“Build a Smoker” from Your Charcoal Grill

Smoking meat doesn‘t have to be limited to those that have the resources to purchase a dedicated smoker. If you have a charcoal grill, you can easily “build a smoker“. Fortunately, this “build” isn‘t going to require any permanent modifications.

The main difference between a water smoker and a charcoal grill is that the smoker keeps the fire away from the food. A water smoker contains the fire and keeps the temperature around 225 degrees F. A charcoal grill is designed to cook food hot and fast. If you keep the fire small and to one side of the grill, you can easily use a charcoal grill to smoke meat.

To start off with, you’ll need a charcoal grill, charcoal, charcoal chimney, a drip pan, a water pan, and an oven safe thermometer. You’ll also need plenty of time and something to cook.

Begin by removing the cooking grate and building a fire on one half of the grill. You’ll want to place the drip pan on the other side of the grill. Now you can put the cooking grate back on the grill. When the coals are ashed over, you are ready to cook. Fill the water pan about 2/3 full of water and place it directly over the fire. This will add moisture into the air inside the grill. Place the meat over the drip pan and the thermometer on the grate next to the meat. Once that’s done, you will want to place the lid back on the grill.

You’ll need to ensure that you have enough airflow coming into and out of your grill. Ideally, your grill will have airvents in the bottom and top. The air will need to come in under the charcoal and escape through the vent on top of the meat. You’ll also want to use the vent to control the temperature.

While the food is cooking, you’ll need to keep the lid closed as much as possible. Only open the lid to take a quick peek at the fire, water level and temperature. Make sure you have hot charcoal on hand so you can add it when needed. Adding charcoal could be a little difficult because you’ll have to remove the cooking grate.

The set up may not be as convenient as a water smoker, but the end result should be just as good. Just be careful though, smoking meat is addicting. Before you know it, you’ll be ready to upgrade to a dedicated water smoker. Best of luck and happy smoking!

Posted via email from bbqwatersmoker's posterous