survival gameplay:
- ⏱️ 2× faster cooking
- 🍖 Ideal for food farms
- 🧑🌾 Required block for Butcher villagers
- 🔥 Uses fuel more efficiently for food
- 🏕️ Perfect for early-game survival bases
Smoker and Villagers (Bonus Tip)
Placing a smoker near an unemployed villager will turn them into a Butcher, allowing you to trade food items like cooked meat and sweet berries for emeralds.
FAQs – Smoker in Minecraft
Can smokers cook faster than furnaces?
Yes. Smokers cook food twice as fast as furnaces.
Can smokers smelt ores?
No. Smokers only cook food items. Use a furnace or blast furnace for ores.
Do smokers use less fuel?
They use fuel at the same rate, but because cooking is faster, they are more efficient for food.
Can smokers be used as fuel?
No. Smokers cannot be smelted or used as fuel.
Which Minecraft versions have smokers?
Smokers are available in Minecraft Java Edition and Bedrock Edition (1.14+).
Final Thoughts
If you want to cook food faster and survive more efficiently, a smoker is a must-have block in Minecraft. It’s cheap to craft, easy to use, and perfect for early and late-game survival bases.
Whether you’re running a food farm, trading with villagers, or just tired of slow furnaces, upgrading to a smoker is one of the smartest crafting decisions you can make.
