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Whether you are a BBQ Novice or professional griller – getting to know your way around the scents and flavors of different woods can make or break your BBQ meat smoking ability. Read our guide to smoking wood now before you suffer a pitfall!

There are various types of smokers available on the market – but nowadays even a regular grill can come with an attached smoker or smoker box to add smoky flavor to an otherwise untainted grill – an electric grill, for example, might taste a little bland without the smoke.

No matter which type of equipment you have, however, one thing is a constant: that each variety of wood has its own distinct and unique flavor that will accompany your meats to different levels of effectiveness and taste.

Let’s take a brief look at some of that equipment you might use to attain the natural smoky flavor even to begin with before we go into great detail on wood.

What Are Grills that Give Good Wood Smoke?

Undoubtedly the best electric grill for meat smoking is the Masterbuilt Bullet. It is a little cheaper than Weber and Char-Broil models and has the solid Masterbuilt reputation behind it.

Of course if you have a gas grill or an electric grill without a meat smoking function you may be able to add wood chips and the smoke flavor via a smoke box which you can add into your grill. This one by Grillaholics is a good example. They do not take up much space and will give you the flavor satisfaction your grill may be lacking on its own.

If you originally owned a charcoal or wood grill, then you are in luck! Your BBQ grill is already prepared to start your experimentation with different woods… but where do you buy your wood from and what types will you need? Let’s find out…

Where To Buy BBQ Grill Wood Varieties?

Before you begin your BBQ wood foray you will need to arm yourself with information – but before that you need to know where you can stock up. Of course Amazon is a number one go-to. They have a huge range of both pellets, woods and wood chips – with the added bonus of them being shipped straight to your doorstep.

Western BBQ Products are another great name in American BBQ. They stock everything from the old favorite Hickory to newer, trendier woods like Apple.

We will go into more detail about each of the wood types individually but for now we just want you to peruse the selection available and get an impact of just how many flavors are out there.

You should also be able to buy wood through big BBQ brands. Weber, for example, have their own range of pellets, wood chips and even ‘planks’ which burn for longer.

You might be able to get flavored woods through a local BBQ store if you have one; but you can buy them in both Walmart and Costco if you are in a rush to get started.

And as a final tip for those that have a shiny new BBQ grill with no smoker inside: buy a smoke box and insert a small metal pan of water onto your grill rack. While the box produces smoke the water pan will add humidity, allowing for better juiciness and resistant meats that won’t dry out so much.

There Are Three Main Ways To Use Wood For BBQ Meat Smoking

• The first is as the sole fuel source for your BBQ grill. This is fine for those willing to spend – but when it comes to flavored woods sometimes a little can go a long way – and it’s just as well on account of the price!
• The second is as a flavoring – and this is where those little smoke boxes come in. While you might have a grill that doesn’t smoke as it cooks you can always add one of these boxes for flavor.
• The third way to use wood is as pellets or as wood chips which have been prepared especially for the BBQ. You also get different variations on straightforward wood depending on brand – like the Weber ‘planks’ we mentioned before.

Unfortunately, there is a little more to meat smoking than simply tossing on a log or some pellets and expecting the best results; but playing around with different woods accompanying different meats will give you a good indication of which flavors go with what – using our guide as a helpful aid, of course.

Using Different Cuts Of Wood For Meat Smoking

As well as pellets and chips you also have logs, disks, sawdust, briquettes – and a whole range of other forms of wood to choose from. Some things go without saying, such as pellet burning stoves require pellets to burn; other things are not.

• Pellets – these are small and look like animal food! They are used in little smoke boxes or in pellet burning grills and are made from wood pulp that has been bound into drops and dried. We found this cool video on YouTube that explains it all for those who want to watch! Pellets are small but effective. And on the plus side they release smoke quickly. However on the minus side they burn up relatively quickly.
• Sawdust – Is fairly self explanatory. Sawdust gives off smoke immediately but makes for a terrible heat source since it will just combust. If you get it wet it becomes unusable but it is cheaper to buy than other types, it can be prolonged by use of a smoking box and, if you happen to know a joiner or carpenter, you may even be able to get some for free!
• Wood chips – Or just ‘chips‘ can be used in the smoke box or as a heat source – but they are perhaps best used for kindling in that regard. Like sawdust they will burn up fast and don’t have the same density as pellets do. They will smoke after a few minutes and they can be soaked, although we prefer the method of using a smoke box to prolong them to wetting anything.
• Disks – These are made from compacted sawdust with the aim of taking the great smoky benefits of sawdust and prolonging it in a condensed version that doesn’t incinerate the second it is used. These can be added to any grill but were originally designed for electric smokers – where they should last a while.
• Planks – Also known as briquettes in Europe, chunks more commonly and blocks elsewhere; these are the biggest form of wood you can get for your grill besides using an actual log. Every brand has their own variety of these but you can peruse some of them on Amazon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He-Nw5-LMrE

What is The Composition of Smoke?

