Even though I wasn’t competing in a bbq contest this weekend, the weather was so nice that I couldn’t resist the urge to fire up a grill. My local Sam’s Club just so happened to have a fresh stock of Alaskan Salmon, and I could just visualize a big fillet soaking up some sweet smoke.

Normally I fire up one of my competition smokers, but this job didn’t require that amount of grill space.  I opted for my 22.5” Weber Kettle for the job.  Normally the Weber is used for quick grilling: searing steaks, cooking burgers, or even vegetables, but it’s also great for indirect smoking.   Here’s how to set it up:

Indirect cooking/smoking on a weber kettle grill

Notice that there’s a ½ size aluminum steam pan in the center of the fire grate. The steam pan acts as a buffer for shielding the heat, and it holds liquid for adding moisture. I use water, apple juice, or even beer in the pan to keep the meat from drying out. As it evaporates, it combines with the smoke and produces a moist cooking environment.

On each side of the pan, stack 20-25 fresh charcoal briquettes.  In a charcoal chimney light 12-15 coals.  When the coals are good and hot, add half to each stack.  Place the lid on the cooker and open all vents 100%.  After 10-15 minutes, place a couple of chunks of wood on each pile.  It’s important not to use too much wood.  In a small smoker, excess wood will produce entirely too much smoke and can over-power the meat.

All that’s left is replacing the cooking grate and adding the meat.  This setup is perfect for smoking ribs, chicken, pork butt or in my case:  Salmon.  If you’d like to see the technique I used, visit my website in a couple of days… I’ll be posting this technique this week…

Malcom Reed
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