Cooking With Smoke

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The smoker also has a little door on the front—handy for feeding the fire without letting out too much heat. An optional electric attachment keeps the fire burning for you and comes with a small metal tray, which holds the wood chunks used to create smoke (though we actually prefer charcoal). Our only complaint with the electric coil is that it only has one temperature at the "ideal" setting, making it difficult to adjust the heat.

The Fuel

You'll need a bag of charcoal briquettes, but never use the self-starting variety. We use a combination of standard briquettes, mixed with some hickory or mesquite hardwood charcoal, which is petroleum-free and burns longer, You'll also need the essential flavor-producing wood chunks, but only hardwood will do. Soft woods such as pine, cedar, or birch contain too much sap and will produce undesirable smoke and creosote. Some good hardwoods are hickory, oak, mesquite, maple, apple, cherry, and grapevine. Obviously, each wood creates its own flavor, so it's fun to experiment. We convinced our neighbor to donate some apple branches to our cause—with delicious results. Opt for wood chunks or blocks over chips; they burn longer and produce more smoke.

Try to find fresh green wood and chop it into approximately one-inch by three-inch pieces. If fresh wood is unavailable, soak dry wood chunks in water for about an hour before using.

SMOKING TIPS

Obviously, it's important that you read the smoker manual, but we have a few additional suggestions:

Start smoking early. If you start smoking late in the afternoon, you may run out of daylight and the family will faint from starvation. Allow enough time for errors, since fire and weather are both unpredictable.

Use an oven thermometer so you don't need to rely on the smoker's built-in "ideal" thermometer.

It's important to keep the water pan filled, since some of the liquid will evaporate after a few hours. When you're finished smoking, save the poultry water; it makes great soup.

On cold or windy days, allow for longer cooking times. If your smoker's temperature is too low (below 200°F), add more coals.

Smokin'*

Find a safe, wind-protected spot for the smoker. Place a large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil under the smoker legs to catch any embers or drippings. Fill the charcoal pan with a mound of charcoal and saturate with lighter fluid. (A full charcoal pan will burn about five to six hours, depending on the weather.) Fill the water pan with warm water, wine, or beer to one inch below the rim and place it inside the smoker. Never put a salty brine in your water pan or you'll ruin the pan. Let the lighter fluid soak in for about three minutes before lighting, making sure the door is open and the dome lid removed. Light the charcoal and let the lighter fluid burn off for about fifteen minutes.

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