Smoke is mainly gaseous but it does contain some oils as liquid form and even some solid molecules of ash and flavor that will land on your food and produce the perfect smoky sensation you are looking for.

However there are good types of smoke and there are bad types of smoke… and all of this depends on what type of wood you are burning.

There are certain types of wood that you should never burn. Anything that has been treated, painted, varnished, waxed, chemically altered in any way – should all be kept far away from food. The chemicals it may give off as it burns has the capacity to make your food unsafe. And the same goes for rotting wood as it may release toxic fungal fumes as it burns… not what you want landing on your nice juicy steak!

As well as the above you should avoid any wood that is excessively full of sap, making hard woods much better than soft ones for BBQ and flavor purposes. Soft woods can give off a really thick, resinous smoke that doesn’t taste very nice so avoid it if you can. You can read a little more on what constitutes ‘bad smoke’ via this article, courtesy of Texas Monthly.

In the meantime, here is our list of woods you shouldn’t really BBQ with:

• Pine
• Cedar
• Hemlock
• Fir
• Cypress
• Spruce
• Any other coniferous tree type should not be used for cooking.
• Oleander (is actually poisonous, don’t even put it on your camp fire if you can help it (SFGate)).
• Hemlock…not poisonous (unlike the plant), just a conifer.
• Elm
• Eucalyptus
• Sassafras
• Sycamore
• Liquid Amber trees (American Sweetgum, Wikipedia)
• Palm
• Poisonous Walnut (because it’s…you guessed it).
• Locust
• Tamarack
• Tambootie
• Lamburnun
• Palm

Many of these have harmful properties in terms of amount of oil content, chemical molecules or simply just terrible, ashy flavors. So use this part of the guide to narrow down any woods you were thinking of collecting for yourself – which is the cheapest method of procuring good wood.

How Smoke Cooks Meat

Legend has it that the discovery that meat smoking could preserve meats was somewhat accidental; posing that the early cavemen would have had naturally smokey homes, which would shortly have led to the discovery of meat smoking as a food preservation method (Wikipedia).

As humans grew more learned so did our knowledge of adding flavors through the smoke, and our grasp of which woods make which flavors. Arguably the invention of the Torry Kiln (Meats and Sausages) was a turning point for BBQ worldwide…

But how does that smoke actually cook your food? Initially your wood-smoked meat will start to dehydrate. But it is this process of removing the water molecules from the meat that allows smoking to be such a wonderful food preservation tool.

Dehydration occurs in the meat almost as soon as the stove is lit, but it is a long and slow process. In the instance of a cold smoker (Amazing Ribs) no cooking happens and you will need to cure or cook your meat in addition to smoking it.

The wood used to cook your meat will shortly begin a process of gasification wherein flammable gases contained in it are released and combusted. So after this, the wood will start to burn and the combustion process can begin within the foods that you are cooking.

In the case of a BBQ with added smoking box or in the case of a smoker grill itself the grill should be ready to use immediately. If you are using wood as your main fuel source then you ought to hang back on dropping your meat until the flames have died down. At prolonged high temperature your wood will become white in much the same way as coals do. And this means the wood has turned to charcoal and it is now safe to cook on.

A BBQ Grill with a smoke box can also be used in the same way as a convection oven by placing the lid firmly closed. When this happens warm air is circulated all around the meat and cooks it in the same way as your kitchen oven might.

This works with smoke because it allows the smoke to flow all the way around the meat, meaning you won’t run out of flavor in the center of your meats. You can learn more about convection cooking by following this link to W. P. Law.

