Smoking on the Gasser


 
I just got the country style ribs on my gasser with the smoke tube.....

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As you can see - this setup is near ideal! The warming rack is actually just above the rear vent for the grill --- perfect for hanging out in the smoke!

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Gonna give it ~3 hours or however long the smoke tube last with one burner on low - left under the tube - then glaze and char it up a bit on the grates.....

I wish I could find a better solution than the tin cans for holding the warming rack that was more stable and 'classier'..... but it just works so well the way it is. I've got extra grates off a a B/C - CI and some crappy rod - that I could use so there would be more weight on there --- but that warming rack is just too easy to pull off and clean in the sink...... Its been working well for several years now and I'm pretty happy with it. I did swap out cans --- the original cans I had had the formed bottoms that tended to tip easily - I finally got some others that were 'sealed' top and bottom - I cut the bottoms out so that glazes/sauces don't collect.
 
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One burner on low --- lid temp reading ~160ish - I've probed the high grate enough to know its running somewheres ~250ish depending on ambient....

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Just over an hour in --- looking good!

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I may flip them soon....
 
2.5 hours in.... I flipped them at the 1:20 mark - thought they were starting to dry out a bit so I started basting them --- a mixture of SweetBabyRays/mustard/chopped cherries/grated ginger/dash of Franks and thinned with cherry coke. I turned up the burner to medium just to get the fat to render a bit more - looks like I've got ~30-45 minutes of smoke left.

Oh and yeah..... it was a mixture of oak/cherry/pecan pellets in the tube.... THATS the beauty of a smoke tube (once you acquire all the flavors) --- you can mix the flavors any way you want!!! I pity the pellet grill guys that just buy the same/cheapest mixes..... You HAVE to try all the flavors!

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Then I'll move them to the grate for some good direct heat searing....
 
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And four hours late they are done and resting.... I didn't really achieve a good sear on them, but they still look tasty! I'm pretty sure I won't be disappointed.... I can't wait to dig into them...

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Oh --- and I will say that I never hit them with a temp probe....... You just have to do it by 'gut feel'......
 
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I've been running this setup for a couple of years now.... Its no where near WSM or kettle level of smoke on larger/challenging cuts of meat, but for simpler/smaller/porous meats it works really well! Its a really efficient setup pellet and gas wise and really flexible. It is a really 'hands off' setup too --- I can walk away for hours and know that the temp won't change - and when I need/want more heat its as simple as turning the knob up or starting another burner. I can usually get a good finishing/charring/blackening just by turning on the burner below the elevated grate on low too --- but you need to be wary of the fat/grease/glaze that has dripped on them since there is usually an initial flare up or grease fire depending on what cooking.

I've been collecting 'mushroom cans' to use on my B thinking that they would be tall enuff to work well with a CI grate --- I haven't really needed more space for a cook yet that has pushed me use it yet tho - that much food justifies firing up the WSM or kettle, but its nice to know it will be ready if I need it. (Honestly, by 'B' has been sitting there clean and unused for the last two+ years :( )

Having a 4 burner would work REALLY well in my mind and give you a whole grates worth of 'elevated' rack space to work with AND ample grill level area for searing/finishing.

Its a shame that a lot of the newer models have lower/sloping hood profiles that would make this set up less useful. The later model grills are ideal for it tho!!!
 
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I had a b/s chicken breast that I had planned on just grilling..... but then I realized it would be so much better smoked! Deciding on what pellets to use --- wanted almond - my stash of almond is getting really low and it didn't make sense to burn some for just ONE breast.... so I decided to throw some brats on with it too to make it worthwhile! Brats are ALWAYS good reheated and letting the smoke settle for a day or two in the fridge is even better!

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Just flipped and rolled a couple of times - I never did give them any direct heat - they didn't need it!
I was surprised that ~1/2 a tube gave me a good 2.5 hours of smoke --- I wanted to pull them before it ran out - ended up pulling the chicken and just let the brats chill on the 'cooling' grill as the smoke died out.

So perfectly easy. I don't do b/s breast often..... I keep forgetting that the grate needs to be oiled/greased....
 
I did half a flat of thighs last night on the gasser --- I just couldn't justify using coal in the kettle for just five thighs - I'd rather save it for a whole chicken or two.

About an hour in I flipped them to try and get the skin to render more.... good color already!!!
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After about 2 hours just before glazing/saucing.....

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Plenty of good color!!!
Turned on the second burner to get some more heat for glazing -- had to let it burn for ~5 minutes to let the fat burn off and brushed and flipped 3 or 4 times....

And this is how they ended up

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I find the thighs are hit and miss as to how much smoke they will pick up --- I've started to slit the skin to hopefully get more smoke (and seasoning) in.... Tonight it worked out wonderfully!!! A 50/50 mix of apple and pecan pellets really put some great smoke into them! Quite pleased with the results.... more so than usual.

