Use hardwoods, fruitwoods, or nutwoods to get the best flavored smoke for your food. Let the fire die out and cool the smoker to use another time. 8. We have written a number of articles regarding offset smokers on this website. Heat is used to cook the food properly while smoke has the task of producing flavored food in return. You'll adjust these during the smoking process to regulate heat and smoke within the smoker. You'll only need to keep the vents open for one to two minutes to bring the heat up. Cook with charcoal only and you miss out on the flavor the wood can add. The best way to keep the meat moist is to set a pan of water in the firebox. This thermometer measures the temperature that's on top of the grill instead of the space where your food is smoking. We have already mentioned that there can be a difference in temperatures on different ends of the cooking chamber. Sand out the dust, cover the offset smoker grill and park it in a dry area when not using, only use it when it’s completely dry. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But, it is not that simple to set up an offset smoker as we do with electric, gas, or even charcoal smokers. Meanwhile, you have to wait for the cooking surface area to heat up over the required temperature. To deal with it, you simply have to put more wood in the firebox. An offset smoker (commonly called an offset) is a two-part smoker. If you see the white smoker getting out of the chimney, it means your firebox is having some kind of issue. As you are concentrating enough to cook the food, the temperature may go down sometimes. You have to keep it open for a minute or two to get the required temperature for the cook. The offset smoker design was based on traditional brick BBQ pits, whereby the fire is stationed in one room and the resulting smoke is then drawn into the next room and passed through the meat. The thermometer is a key thing attached to any of the offset smokers you are using. Viewing the temperature, keep adjusting the vents during the whole cooking process. Add Cooking Wood to the Firebox wikiHow's. I am a BBQ lover, and in the past few years, grilling becomes my hobby. You have to avoid opening the doors frequently. An offset charcoal smoker is best for smoking than for grilling purposes. You say to spread the charcoal around the firebox, but your picture shows the person spreading the charcoal around the cooking chamber. Place the food you want to cook. To avoid this, you have to place the thermometers at both ends and wait for both ends to come to the same temperature. You'll need to check the temperature and firebox every 30 minutes or so to ensure that the fire is still going. The wood needs to be dry to create the best smoke for the smoker. % of people told us that this article helped them. Guide To Use An Offset Smoker Here, just give it a look on the fire once more. Starting the Offset Smoker Season the smoker if necessary. We have enlightened all the basic concepts and steps of how to use an offset smoker. As soon as you see that logs have got the required heat, directly place them over the coals. You will realize that the offset smoker is extremely easy to use and portable to carry around. Once you’re done with seasoning the smoker, you can now prepare it for cooking. You can control the level of heat inside of your smoker by looking at the amount of smoke coming out of the side. You don't need to soak the wood since the moisture might cool off the coals in the firebox. If you're using a new offset smoker, wipe down the entire smoker with soapy water. But don’t get mad about this. To manage the fire of an offset smoker, you need to get experience, slowly and step by step you will know everything. Start your charcoal (I prefer natural lump charcoal) in a chimney starter and spread the embers over the charcoal rack at … how to use offset smoker box how to use a brinkmann offset smoker. Sometimes, this chamber lies on the back of the cooking surface area. The chimney should be open,  meanwhile, the temperature will be stable with ease. Attached to one end of the cooking chamber is the firebox which has a top or side access door and an adjustable vent. While you set the fire on, you have to keep this vent on or wide open. Instructions are clear and step by step. Keep an eye on the temperature and manage it if necessary. Also, you need to place the chimney to be half-open. Before we start with the how to use process, you first have to make sure that you choose the best offset smoker model, which fits your needs and is capable of offering you optimal cooking performance.. For home use smokers, have the air intake vent and the chimney vent fully open. Typically, temperatures are read with a dial along the front. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Well, offset smokers have different names. The steps are general for offset smokers. Your offset smoker cooks the food through indirect heat. Make sure that the dampers are fully open when you light up the coal. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. If you notice it is dying down and the temperature is dropping, then add another chunk of wood. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/6\/66\/Use-an-Offset-Smoker-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Use-an-Offset-Smoker-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/6\/66\/Use-an-Offset-Smoker-Step-1.jpg\/aid9465925-v4-728px-Use-an-Offset-Smoker-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"