The Best Woods for Meat Smoking

There are so many wood types you can use for meat smoking out there that we can’t name them all; but we have attempted to cover the most popular (and those on trend) in our guide below:

• Hickory: a favorite and old classic. The flavor of Hickory wood is sweet yet (according to Char-Broil) bacon flavored. This makes it a great wood to accompany any pork you are cooking – but will also add a double layer of meaty juiciness to chicken. You can read the full article here.
• Alder: This is a much lighter smoke with less of the dark, oily molecules you find in heavier ones. According to Weber it goes very well with fish, and the old pros say that it should be your wood of choice if you are trying to smoke a fine cut of salmon.
• Apple Wood: This is a current favorite and, not unlike apple sauce, it is great for accompanying a smoked lamb or a smoked pork. It is fairly light and produces an aromatic flavor that is instantly recognizable and pleasant on the palate.
• Peach or Pear wood: All of these have the same lighter smoke reminiscent of the apple and will give a tinge of their fruit to the flavoring. They produce a mild amount of smoke and can be soaked to make them last a little longer, although not in sawdust form!
• Cherry Wood: Cherry is the heaviest and arguably the most distinctive of the fruit woods. It is also the darkest and will give the most golden sear. It isn’t nearly so delicate as apple but does have the same richness to it that you would find in the fruit itself.
• Pecan: Another favorite, Pecan wood comes highly recommended by Bon Apetit. This is in the middle of the spectrum, heavier than the fruit woods and lighter than the oaks, Pecan will produce a nice golden brown smoke tinge on your meats.
• Birch: Another classic. This is on the heavier end of Pecan wood and produces a slightly darker meat. It is recommended that you smoke fish with Birch if you want a particularly dark-skinned, flavorful fish.
• Oak: Oak is one of the heaviest smokes, will produce a rich golden brown color to your meat and is one of the most time-tested wood smokes available. It smokes for a very long time because it tends to be very dense, and it also gives off a rich scent that can’t be replaced. It is usually that little bit more expensive than others, but you can’t go wrong with it. We recommend oak smoking for rich game and red meats.
• Mesquite: Mesquite wood is very popular in the lower states and is actually native to Mexico. It is a tough and durable wood with a highly valued aroma that matches most meats. You can read more about this type of wood on Sciencing.
• Maple: Maple wood is one of the more subtle woods and will add a light smoky succulence to your meat. As a mid-spectrum wood, Maple is heavier than the fruits but much lighter than the Oak. Maple is great with pork and is a particular favorite for smoking cheese.
• Ash: Ash is a very fast burning wood that carries a lighter brown color of staining. It makes a good accompaniment to both pork and poultry, but you make want to soak it a little to stop it incinerating too quickly.
• Cottonwood: Cottonwood provides a lighter smoke that is good for fish and poultry. You should never burn any green wood for smoking; but for Cottonwood this is especially so as it is a little too resinous.
• Beech: Beechnut wood has a very mild, faint overtone that is Ike a smoke ‘glance’. It is a fairly long burning wood that will add a nice flavor to pork – but that is perhaps best used as a combination wood in conjunction with something of more substantial flavor.
• Sassafras: The Sassafras tree produces wood which has a musky scent to it that is very reminiscent of the forest. For this reason, it goes well with beef and redder cuts of meat. It is one of the few sweet smokes and can be accentuated with a honey glaze.
• Almond: Almond wood is very light and nutty. It has little balm and burns fairly quickly. It is a good all-founder that can make any meat great.
• Lilac: Possibly the most floral of woods, Lilac is a little of an acquired taste. The lilac flower has a particularly strong pollen that tends to overpower the smell of the smoke when burning. If you like the taste of Gin then you will like the taste of Lilac smoke.
• Walnut: There are two main types of walnut wood, the English and the Black. Both produce heavy, thick and dark smoke and burn for a long time. They are best used for game but again, you may wish to add a sweeter wood to this mix to prevent the smoke becoming acrid.
• Acacia: Not quite so heavy as Hickory and Oak, Acacia is a valuable wood that is hard wearing and will burn fiercely hot. It has a flavor much like Mesquite wood but is far down the spectrum of heaviness.

Should I Use Dried Wood For BBQ Meat Smoking?

There are those who believe that dried wood produces the best smoke, particularly if dampened. This may or may not be true, but what we can tell you is that any wood dampened will smoke overwhelmingly and that encasing the wood in a box or foil package of some kind has a better, more prolonged effect.

On one hand dried wood will burn more quickly, reaching the ash state faster and allowing for good smoke in that initial burst. On the other hand, a little sap in the wood allows for a little moisture, and this stops the wood incinerating too quickly.

The truth of the matter is that both seasoned and unseasoned woods are fine, just avoid treated, rotten, smelly or green wood. Incidentally, you can make your own dried/seasoned wood by heating it slowly for prolonged periods of time.

