Gas grill/smoker

[chieftopcop]

First crack at trying to smoke something (Fattie and pork shoulder). Using a three burner Char Broil gas grill.
Put the wood box over the first burner on low, left the guard on (metal triangle over the actual burner) and got no smoke. Took the guard off and ended up with ashes real quick.
So, how the heck do I get smoke from this thing.
All I have now is cooked sausage and a shoulder in the process of cooking.
The temp was right around 210.

 

[gene reda]

Hi Chief,

Is this the Char broil grill with the three burners that you can flip the burner covers over to fill with chips or chunks? If so, did you soak the chips (I prefer small chunks) in hot water for a few hours before putting them over the flames? You also might want to try wrapping some wet chips and a chunk or two in HD aluminum foil packets with some holes on top to let the smoke out but to minimize the tendency for the wood to just burn on those type of burners.

Hope this helps.

 

[soflaquer]

Do not take off the vaporizer shield like you did. You obviously saw what happenned! LOL!

Let me be the first to let you know that all Gas Grills do not make good smokers. Most of them are not designed for that. The best you can usually do is get a little bit of smoke flavor on them. I would suggest that you place the wood box directly on the shield and turn up the burner (from low) until you start getting some smoke. Remove the cooking rack that is over it so you can add more chips (you don't need it anyway). adjust your middle burner if needed, to achieve the desired temperature. Get an roasting rack and place it inside a baking pan, (some come as a set). Pour some beer in the bottom of the pan, put your Meat atop the rack and place it in the far end of the grill, away from the burners. On a 3 burner grill, you'll probably need to make a heat shield out of HD Aluminum Foil. Fold it over and make an "L" - slip the bottom under the pan to hold it in place. Rotate the pan every few hours. The chips are going to burn fast (every 40 -45 min. or so) - so you'll need to change them often.

This should help you a little - but If you want true smoked food, invest in an actual smoker.

Jeff

 

[shaneholz]

After reading Jeff's last post I would run out and get a smoker. I was trying to draw it in my head and got a headach. It sure sounds like he knows what he's talking about though. I was watching a BBQ contest on the food channel last weekend and a guy placed with just a 55 gallon drum. Easy and it worked. Good luck with the grill. At least your trying to smoke.
Shane

 

[soflaquer]

Take some asprin and call me in the morning! LOL! It's not that hard, really.

Did the guy look like a Hillbilly? If it's the same guy, I've seen him. He uses an old piece of plywood to cover it with. That's called Direct Smoking. He achieves the desired temps because the meat is so distant from the fire, but the what makes a difference is the drippings rendering off the coals.........adds a flavor you can't get with a regular smoking methods!

 

[shaneholz]

Yes that was definately the guy. Quite a interesting fellow. Well whatever works for him. My cold smoker kinda looks like a hillbilly contraption but it gets-r-done!!! Ha Ha

 

[soflaquer]

No, yours looks like something from "War of the Worlds", but I digress...................

(Just Kidding) :)

 

[n9wa]

When I'm forced to use my grill, or am grilling at a friend's house - sans smoker - I have had really good results using the small bags of pellets commonly available at Wal-Mart, etc.

I make a rectangular "pouch" from aluminum foil. Start by sealing (fold / roll) three sides of the pouch (think "envelope"), then add the pellets. Next, seal the top of the pouch by folding / rolling the remaining side. Finally, and this is most important, make a SINGLE pencil-sized hole in the pouch for the smoke to escape. Don't make the mistake of thinking "more holes - more smoke!" because it isn't the case. More holes means more air meaning the pellets burn instead of smouldering and producing a good smoke.

It's easy, because there's no messy soaking of wood chips, no ash to clean up, nothing! Just pull the pouch after you're done cooking and throw it away.

You'll have to experiment to see where your pouch works best. Some grills work with it on the rack, some grills I lay it right on the lava rock.

And lastly, this is handy because the pellets are available in many more varieties of flavor than wood chips / chunks.

Dave

 

[soflaquer]

I've used those as well, Dave. They work well, but again, alot depends on the Grill. Most of the newer Grills out there today allow too much smoke to escape from the chamber and therefore little smoke ever reaches the Food. You have to do some real ingenious temporary mods to keep that smoke where it needs to be!

If you can afford it..........break down and buy a Smoker. Even if it's an ECB!

Jeff