hello guys, i need to ask a few questions on smoking.
1) if you put wet pieces of wood on charcoal like i always do and coock them with full tempreture (all vents open) using indirect head and they get a smokey flavour of mesquite/hickory is it still smoking? or smoking is only when its low and slow ?
2) for low and slow pork chops , how much time do they need for 6 1inch bonless pork chops ?
3) for low and slow i dont have a termometre to see what temp i have, is leave the vents half open instead of full enough?

im very gratefull for any answers you give me to these question, thanks in advance

When I'm grilling over charcoal, I always toss some chips on the coals, for steaks, pork chops, chicken. You won't get as much flavor as you will with slow smoking, but you do get some.

While I know you can smoke on a gas grill, I only fiddle with it when doing longer slower things. If I toss a steak on the gasser, I just do it plain.

First off, I think you are talking more about grilling pork chops but adding some smoke flavor during cooking. This is different than smoking pork chops which is done, more or less, in a dedicated smoker setup and not a gas grill.


I read somewhere that someone soaked wood chunks overnight then cut one in half to see the water only penetrated a very very small amount into the wood. I don't know if the theory is to soak them so they don't burst into flames immediately or to give some water moisture to the smoking. I usually don't soak my wood but then again I use store-bought wood chunks about 3"x3" and not wood chips (like mulch). If I use the Hickory 'sawdust' then I might put some water in the pan to more or less keep them from spontaneously combusting into a mushroom cloud. This is all over charcoal though. For the gas grill just toss some chunks onto the grate and keep the hood shut and it will eventually add some smoke flavor. I think others on here have done that. Also, I would add some Liquid Smoke to the pork chops to help give it that smoke taste you are looking for.


For smoking it depends on heat of smoker, etc. and the thermometer will tell you when to remove them based on the temp. I would assume something in the 2-4 hr range? On the grill I would cook it like normal and test with a thermometer. If you don't have a thermometer, you can use the 'hand' method which was re-introduced to me on a recent cooking show (but I remembered using this in Boy Scouts when fancy tools were not available). If you push on the base of your thumb where the 'meat' attaches to your hand this is what a Raw steak feels like (rare chicken possible also, rare pork chops might not be that soft). If you touch your thumb to your first finger then touch the base 'meat' of your thumb this is roughly Rare for a steak. Thumb to middle finger is Medium-rare. Thumb to ring finger is Medium. Thumb to pinky finger is Medium-well. There is no need to indicate what Well done feels like for steak because that is just wrong - for that just touch the concrete the grill is sitting on <smirk>.


Oh, Cardinal rule numero uno -- get thee a thermometer (or several). I had a probe thermometer with digital indicator but this died so I had to temporarily replace it with an instant read meat thermometer that can be kept in the meat while cooking. I think it was only $5 or $10 and you will wonder how you ever cooked without one. All your meat will be juicy and not dry because it will be removed before it dries out and gets overheated. You will also never serve chicken with pink in the middle.

Good luck either way.

Guys thanks for your answeres, but you still didnt answer my questions.
1) i dont know why both of your mentioned gas grilles in there posts, i use a Kettle bbq which uses charcoal or wood so i didnt get the point why the gas grills where named.
2) as i said i dont bbq on direct heat, i bbq on indirect heat in the kettle bbq with charcoal and some wet mesquite/hickory on top. with the lid closed but on full tempreture not low and slow. thats why i asked if its still smoking or it must be low and slow to smoke.
3) if you dont have a thermometre, how much of tthe vents of the kettle should be closed at avarage to get low and slow?

thanks in advance.

1. Apologies for any misunderstanding. Smoking, IMHO, is using a dedicated smoker with a side/separate firebox or an upright smoker with only smoke being generated from electric coils or other methods. If you cook over charcoal, whether direct or indirect, this is still grilling/cooking. Just because you toss some wood chunks on the charcoal doesn't mean you are 'smoking' the meat - you are grilling/cooking it and just adding some 'bling' to the food with some wood flavor. Smoking can be high and fast but it won't make a very deep (penetrating) smoke ring and the food will not be cooked to tenderness. You grill food to doneness (temperature) but you smoke food to tenderness (often disregarding temperature).

2. I don't know how you can set a charcoal grill to 'full temperature.' If you put on more charcoal or a stiff breeze comes up then the temp will be higher than 'full temperature' so that is a bit of guesswork. Please use a thermometer and tell us what temp you are getting at the grates and/or lid and/or pit of the grill and this will really help clear up some things. Again, smoking, IMHO, is when you cook the food at temps below 250 F and BBQ is sometimes noted as being in the range of 250-about 375 F and grilling is above that, then searing above that. I have no idea what temp you are seeing. If you are cooking anything at 325 F then it isn't smoking even if you are using a side firebox to make the smoke -- temps that high are not considered 'smoking.' Smoking does tend to take much longer but this is because the temps used are much lower (i.e. 165-250 F). Anything below 165 F and there is a chance of making creosote from the wood or not burning charcoal cleanly enough. I read that somewhere so others can clarify if they want.

