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CHOW.com Senior Food Editor Jill Santopietro recommends that you smoke all sorts of things: fish, cheese, salt, and, of course, meat (see our recipes). And you don’t need a fancy smoking device: You can smoke food on a basic kettle grill. It’s really easy. Watch the video, or see it all step by step (plus instructions for smoking on an outdoor gas grill).
She needs to not put the cover of the grill on the ground... that will scratch and mar the finish. She must not realize that the top/cover has a hook that allows the cover to rest on the side of the grill when taken off...
this lady is awesome
I have four Weber kettles, a vertical offset smoker, and a couple other grills. A few comments on the video, as well as the other comments:
Agreed on the "soaking wood" thing. Thin blue smoke is the desire, billowing white smoke will impart a bitter taste. Moments of white smoke are ok (like when adding wood or charcoal), just not for extended periods of time.
The vents on your grill or...+READ
I have four Weber kettles, a vertical offset smoker, and a couple other grills. A few comments on the video, as well as the other comments:
Agreed on the "soaking wood" thing. Thin blue smoke is the desire, billowing white smoke will impart a bitter taste. Moments of white smoke are ok (like when adding wood or charcoal), just not for extended periods of time.
The vents on your grill or smoker should be used for maintaining temperature. The more air, the hotter the fire, less....well, you get the idea. Top vents or stacks on smokers are typically left mostly or fully open, temp is controlled by the bottom vent(s). On the Weber shown, leaving that top vent open with the thermometer in it si perfectly acceptable. One of the great things about the Weber kettle is how easy it it to manage a fire with the vents, whether grilling direct or indirect. It's a lot easier to control than many smokers, so it's a great way to start with this kind of cooking.
As for the "too much wood"... charcoal is typically used as a heat source, and burning wood adds the flavor. Larger smokers are often called "stick burners" or even "log burners", and charcoal is not required at all. In smaller smokers or your Weber grill, that would be impractical. That said, as long as you have your fire at the temp you desire, the amount of wood vs. charcoal will not really matter, particularly if smoking red meats, such as ribs, pork shoulder, brisket, etc. Items like the fish shown may be more likely to take on "too much smoke", but it'll be much worse with that white smoke we saw! Mostly, find the desired cooking temperature for your particular food, maintain somewhere around that temp (you need not be exact), put a thermometer in what you're cooking, and cook it until it's done. Oh...and have fun - it's cooking, with fire!-COLLAPSE
Do a search on the Home Cooking and check out "woodburners" directions for the "minon" method of smoking in a Weber. Way better method than this. I have used it many times with flawless results.
Oh, for God's sake! Does the fun have to be taken out of everything we do? I don't think that the instructions on using the bbq as a smoker said that you had to throw out the foil drip pans after each use. Mine are ages old, and haven't set foot in a land fill. Stop being such a party pooper!
Ok, it´s agood tip, but it´s a totally waste of foil!!! what about the enviroment?
Agree that soaking the wood chips isn't worth it. Pit masters use dry dry wood with the goal being thin blueish smoke, not the think smoke she was working with. Maybe it'd be okay for something that you smoke quickly like fish, but for ribs or pork butt, that would taste pretty strong of creosote.
@anderskev, #2 - all smokers have vents to allow smoke to escape, you do not want a totally sealed...+READ
Agree that soaking the wood chips isn't worth it. Pit masters use dry dry wood with the goal being thin blueish smoke, not the think smoke she was working with. Maybe it'd be okay for something that you smoke quickly like fish, but for ribs or pork butt, that would taste pretty strong of creosote.
@anderskev, #2 - all smokers have vents to allow smoke to escape, you do not want a totally sealed environment for smoking. Smoke should be circulating around your food and leaving out the vents. thesmokering.com is where I have learned alot about BBQ, invaluable if you are interested in the art of smoking.-COLLAPSE
i really appreciate Jill's reminder that you can smoke just about anything. smoked salt? YES!
There are a few things wrong with this video:
1)She is using WAY too much wood, using that much wood will severely oversmoke the food, you need about 1/4C of chips per hour of smoking.
2)Having the vents open so you can use your thermometer allows tons of smoke and humidity to escape, for properly smoked food you need a very moist, relatively sealed environment. This is what makes the food...+READ
There are a few things wrong with this video:
1)She is using WAY too much wood, using that much wood will severely oversmoke the food, you need about 1/4C of chips per hour of smoking.
2)Having the vents open so you can use your thermometer allows tons of smoke and humidity to escape, for properly smoked food you need a very moist, relatively sealed environment. This is what makes the food tender. Drill a 1/16" hole in the lid and stick the thermometer there permanently, you don't just use a thermometer for smoking.
3)Soaking wood chips is pointless, if you want them to smolder wrap them in foil. Even if you soak wood chips overnight they aren't going to absorb enough water to make them smolder longer. Think about it: boats and docks are made of wood because it is relatively impervious to water.-COLLAPSE