So you could be drying wood while you are smoking your meat. Who knows? Maybe that second log will be doubly flavorsome? You can read more about this on the Smoking Meat Forums.

Another Word on Wood

There are professional grillers out there who put far too much stock into which meat goes with which smoke. However the best way to find out for yourself is simply to try all different types of woods with all different protein types and see which ones you like best. The flavor of the wood will not only depend on which type of wood it is, but also on the environmental conditions of where it was grown.

For example; an acacia and a mesquite wood already taste pretty similar. If you had a mesquite and an acacia grown in the same field they are far more likely to taste the same than two of the same branches of mesquite taken with a thousand mile distance in between them. This is because growing trees absorb all the nutrients from the acids in the soil they grow in. If those soils are drastically different then those two woods will taste drastically different – even if they are the same species of wood.

You may have noticed when you travel that the water tastes different than it does at home? Thus it is for trees, too!

As a rule of thumb, try not to use softwoods and opt for hardwoods instead. Likewise, don’t burn anything green or anything rotten.

Foraging For Wood

One of the best ways to try out different woods is to forage for them – especially if you are concerned about the financial aspects of meat smoking. Foraging is actually a fantastic way to learn more about your own environment and the natural species of your area. You may find that you are a little more limited in choice than you would be if you had shipped in the wood – but you will also find that you are doing a good thing for the environment.

Foraging can be a fun family activity wherein everyone can learn more about their woodland. However make sure that you avoid conifers, redwoods and any other trees on our ‘not to be smoked with’ list and consult the internet for verification of species if you are unsure. You might not get a signal in the forest but you can always bring a branch home with you to make life easier next time!

And for those who want to turn wood foraging into a fun Sunday afternoon out in the forest you can find a great guide to your native tree species (and learn how to identify them) by visiting the Arbor Day Foundation.

BBQ Meat Smoking Times – How Long Is Too Long?

There are a few things to consider to determine your cooking times. Generally, the thickness of the meat will play a big part in how long you have to smoke it for until it is fully ready.

A good guide is to plan to smoke your meats for around 6-8 hours then to check the internal temperature. For chicken the internal temperature should be 165 degrees, for everything else at least 145 before it is classed as safely cooked. This is one of the main reasons your meat thermometer is so important.

Meat smoking basically means dehydrating the meat while providing a steady amount of heat and smoke that will saturate into the food and reinstate the juiciness. It is the smoke that stops the meat becoming tough and chewy from its prolonged exposure to this high temperature while it simultaneously adds its own unique flavor to the meat. This means that cooking times are long, however, you can BBQ grill and add smoky woods for a touch of that authentic smoker taste without the lengthy wait times.

There is no point at which the meat will stop taking on the smoke flavor you add, but there is a point where the amount of smoke in the meat will see your guests gasping for water. Nobody wants to eat charcoal.

The meat will take on smoke for as long as you want to cook it – but keep in mind that it is possible to overcook with a smoker. To keep you right we sourced this temperature and timing chart from SmokyMtBarbecue to get you off on the right foot.

There are ways in which you can combat the overall drying effect of the smoking. You may intermittently apply a baste to your meats which will actually aid in the absorption of the smoky flavors as long as it isn’t oil based (if oil burns it will smoke, but not in the way that you want!). You can also ‘spritz’ your meats with a little water bottle; but we like this idea best if you add a little lemon or lime juice into the water to give it a real boost of taste. Be wary that you don’t baste or spritz off any flavorings or rubs you added to the meat beforehand, although this method ought to work fine with a marinated meat or fish.

As a final word on smoking times: you need to bring the wood temperature up to the point that it is charcoal if you are using wood as your main fuel source – but at this point the wood is no longer giving off the smoke that you need to keep the smoking process continuing.

You will have to add more wood at intervals if you want to make sure you get a thorough spread of smoke. Or top up your smoke box, depending on what type of grill you are using.

Fire Building 101!

If you are using a smoke box or pellet burner, then there is little need to worry about how you start your fire. If you are using an offset smoker where wood is the sole fuel source, then things get a little different. Firelighters make a good addition to your BBQ kit in any case, as does one of these little electric starters you can find on Amazon if you really struggle.

As a general fire building rule: those want to start smoking with wood only need to arrange the logs, planks or briquettes in a certain way. There must be air in the center of the fire and fuel in all accessible areas for the flame, this is why campfires are always built in little conical shapes. If you do the same thing with your wood and add a firelighter under the cone the fire will start every single time.