This really IS the easiest and cheapest way to smoke smaller meals --- I would feel bad about firing up a kettle or pellet grill for this amount of meat - I don't 'need' or want to cook more than this at once since this is a good 4 meals for me (it should be 5 but I ended up devouring the two smallest ones last night and I was too lazy to make a salad - just cornbread). I'd rather do two cooks rather than have 7-8-9 leftover meals --- 4-5 seems like the right number for me. One burner on low for ~2 hours and two burners on low for ~30 minutes is very minimal propane usage (I'm actually amazed at how long a tank lasts cooking like this) --- and a tube of pellets is pretty minimal too - about a cup and half per cook. I'm starting to run low on my supply of (10) single flavor pellets --- I'm thinking once I run out I'm probably just gonna go with bag of mixed in the future..... I'm wondering how long that will keep me happy...?....?
 
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Looks fantastic. You light my chicken thigh interests back up. I thought I did not care much for thighs. Mine never looked that good though.

Have you had experience with weber's "cold smoke" generator vs the pellet stick?

The weber thing holds sawdust and it is what my local shops carry.
 
While looking up the Weber cold smoke, I found this write up on the Weber Kettle Club site comparing comparing cold smoker devices. It rated the A-MAZE-N pellet smoker the best (box looking, not the tube). It was out of stock on the site, but they had a generic that looked similar. I may have to try that. It noted up to 11 hours for the full box unit. Maybe using one side would give me the 5-6 hour window I am looking for.

weberkettleclub.com

How to Cold Smoke on a Weber - Cold Smokers Reviewed - Weber Kettle Club

Let’s get a few things straight about cold smoking. It’s not really “cold” – it’s just not hot. Cold smoking is a technique you use to apply smoke flavoring to foods without cooking or heating them. You can use cold smoking to smoke salmon, smoke homemade bacon, smoke salt, smoke nuts, and my...
weberkettleclub.com weberkettleclub.com
 
No --- it looks pretty gimmicky to me and with the Weber name on it - you know its overpriced.
I've been more than happy with the smoke tube - I originally bought it to use on my WSM, but it failed miserably in that use - it would always get snuffed out in the WSM.... But it excels on the gasser! I've tried smoke 'boxes' here and there with minimal results -- it very well could be I wasn't using them right or fully understood 'proper' usage/lighting --- but the tube with pellets (or chips) is very consistent with good smoke output.
 
Jim Weber said:
No --- it looks pretty gimmicky to me and with the Weber name on it - you know its overpriced.
I've been more than happy with the smoke tube - I originally bought it to use on my WSM, but it failed miserably in that use - it would always get snuffed out in the WSM.... But it excels on the gasser! I've tried smoke 'boxes' here and there with minimal results -- it very well could be I wasn't using them right or fully understood 'proper' usage/lighting --- but the tube with pellets (or chips) is very consistent with good smoke output.
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You reminded me to try chips in the tube I recently purchased mostly for my Genesis II. The pellets were a failure...but I likely used them incorrectly on top of the flavorizers. They incinerated rapidly. I'm giving chips a shot on the grates next time and I'm going to try the pellets again on the grates too.
 
My smoke tube works OK (round-not hexagon), but seem to only get 2 1/2 to 3 hours, which is usually enough. I have tried smoke boxes, but have only used chunks, not pellets. I was trying to figure out a way to get 4-6 hours of smoke to work for me.
 
Yeah - 2-3 hours (maybe a little longer on a 'good day') is all you can really expect out of a tube depending on pellets.... If you need longer you should just get a second tube or plan on reloading.
 
Jay D in Jersey said:
You reminded me to try chips in the tube I recently purchased mostly for my Genesis II. The pellets were a failure...but I likely used them incorrectly on top of the flavorizers. They incinerated rapidly. I'm giving chips a shot on the grates next time and I'm going to try the pellets again on the grates too.
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I can 'see' the argument to put the tube on the flavor bars - it 'makes sense' - but its really not necessary at all and quite frankly a pia. On the grate even over a burner on low is fine, but best to not put it directly over the lit burner or too near the food --- the tube does throw a considerable amount of heat. The biggest improvement you can get is to raise the food up higher in the lid --- you will get so much more smoke flavor!!!

I played around with boxes and chips on the flavor bars for a bit ---- it would work 'kinduv OK' for 'grilling with smoke, but getting a continuous amount of smoke out of it depended on having a burner higher than 'low'. This was all before I caught the 'low-n-slow / smoke' bug.... once you get a good handle on what it takes to get good smoke flavor as far as time and temps, it becomes pretty obvious what you need to do. A smoke tube for ~$10 is just too easy and so flexible --- the amount of smoke is completely decoupled from the heat source and temp -- hi heat/lo heat/no heat -- you're still rolling smoke. It makes reverse searing so easy.
 
I will add too that I've become accustomed to planning on cooks taking 2.5-3 hours most of the time -- ~3/4 full tube of pellets - that seems to be the right length to get good smoke flavor. Really, most of the time I let run until the tube dies out.... or turn off the burners and let the meat rest in the smoke while it burns out.
 
Jim Weber said:
I will add too that I've become accustomed to planning on cooks taking 2.5-3 hours most of the time -- ~3/4 full tube of pellets - that seems to be the right length to get good smoke flavor. Really, most of the time I let run until the tube dies out.... or turn off the burners and let the meat rest in the smoke while it burns out.
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I get that. Sometimes I just want a quick, easy, additional smoke profile...chicken, salmon, heck, even pizza. I have had good results with the stainless boxes but I think the tubes are a newer development and really seem to have potential. The experiment will continue!
 
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