3a. If you don't have a thermometer -- get one! This will clear up all sorts of issues you may be having or aren't aware you have.

3b. What type of kettle do you have, what are you using for fuel this time or last time, how much area are your vents when fully open (both sides)? I've also read that it is best to keep the exhaust vent fully open and just limit the amount of air feeding the fire but not too low or it chokes it out. You'll have to experiment here but give some specs on your kettle for advice from others. The vent opening of a 22.5" Weber will be vastly different from a 12" Weber.

i know that smoking is done on a smoker but i read many times over the internet that a Kettle bbq can be used for smoking by using the indirect heat method and setting the correct temp.

the vents openings are about 1.5CM and the bbq diametre is about 48CM

Ok so the vent is open about 0.6" (1.5 cm) and a kettle diameter of about 19" (48 cm). Smoking can be done in a kettle BBQ but the temp should be at or below 250 F until the meat is tender. Weber has some smoking add-ons to their grill that are known to work. I just think that, as someone's signature has here, you grill your steaks and smoke your ribs/brisket/etc. If you want smoke flavor then grill the pork chops with some Liquid Smoke and also toss on some wood chunks to the coals on your indirect setup. Marinade the pork chops in something with Liquid Smoke if you want it to penetrate into the meat some. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Yes, this is adding smoking flavor to the food, it is not low and slow barbecuing of which the addition of smoke is just one part of it.



No Idea, you need to cook them to about 175 internal temp, which means you need a thermometer, or you need to have some other method to tell when they are done, I usually use the press method whereas I press on the meat with my finger and look for firm resistance on pork chops, but this takes a lot of practice to be able to do it for various meats...



I'm assuming that you mean temps in the kettle itself, half open will get them done it's just a matter of being able to tell when they are done and for that get a meat thermometer...

Bluesin

Daren S , im able to get the smokey flavour by puttun wet wood chunks on the charcoal or just by using big pieces of wood as my fuel. what i want is not the smoky flavour the i already get but to make some low and slow coocking using my kettle.

Bluesin , thanks for your post, so if i coock with half of my vents open i should be coocking low and slow? and yes by tempreture i meant the kettle's temp not the meats.

also another thing is confusing , i do use my finger to test when the meat is firm and done, but if with low and slow it becomes alot more tender, wouldn't be difficult to seeif its done by your finger?

Pork Chops are not a meat that needs to be cooked low and slow, it offer's no benefit, I don't think you have enough experience to use the finger method so use a meat thermometer and take them off when it says they are done...

iv been using the finger method on my food for the last year and it never failed me when my pork chops are done or not.

You can low and slow on a kettle. It helps if you use a thermometer but is not really needed,you will just have to play with vents to get desired heat(alot of guess work and varied cooking time). I use the kettle all the time for all day smokes when just cooking for wife and myself. To much fuel to fire up smoker for that small amount. I use the minion method(light a half of starter and pour onto a pile of unlit charcoal) and you can smoke all day.

Wood i've tried wet and dry for me dry works and tastes better.

All vents open gets very hot in a kettle but that also depends on amout of charcoal. I use the indirect method and put the vent over the meat opposite of the fire to pull smoke and heat over meat. Unless cooking steaks vents are never fully open unless you like black and crisp.

I always close to vent to put out fire and reuse left over coals, put the back in chimney and relight.

Boneless porkchops are one of my favorite grill foods, Marinate in whatever you want and smoke for about 2 hours. Go easy on wood for some reason this cut doesnt need lots of smoke like a butt or ribs do. IMHO

If you are using the small 18" version in my opinion it is to small to smoke in and is only big enough to grill on.

I have smoked turkeys,porkbutts, eye rib roast about anything that is grilled or smoked on a weber kettle as it is the most useful grill ever made(and it lasts for yeras sitting outside in the weather)

Go to this site and do a little reading http://tvwbb.infopop.cc/eve/forums. All the info you will ever need.

This forum we are on here seem to be mostly folks with gas grills.

I have 4 grill JA 720-0142, a Weber Gold, a Char-Griller SFB and A Weber 22" kettle. The kettle gets used the most as it cooks the best and no real mess to clean up,just empty ash out, wash grill(or burn off) and ready to go the next day. Living in Florida makes grilling an every day event.

Good luck and just play with the vents and you will get the hang of what ever you want it to do. No bbq is bad just eat your mistakes(except for under cooked meat)' your wife will learn to eat them also,at least mine did.

But go buy 2 thermometers 1 for the meat and 1 for the grill. Asking hours to cook is no help, you need a thermometer to tell you the meat is done. The finger test is good for steaks but not low and slow.

Thanks alot for your help dude. also all the termometres i found around the net are like a watch with a stem , i think those can be used both for the meat and for the grill right?

Really? Then why are you asking such beginner questions about cooking pork chops if you are so experienced?

Nope. The stem gives reading by direct contact inside the meat. For your grill you'll need a surface thermometer (no stem). It can be placed directly on your grates.

Mike