# Is smoking on a one-burner grill possible?



## katgirl (Aug 23, 2006)

HELP!! I have to smoke a 7 lb. pork butt on a one-burner gas grill.  Can someone give me detailed instructions for best results. Thanks, Kat


----------



## Gretchen (Aug 23, 2006)

I'd suggest you just do it in the oven--250* for 8 hours. As long as you have direct heat (one burner) I don't think you can do it.  You can do a rub that has some liquid smoke in it or use some in your sauce.


----------



## kitchenelf (Aug 23, 2006)

I'm not sure how big your grill is but you "could" place a smallish aluminum pan (like you would make a casserole in) under the grill and fill with apple juice and place your soaked wood chunks (about 3 or 4 in eacdh) in packets of aluminum foil with a few medium size holes poked in them on either side under the grill.  Place your pork butt over the apple juice.  You just want to disperse the heat around the pork for the indirect heat technique.  A 7-lb. pork butt will take at least 10 hours, if not 12.  Yes, the pork temperature will be acceptable much sooner but you want to cook it until it becomes pullable, which is at about 200 degrees.  Just keep your grill at about 250 degrees F. and you should be ok.

AND the most important thing - don't keep lifting the lid.  If you start out with 3 or 4 nice big chunks on each side you won't have to add anymore.


----------



## ronjohn55 (Aug 23, 2006)

While not ideal, it is possible. Heck, my smoker only has one burner, and it isn't an offset model. 

The trick, I think, will be to get a foil pan of some sort (I get the cheap ones from a local hardware store) and put the wood chips in that. Next, set the grill on low and see what the lowest temp you can hold it at is. Once the pan gets hot enough, the chips (even if they were soaked in water) should smolder and smoke. Hopefully the grill will settle in somewhere around the 225F range. If it's lower, go up in temp. If it's higher, just do the best you can (maybe prop the grill lid open a bit). 

If you can give them the time, pork butts are very forgiving as far as smoking/BBQing. 

Another option - If the grill simply isn't going to work for a low/slow cooking, add your chips to the grill and get it good and smokey in there. Add the pork butt, and leave it in the smoke for 30 min to an hour, then transfer to an oven and cook it like Gretchen noted. It won't be perfect, but it should still have some smoke to it when it's done. 

John


----------



## Gretchen (Aug 23, 2006)

Another option - If the grill simply isn't going to work for a low/slow cooking, add your chips to the grill and get it good and smokey in there. Add the pork butt, and leave it in the smoke for 30 min to an hour, then transfer to an oven and cook it like Gretchen noted. It won't be perfect, but it should still have some smoke to it when it's done. 

Actually with the circumstances, this is the best idea. Get some smoke on the meat and then finish in the oven. I prefer to do it this way even having a side firebox smoker. It is much more predictable to be done.  And too much smoke is not what we prefer--you can get plenty in an hour or so.


----------

