How to Add Smoke to a Gas Grill: Did You At Least Try?

When thinking of that delicious smoky flavor in food, charcoal grills come to mind. The problem with charcoal grills is, people don’t find them as convenient as gas grills. But even with a gas grill, you can still get a nice, smoky flavor added to your food. Want to know how to add smoke to a gas grill? First of all, you need the best smoker box for gas grill out there. Then just follow these steps and start enjoying smoky food straight from your gas grill!

Things You Will Need to Add Smoke to a Gas Grill

In order to begin, first you must gather your supplies:

1. Hardwood smoking chips
2. Bowl
3. Water
4. Heavy-duty aluminum foil
5. Fork or knife
6. Gas grill

Steps

Now you must follow a set of steps to prepare your gas grill for smoking.

Step One: Choose The Right Kind of Smoky Flavored Wood Chips

Smoky flavored wood chips are exactly what they sound like: wood chips that impart a smoky flavor to your food. They come in a variety of flavors from the very popular hickory to fruit selections such as apple. Oak, mesquite, cherry, and hickory are of the smoky flavor variety. Here is a wood selection guide provided above, describing the different wood flavor details that might be helpful in choosing the perfect wood chips.

Step Two: Soak the Chips in Water

Before using your selected flavored wood chips, soak them in water for 30 minutes. Then drained them.

Step Three: Make a Foil Smoke Pouch

In order to make a foil smoke pouch, you need an 18” square of heavy duty aluminum foil, a knife or fork, and your wet wood chips. Put your chips inside the square, wrap it tightly, seal it, and poke holes in the top. The holes will allow smoke to come through and cook your food. Place this pouch in a cold grill, under the grate. Put it in the back corner of the grill, on top of lava rocks or flavor bars. This is your makeshift smoker box.

Some gas grills come with their own smoker boxes. In this case, you can put the wood chips in the compartment made for them. The grill will do the smoking for you.

Step Four: Put the Cooking Grates in Place

Using a paper towel, grease up your cooking grates with cooking oil such as canola. Then put the cooking grates in place, making such everything lines up right.

Step Five: Cooking

Turn on the grill with all the burners on high. Close the lid. Do not open the lid unless checking on the food. Do not check too often as this will allow the smoke to escape.

Tips

In learning how to add smoke to a gas grill, there are a few things you should keep in mind aside from getting the best smoker box for gas grilling.

1. Preheat the grill before using it to cook.
2. Start cooking when a significant amount of smoke is coming out of your grill.
3. You must smoke your food for at least 20 to 30 minutes. Less time than this and the smoke flavor won’t absorb into your food.
4. Smoke pouches can also be used on a charcoal grill. Just put the pouch on the hot coals.
5. Some grills come with a smoke box. In these cases, you don’t need to make one. Also, grill stores also sell smoke boxes as a separate accessory, so you can buy your own.
6. A cup of chips lasts for about an hour. If you’re going to cook longer than that, use more chips.

Warnings

Never use treated wood as smoke chips. They’ll taste terrible and could be toxic. Also remember, never use wood chips if you aren’t sure how to use them. Always purchase wood chips from stores that sell food-safe grade chips.

Learning how to add smoke to a gas grill is actually quite easy if you follow these simple steps. You don’t need to get a smoker for that delicious smoky flavor; just get the best smoker box for the gas grill and learn how to do it on the grill you already have! Also remember, Grills Forever is always there for you to make your journey to be a grill master a bit simpler.