Coleman "Smoke Machine"

[keny]

My wife found a Coleman Propane Smoker at a garage sale for $5-$10. I am new to smoking, so I have a few questions. Should I use the water pan? What's the best method of creating smoke-Wood chips or chunks? Should I soak the chips? If so, how long? Should the chips be placed in foil or a foil pan, or some other method? Thanks for your time!

 

[Dutch]

Ken the smoker was designed to be used with the water pan. As for using your chips wet or dry-it's a personal preferance. You might want to try it each way and see what you like. If you soak the wood chips, soak them for at least 30 minutes and make sure to shake off as much excess moisture as you can. The smoker should have some type of pan for the wood chips. You may have to do some expeirmenting here to find out what will work.

 

[larry maddock]

yo keny dude,
i dont know about your smoker.
i do know that in many smokers you can put
the CHIPS in a metal pie pan.
or a aluminum heavy foil throw away pan .

i get mine from garage sales for cheap.
i throw away when they get real rusty.
i get several uses on each pan.

what is the size and grill -burner-water pan layout???

 

[cheech]

Also if you are going to experiment anyway try adding some fresh apples to the chips I have found it adds some nice flavor exspecially with pork

 

[keny]

to Larry Maddock-The smoker is an upright "bullet" type smoker/grille. The propane burner is, of coarse, in the very bottom with a rack directly obove it for the lava rocks. Directly above that rack is the rack for the water pan. There are two meat racks, one right above the water-pan, very close to it, with the other at the very top right under the lid. All the racks are round, approx. 12-16 inches in diam. I have smoked some pork ribs and a pork roast so far, and both turned out pretty good. My only trouble so far is that I seem to have a problem making enough smoke without getting my smoker temp. too high. If my smoker temp. is around 220, I seem to have trouble keeping the smoke coming. I took the burner apart, and found a fuzzy spider nest partially blocking the gas nozzle going into the burner. I haven't had another chance to use it yet, cuz I'm out of gas...I also find that the meat on the rack directly above the water pan seems to cook slower than the meat on the very top rack, and is also more moist. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks!!

 

[keny]

I forgot to say that I had wood chips in small foil "pot pie" pans with ice-picked holes in the bottoms, with the pans setting directly on the lava rocks.