How to smoke meat on a gas grill?
Can You Smoke Meat on a Gas Grill?
You most definitely can smoke meat on a gas grill! You can smoke whatever food you want on a grill. If you only have a trusty gas grill on your patio, but you’re craving that delicious flavor of smoked meat, no fear!
Whether you want to cold smoke or hot smoke something tasty, you can add some smoke to your gas grill to get the best of both worlds!
How to Smoke on a Gas Grill: Grill Setup & Best Technique
If you want to get into smoking foods, but only have a gas grill, fear not – you can still make it work.
Is it easy to smoke on a gas grill? The short answer is yes, but if you plan to cook a lot of barbecue we recommend having a dedicated smoker.
Gas grills are not designed to smoke meat. The gaps around the lid and burners allow heat and smoke to escape easily. While you can make a decent meal, it won’t be the same as food cooked on a smoker.
However, if you have only a gas grill, don’t think that delicious barbecue is out of reach. Follow the steps in this article and you’ll be impressing family and friends in no time.
Create a two-zone indirect heat setup
Before we take you through the step-by-step instructions for smoking on a gas grill, let’s review some basics.
The key to your smoking success (no matter what type of grill you’re using) is the ability to control your temperature for a long period. You’re not going to want your temperature to go above 300°F or expose your meat to direct flame.
For a gas grill, that means preparing a two-zone indirect setup. The grill will have a “hot zone” and a “cool zone,” hence the name.
To do this you will have at least one burner turned on providing heat while your food is cooking on the opposite side via the ambient temperature in the cooking chamber.
In the example below the burner on the left is on, so heat and smoke are generated. The pork ribs are not exposed to any flame so they can slowly smoke and become tender without burning.
A water pan is optional but serves two purposes:
- The water acts as a heat sink, stabilizing the internal grill temperature
- Adds humidity to the cooking chamber throughout the cook
The water pan helps to keep temps inside of your grill stable by absorbing heat.
Don’t worry it doesn’t steam your meat! Because it’s not hot enough to boil it acts more as a temperature regulator.
Gas grill burner configuration for low and slow
If you have a two-burner grill, obviously you can only have one burner on and the other off. If you have more burners, you have different options to get the right temperature.
Here are some configurations you can try if you are using a four-burner grill:
| Setup 1 | On | Off | Off | Off |
| Setup 2 | On | Off | Off | On |
| Setup 3 | On | On | Off | Off |
The idea here is to experiment with the heat controls and the number of burners while measuring the ambient air temperature on the other side where your food will sit. Once you’ve found a configuration that can hold steady between 225 – 250°F you can go back to that setup repeatedly.
It’s important to remember that there are other variables to consider. Your grill will act differently in the summer than it will in the winter, if it is windy outside, or even if it is raining.
The bottom line, you do need to experiment with your grill and try different options before you can understand how to maintain your desired cooking temperature.
Monitoring grill temperature
The built-in thermometers on propane grills are ok in a pinch, but they’re not always as accurate as you need them to be, especially when you are smoking and want to keep the temperature nice and stable.
It may surprise you to know that they are commonly off by as much as 100°F! That’s not very helpful when we’re trying to maintain a steady low temperature for barbecue.
To make monitoring temps easier on yourself, we recommend using a quality digital thermometer like the Thermoworks Smoke. A dual probe unit like the Smoke allows you to measure the temperature of your meat and grill on the same device.
If your thermometer has a probe clip, simply clip the probe on the grill grate close to the food so you know the actual temperature you’re cooking with.
If you don’t have a probe clip, you can ball up some aluminum foil and place the probe through it, then place the ball on the grill grate. This way your probe doesn’t fall through the grate.
How to make smoke on a propane grill?
1. Create smoke with a pellet tube
2. Make an aluminum foil pouch
3. Place hardwood chunks directly on the burner
How to smoke on a gas grill: step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Light your propane burner to medium heat
Step 2: Add your wood
Step 3: Get Smokin!
Tips for smoking on a gas grill
1. Don’t over smoke
2. Use the right type of wood
3. Plan how much space you will need
Final thoughts:
Mastering the art of smoking meat on a gas grill adds an incredible layer of flavor to your barbecues, transforming ordinary meals into gourmet experiences.
To ensure success, it’s essential to maintain a consistently low temperature and use the right wood chips for a subtle, smoky taste. Whether you’re preparing ribs, brisket, or chicken, the key lies in patience and precise temperature control. By following these tips, you can achieve that perfect, slow-cooked smokiness right in your backyard, making every cookout a hit with friends and family.
People also ask
What is Cold Smoking?
Cold smoking is a great way to smoke a variety of foods when you don’t want to cook them. I use cold smoking for making smoked cheese, cold smoked salmon, smoked salt, and much more.
For cold smoking, you’re looking at a target temperature of less than 80 degrees F in your grill with the smoke running constantly during the entire process. Because you’re aiming for such a low temperature, I like to smoke in the cooler months during autumn and winter.
How to smoke on a gas grill with chips?
Spread out the wood chips so they cover the bottom of the box, directly exposing as many chips as possible to the burner below. Continue to add as many wood chips as the recipe suggests. Close the lid of the smoker box. Close the lid of the grill and wait a few minutes for smoke to pour out of the grill.
How to smoke on a gas grill with pellets?
For Charcoal, Gas and Electric Grilling, try the Pan Method
Fill a small baking pan approximately 1/3 full with your choice of BBQ wood pellets. Cover with foil and poke a few small holes in the middle of the foil. Place the pan on the heat source of your grill. Close the lid to allow the pellets to smoke – not flame.
Can you smoke meat using a gas grill?
Smoke everything from a pork butt to a salmon filet on your gas grill. Great candidates for smoking are fish, chicken breasts, and thin-cut pork chops. If you’re up for a larger cut of meat and a longer time commitment, then try a beef brisket.
How do you get the smoke flavor on a gas grill?
Some gas grills are already equipped with a smoker box, so if yours has one, use it. Otherwise, the easiest method is to wrap your wood chips loosely in aluminum foil, creating a small pouch. Punch a few holes at the top of the pouch to let the smoke out and place the packet directly on the grill grate above a burner.
How do you smoke chips on a gas grill?
Some gas grills come with a dedicated space for wood chips, while many others are compatible with smoker boxes that can sit either directly on the burner or grill grates. You can also smoke wood chips in a foil pan or by wrapping them in a rectangular sheet of foil to form a pouch.
