One of the best parts of BBQ is the smoky flavor from grilling meat. Brisket is delicious when cooked low and slow, but even better when it's been smoked for hours. If you love to cook your food on a charcoal grill, you'll definitely want to try smoking it as well. Mesquite and hickory are popular wood choices for smoking, but you can use whichever wood your prefer. What happens if you don't own a dedicated smoker? Not to fear because we're going to tell you how to smoke on a gas grill.
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DIY Smoker
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The main thing you want to control is the temperature of the grill. You don't want it to go over 300 F and you don't want any meat exposed to direct flame. To achieve this, you'll need a two-zone indirect setup. This means you'll have a hot side where the flame is on and a cool side for indirect heat. You'll need to place a disposable aluminum pan of water in between the gas burner and the food. The water pan helps keeps the temperature stable by absorbing heat.
Create the Smoke
To achieve the smoke flavor, you'll need to add wood chunks, wood chips, or wood pellets. You can place the wood on top of the barrier to create smoke. The best option is to use smoker accessories for your grill. A pellet tube is a tube that you pack with wood pellets, light one end, and lay on the grill to smoke for 4 hours. You can purchase one on Amazon.
Pellet Smoker Tube
You can also use a smoker box for wood chips. It's a stainless steel box that you place directly over the burner.
If you want to only use at home equipment, take heavy-duty aluminum foil, fill with wood chips, and poke little holes in the foil. The oxygen can escape from the holes while you leave it on the burner.
Step by Step Instructions for How To Smoke On a Gas Grill
If you're using a propane grill, make sure you have a full propane tank. Smoking meat can take 6 hours or more of cooking time and you don't want to run out of fuel.
1. Turn Your Burner to Medium Heat
The key is getting it to a low temperature of 225-250 F. You don't want to rush it and wind up with too high heat and you also don't want it too low. Take your time and let it come to the right temperature.
2. Add Wood
To add the wood, you'll first need to remove the grill grates. Make sure to use tongs or heat resistant gloves. Place the wood directly over the burner. Once you see the the smolder of the smoke, move your food away from the heat.
3. Get Ready for Smoked Meat
Make sure you place your meat on the opposite side of your grill, far away from the lit burner or main heat source. Close the lid and keep an eye on the temperature to ensure it doesn't get too high or low.
If you plan to smoke meat often, we do suggest purchasing a dedicated smoker. A pellet grill, like the Weber SmokeFire EX6 (2nd Gen) Wood Fired Pellet Grill makes a great choice.
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