How to Smoke Meat

There is no limit to what you can smoke! Cheese, salt, hard-boiled eggs & more!

Traditionally, the smoking of meat was one of several ways to preserve it for long periods of time. Other ways included salting, brining and jerking. I am attempting to learn these ways in order for our family to have another "skill" on our belt. We already make jerky, but salting and brining is something new to tackle.

I have spent several hours on the Internet attempting to find "how-tos", equipment and recipes for these things. However, I soon realized that I had a wonderful book sitting on our shelves that explained it all.

The book, for those who care to find one, is Reader's Digest-Back To Basics-How to Learn and Enjoy Traditional American Skills. (Publication 1981 by Reader's Digest Association, Inc.) This book is a must for those who want to learn survival skills of all kinds including, but not limited to, fireplace construction, buying land, fences, heating with wood, etc., solar energy, farming and gardening, food storage, crafts and skills for the home like candle and soap making, cooking, preserving foods, canoeing, camping, fishing and lots more. Because it is an older book, you should be able to find it at www.amazon.com as a used book.

As I was looking for information on smoking meat, I realized that I had the option of buying a smoker or making one. The book listed many ways to build one and I found a couple of unique ideas on the Net. One of the ways was using a galvanized trash can, cast iron skillet, hot plate, grate/grill and wood chips. Simply said, this one is really cheap to make and easy to use. You can find this at www.bbq-fyi.com/homemade-smokers.html

Another one was charcoal grill smoking and yet another, on the same page, was gas grill smoking. We just happened to have an extra gas grill that is seldom used so I improvised. This technique is so easy that a child could do it. In fact, I taught my daughters.

1. The BBQ grill must have a cover/lid and if possible a grate/grill that is in two pieces so you can remove one side. It will work with a solid grate/grill, but the split one is easier, no lifting to change out wood chips. You will need fuel, wood chips or chunks. I used wood chunks, which you can purchase or cut and dry yourself from hardwoods in your area. Apple, hickory, mesquite, maple, oak and more, make good woods for smoking. You will also need a piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil (told hold the wood), pot holder, tongs for moving hot items, and a metal meat thermometer that has increments of 150, 175, 200, 225, 250, which you will place into the front of the BBQ grill. You will only use one burner on low to reach the range of heat needed. In this case for chicken it is 200 - 250 degrees.

2. You should prepare your meat. For my first experiment, I chose boneless chicken breast halves. I smoked three large ones which was enough for our family of five. You can do bone-in pieces, whole chickens, etc., but this was my first time. I wanted to watch how long it took to do something small.

Wash the meat and decide which ingredients you will use in a rub (see below) to cover the chicken front and back. You will also need some olive oil, about 1/4 cup, in a small jar with a pastry brush to baste the chicken from time to time. I did this three times in 2 hours. If you don't have or want to use olive oil, you can use chicken broth.

4. Prepare your chips or chunks. If you use chips, you will have to make two or three packages ahead as they burn up much more quickly. I used Mesquite chunks for this experiment. All chips or chunks should be soaked in water. Chunks are soaked for two hours. Chips can be soaked for one hour. For chips, take a couple of handfuls and place them in the center of a piece of foil. Wrap them tightly, but be careful not to puncture the foil with the wood pieces and rip up the foil. Punch a couple of holes in the foil for smoke to come out. For chunks, I used three, which worked for the 2 full hours.

5. Remove the grate/grill on the right or left side. You are only using one side for a burner. Put your chips/chunks in foil on top of the flame guard. This will be right on the burner. You will be using low heat. If you have an old metal bread baking pan which does not have a non-stick coating on it, this can be used instead of the foil. Cover this with foil and add holes, one to three.

6. The meat will be placed on the grate/grill on the opposite side, the one that is really clean. : ) Arrange the meat in such a way that the air/smoke can move around the pieces.

7. The temperature for smoking chicken is 200-250 degrees. Place the cover over the BBQ grill and insert the meat thermometer under the lid, about center, where the "stick" part is inside the BBQ grill and the gauge is outside for you to view. Since you will be using low heat, the trick here is to watch the temperature gauge to be sure it stays at the right temperature. Once this occurs, you usually don't have to mess with it. You can adjust the heat as needed.

8. I basted the chicken pieces three times within the 2 hours. Otherwise, nothing else had to be done. When I was finished, I turned the heat up to high, seared the bottom of the chicken for 2 minutes and removed it to a serving plate.

I have to tell you--I am hooked on smoked meat. I know it is a great way to preserve it, but for now, it is a great way to enjoy the wonderful woodsy taste. Try it. It is easy to do. Teach this art to your children as well.

Here is a simple rub, but you can come up with some of your own. Sometimes people use lemon pepper and garlic powder, but here is one that I like...sort of a made-up recipe.