How to Smoke on your Summit Charcoal Grill

Smoking is cooking food at a low temperature, over an extended period of time. This technique is also referred to as the “low and slow method.” Cooking low and slow keeps the juices and flavor in your food to produce an extremely tender piece of meat. Smoking works great for large cuts of meat such as brisket, turkey, pork shoulder, ribs, and whole chicken.

Experimenting with different woods while smoking is encouraged to find the perfect balance of sweet and savory. While smoking over long periods of time, be sure to always use wood chunks instead of wood chips. Chunks allow for a longer smoke that penetrates slowly over a long cooking time. Wood chips work best for a shorter cooking time because they do not last as long during a long smoke.

SO HOW DO YOU SET UP YOUR GRILL FOR SMOKING?

1. Begin by fully opening the top and bottom vent dampers. Doing so allows oxygen to reach and feed the fire while smoking.

2. Open the lid and place the fuel grate in the low position of the bowl, resting on the tabs. Then, place the center support ring in the middle position of the bowl, resting on the tabs. The proximity between the charcoal and food on the cooking grate creates the perfect amount of heat to reach and fully smoke your food.

3. Pile the charcoal on the fuel grate above the tip of the burner tube.

4. With the lid still open, ignite the charcoal with the Snap-Jet™ ignition system. Do so by slowly turning the control knob to the on position.

5. Turn off the gas after 7-10 minutes.

6. Wearing barbecue mitts or gloves, use tongs or a charcoal rake to spread the charcoal evenly across the fuel grate. If adding wood, place the wood chunks to the perimeter of the lit charcoal.

7. Place the diffuser plate on the center support ring. Note: A disposable drip pan should be placed on the diffuser plate to collect drippings and minimize cleaning time. Add two drip pans when smoking larger pieces of meat.

8. Place the Gourmet BBQ System™ cooking grate in the top position of the bowl.

9. Close the lid. Once the grill reaches the smoke zone on the thermometer, rotate the Rapidfire™ lid damper accordingly and set the smoke/low and slow vent setting to the smoking position to maintain the smoke temperature.