GUIDE TO HOT SMOKING
ON A BBQ

That barbecue you invested in and only wheel out in good weather to grill sausages, burgers and steaks? You could be using it year-round to hot smoke everything from joints of pork shoulder to vine tomatoes to whole mackerel.

Turning your charcoal or gas barbecue into a hot smoker is surprisingly easy and inexpensive: all you need is a lid, a small smoker box and wood chips. That’s it. Now just follow our handy guide:

1. Choose what you’d like to cook and select smoking wood chips to complement the flavours. Red meat, game and mackerel are great with oak chips’ bold woody flavour; cherry chips are rich and mellow and ideal with chicken and pork; while fish and vegetables pair perfectly with beech chips.

2. Season the food with a barbecue rub or homemade mix of spices and infuse in the fridge for an hour.

3. Fire up the barbecue. Put a handful of wood chips in a smoker box or wrap in a double foil pouch and place directly over the barbecue heat source, coals or gas. The box will get hot and heat the chips causing them to release their aromatic smoky flavours.

4. Now you have smoke, add the food to your barbecue. If you’re doing a long-and-slow cook don’t place the food directly above the heat source, instead put it to one side of the grill. Close the lid.

5. Cooking the food like this is more gentle than placing it over the more powerful direct heat from the coals, which will cook too quickly. If you do want a quicker cook, place the food closer to the heat source, close the lid and check it regularly to make sure it doesn’t burn.