Remember that wet wood will eventually burn but it will smoke excessively and spit at you. Hot burning woods such as acacia can be dampened to add to their burning times but be careful you don’t become overwhelmed with smoke.

If you do have an offset smoker and you need a little more in-depth advice on how to start and maintain an even level of smoke and temperature then check out this article on WikiHow which will talk you through it, step by step.

Try to keep your fire burning hot in the center and don’t spread it out too much. Add fuel a little at a time if you have an offset – or even if you don’t. Putting all of your wood into the smoker at once and expecting the meat to retain the full flavor will be a waste of good resources. The idea is to prolong the meat’s exposure to the smoke over time, allowing those precious oils and solid smokey molecules to settle on the surface and be absorbed into the protein.

To keep a constant smoke flow, you will need to make sure that your water pan is topped up at the beginning of every new cook. You will also need to keep the fire burning to a temperature above 185 degrees to ensure even cooking, then make sure not to open the lid. Opening the lid loses you about 10 degrees of heat per second and also allows all of your hard earned smoke to escape. You will then need to top up on wood to get it all back.

This article by Kingsford should explain in more detail how to go about successfully smoking your meats…although be aware that they recommend the use of basic charcoal.

How Much Wood Will You Need For BBQ Smoking?

If you have a high class, super expensive smoker then you can expect to have really good smoke retention and sealing, meaning you will burn less wood per time used. If your smoker is old and full of holes you will need more wood and it might not be so economical as you think it is.

You will use more wood if your smoker uses wood as its only fuel source, although some are dual fuel to ease this issue like this electric dual fuel smoker by Taltintoo. In this instance one fuel source is burned for heat and the other for smoke.

If you are using a smoke box then a handful of chips should do. For more flavor simply pack your box, but if you have an electric smoker that you keep indoors be careful about setting off your fire alarm.

Likewise pellet burners will have their own specific instructions and individual packets of differing woods will have different burn and smoke times.

How much wood you need will also depend on how big the wood you choose is. If you are using planks or logs you will need far less than if you were using sawdust, always something to think about when it comes to choosing your smoker economically. A final thought is that wood can be dampened to make it last longer – but that this shouldn’t be done to sawdust. Instead, wrap it in foil and pierce a few holes in it with a cocktail stick. Smoke will be released and the sawdust won’t incinerate as soon as it is lit!

Finally, if you are concerned about saving money and having a good model long term then take a look at this Char-Broil American Gourmet Offset Smoker for less than a hundred and fifty dollars.

Can I Mix Woods For BBQ Smoking?

Yes! You can mix different varieties of wood to produce different flavor combinations. You can then match these combinations to the meats they work best with and gain experience over time.

As a good way to work out where to start; woods from trees of similar species will usually complement each other. This means that all of the fruit woods will come together to create a lovely fruity bouquet, while all the heavy woods together might become overpowering and have your guests making their excuses to leave!

Try to mix light woods and dark woods. A nice sweet peach wood might well match a nice sweet Sassafras for any honey-glazed hams you intend to cook; while a cherry could compliment a walnut to make an interesting juicy combination for any game or beef you intend to cook.

When you get it right – and practice makes perfect – you will find that smokes can be used in place of marinades completely for juicy, succulent meats packed full of taste.

The Texas BBQ Forum has a little more information on this should you wish to start your wood combination adventures. You can also find a little information on the Weber forum.

The Smoke Ring: Hallmark of a Pro

Though it sounds like a delicate trick of creating smoky air art – this is not the case. The smoke ring refers to the ‘ring’ of pink juicy goodness just under the outer sear of any given smoked meat. This can be achieved without perfecting your cooking method if you rub the meat before you cook it with a little curing salt. If you want to do it the proper way, then here’s how it works…

As you smoke your meat, the outside ought to develop a sort of crust. This is because the outer edge of the meat is the driest part after prolonged exposure to head and dehydration. A good smoke will prevent this crust from going any deeper into the meat and produce the desired smoke ring just under this crust, or ‘bark’ as some pro grillers like to call it.

A second contributing factor to the perfect smoke ring is the myoglobin found in all meats. Myoglobin is the compound released in proteins that makes it turn red. Steak has the most, pork a little less and chicken less still. There is a prevailing myth in BBQ that a piece of meat is not fully cooked until the juices run clear (particularly poultry) – this is absolutely not true.

Myoglobin runs clear at different temperatures per individual animal and is affected by environmental factors of where the animal was raised, among other things. So this means that every single piece of poultry will have a different temperature wherein the myoglobin changes from pink to white. This might be at 195 degrees (the correct internal temperature for cooked chicken) or that might be at 300 degrees… there is no way to know. Since over cooking chicken can land you in hospital just as much as under cooked chicken can it simply isn’t worth the risk.

Anyway – back to the smoke ring. Myoglobin plays an important part in creating it because even though the bark of the meat has been dried and charred – the myoglobin underneath is still perfectly pink, juicy and delicious. The key to preserving the myoglobin? Adding as much moisture as you possibly can before and during – and even after – the cooking process.

Adding moisture can occur through three different means.

• You can spritz your meat intermittently with a water bottle but, as we mentioned above, this might result in the washing clean of any bastes or rubs you have used.
• If you have added curing salt then you won’t need to worry about the smoke ring, but otherwise try basting the meat throughout the cooking time to keep it wet and juicy.
• Another great way to keep the meat moist is to ‘mop’ it with a mop sauce. These are thin liquid sauces that do add flavor but whose main job is to keep moisture on the surface of the meat.

It is said that a normal smoke ring is around 1/8^th of an inch. A pro smoker can get that 1/8^th up to ½ with the use of the proper techniques and a good mop sauce. To learn more about the thermodynamics behind all of this you can see this article, from Barbecue Bible.

Our Recommendations for Superb Smoking

Finally there are a few extra hints and tips that will help you produce great smoked meats. We have tried to assimilate the best of them for you here!

Hints and Tips For BBQ Meat Smoking With Wood

• If you soak firewood to be used and don’t use it, you can dry out the chips or wood again and use it later.
• Wet wood produces better nitrogen dioxide which is necessary for keeping your smoke ring nice and pink.
• Unless curing your wood store it outside, raised off the ground and preferably covered from the rain. This will help dry it out a little.
• The more you open your smoker the more smoke will escape… if you plan to baste or mop add extra smoking wood after each visit.
• If you get soot on your meat you can rinse it off but this will bring the temperature way back down. Soot particles already exist within the smoke and will do you no harm; but too much tastes horrible. If you have soot build up, then check your chimney; there is a good chance you aren’t getting enough air flowing around your smoker.
• Keep it moist!
• Go by temperature if times leave you uncertain.

Equipment For Wood Smoking

The smoker out there with the most solid reputation is the Smokey Mountain from Weber. And it is a solid model that comes with Weber’s dedication to quality and overwhelming knowledge of all things BBQ.

But those who want a similar model with less of a price should perhaps consider the Cuisinart COS. It isn’t quite so fancy, nor does it have the same warranties, but it is almost an imitation of the Weber. The majority of charcoal based smokers will also use wood, but you can always add that smoke box if yours does not.

As well as the smoke box, the chimney starter, the meat thermometer and the curing salt; you will need to acquire a decent basting brush (like this one by Grillhogs) to keep the meat moist. A pan of water can also be added for extra humidity… search for a full steel pot such as a mess tin for this purpose; although a crockery pot will do.

Additionally, other good accessories to have to hand are a covered wood rack, an ash pan and a wire brush to keep that cooking surface clean… the cleaner it is the better the meat will be.

Finishing Touches

Don’t forget to check out some of our other articles for the ideal recipes for sides and meats that will make your guests grin ear to ear. However, there are a few more tricks left up our sleeves for you to add final touches enough to blow them away completely:

• The Himalayan Salt Block – allow your smoked meats to rest on this before service for extra flavor – or simply use it as a plate to serve up the succulence!
• Project Smoke, by Steven Raichlen (responsible for the Barbecue Bible) can give you tips on getting the best from your smoker.
• Seasoning Injector Set – this also has some suave gloves to keep you safe from the heat, as well as some meat claws and a thermometer to get you started.
• Pre-Mixed Woods – Bob Grillson does a whole range of pre-mixed flavor combinations to help you better understand smokes… and cheat a little.

The Final Say

The world of BBQ wood smoking is varied and complex: but with our guide beside you a world of flavor, smoke and wonder awaits you. All that we ask is that you pass this guide along to any smoking newcomers you encounter in the hope that it can help them the way it has helped you!

It also wouldn’t hurt for you to bookmark the page and take a look at some of our other fascinating BBQ write-ups. From recipes to finding the best BBQ for you we have it all – and then some! We hope our smoking knowledge has managed to help you at least a little in the meantime.

Until next time – and happy meat smoking!