Smokers vs. Grills
What is the Difference
Everyone loves a backyard BBQ. Whether it’s on a hot summer evening after work or a family cookout on the weekend, there’s not much better than BBQ-cooked food.
And yet, the biggest question is: How to cook your BBQ?
The smoker vs. grill debate is as old as time itself. Everyone, from the top chefs to the Dads who love a cookout, faces this decision at some point in their lives.
BBQ cookers create delicious, tender, and juicy food—deciding whether you go for a grill, smoker, or hybrid model is no light decision.
Smokers and grills have different benefits when it comes to your outdoor cookout. There is no right or wrong choice; it all depends on
Your preferred
cooking style
How much hands-on
action you want
How you like your
food to taste?
It’s a difficult decision to make. In fact, the choice is so hard that many BBQ lovers opt for both in their outdoor kitchen.
This ultimate guide will answer all your questions, from “what is a smoker?” to “which BBQ cooker is right for me?” plus how to cook your food to perfection on whichever appliance you opt for.
So, let’s dive into the world of backyard cooking.
What is A
Smoker?
Let’s start with the very basics. Before starting the grill and smoker debate, we need to establish what a smoker is. Essentially, BBQ smokers use smoke procured from charcoal, gas, wood, or electricity to cook food. There are also gas and electric versions that are more user-friendly for beginners and require less management.
Smokers use an indirect heat source for cooking the food—as temperatures never get exceptionally high, cooking takes a reasonably long time. But, in return for slaving away for potentially eight hours or more, you and your guests get to enjoy textured, tasty and juicier foods.
There are many intricacies to BBQ smokers that you should know before running to the store at the sound of tasty and juicy BBQ food. So, let’s dig a little deeper as to how they work and the types of smokers you can get your hands on.
How Do They Work?
Firstly, we’ll look at how smoker BBQ cookers work. Broadly speaking, offset smokers use indirect heat for cooking the food over a long period of time. Your cooking chamber sits next to a firebox: the heat source. Cooks have to monitor the fire to keep it steadily burning over the period of time it takes to cook your BBQ food.
Beneath the chamber is an airflow tank to maintain even temperatures throughout and ensure the BBQ is cooked to perfection. A smokestack on the other side draws the smoke through the chamber, cooking the food, and keeps the fire burning. Of course, different types of smokers vary in the technicalities of how they work.
It can be hard to control the temperature of non-gas or electric smokers. Smokers cook food at very low temperatures, therefore taking far longer, and it isn’t always easy to tell whether meat is cooked through. Temperatures usually run at 200-250 degrees Fahrenheit but can go as low as 70 degrees.
However, the rewards of a well-timed, well-cooked smoked food far outweigh any complexities. Unlike a grill, where the higher heats cook off the juices, smokers allow the meat to retain this added flavor.
Cookers can also get creative with the added smoke taste using the wide range of flavored wood chips. You can get wood chips in flavors like apple, hickory, mesquite, and whisky-soaked.
Types of Smokers
Not every BBQ smoker is the same. In fact, each type and each brand add intricate details that can vastly affect the taste and quality of your cookout.
Charcoal Briquettes
Charcoal smokers can use briquettes or lump charcoal. Charcoal briquettes are made out of sawdust, wood, and additives, burnt down the same way as lump charcoal.
Briquettes turn to burn for a long time; however, they cannot get that hot, making them easier to control. This tends to be suitable for smokers as they produce plenty of smoke at lower temperatures. Although, they might take longer to light.
Lump Charcoal
Lump charcoal is purer than briquettes—made from actual wood, fired into charcoal—and can get to far hotter temperatures, even up to 1400°F. Yet, this isn’t always ideal for the slow game that smokers require, so regular maintenance of your smoker fire might be necessary.
However, lump charcoal tends to create a far more authentic and flavorsome smoke that adds to the delicious taste of your food.
Gas Charcoal
Gas smokers are much easier for the beginner chef to use. They get their source from the natural gas fed into your home if they are built-in. Portable gas smokers can use propane.
Easy to control temperatures and make quick adjustments with the twist of a dial, gas smokers produce clean heat and are often the favorite of BBQ restaurants.
Wood
As mentioned above, with the wide range of wood chips available, a wood smoker means greater creativity for the BBQ chef. Or, you can use chunks or logs rather than wood chips. The best kinds for smoking are hardwoods, fruitwoods, and nut woods that deliver the best flavor.
Wood smokers often require a lot more attention than other kinds of smokers to ensure the fire maintains a steady heat.
Electric
Not unlike gas, electric smokers produce clean heat. They’re quick to heat up and easy to adjust temperatures. Electric smokers rely on convection cooking, circulating heat around the food, and cooking it from all directions.
Food Ideas for A Smoker
If you purchase a new outdoor smoker, you want to test it with the best recipes.
Fattier cuts of meat tend to be better, as they work well with low temperatures over a long time and produce tender results.
A good practice dish is BBQ cooking a whole chicken.
They moisten while smoking and cook relatively quickly because of their smaller size. Just remove the gizzards and season before smoking. Alternatively, pork shoulder is fattier meat that self-basters and is hard to get wrong. Similarly, pork ribs are a classic BBQ food.
Add some vegetables to the smoker, drizzled in balsamic vinegar. Veggies tend to take only about 40 minutes, so they are a quick addition to your meaty BBQ.
What is A
GRILL?
Now, let’s turn to the cooker grill. There are so many different types of grills; it can be hard to make blanket statements.
In general, they can be powered by gas, electricity, or charcoal. Food tends to be cooked directly as it is placed on top of the heat source. However, it can be cooked indirectly when placed next to the heat.
Aside from time and ease, the most significant difference is that grilled food lacks that smokey flavor that makes smokers so unique. However, with proper technique, grilled meat can be more moist, flavorsome, and healthier.
Aside from time and ease, the most significant difference is that grilled food lacks that smokey flavor that makes smokers so unique.
However, with proper technique, grilled meat can be more moist, flavorsome, and healthier.
How Do They Work?
Grills use direct heat from charcoal below or from electric or gas power to cook meat and food in a short space of time. Outdoor grills can plug into your natural gas or use propane.
Because of the high heats and fast cooking speeds of the BBQ grill, they are best suited for burgers, chicken breasts, veggies, and other smaller foods.
Types of Grills
Outdoor grills are relatively simple cookers, but, as mentioned, each type differs quite a lot. Some even feature smoking functions that have the best of both worlds. So, let’s look at what the different kinds of grills you can get are.
Gas
Gas grills are probably the most widely-used type. They are convenient, versatile, easy to clean, and efficient. They require minimal effort and are suitable for any beginner BBQ cook. Those powered by propane are more portable than the built-in type, using natural gas. The food is consistently well-done—there is little room for error on the chef’s behalf.
Gas grills also tend to sit a little cheaper than other kinds. While you can get some supreme, high-priced gas grills, there are a few quality gas grills for around $200. However, watch out for some poor makes that might distribute heat unevenly and inconsistently. Stainless steel is the best material for gas grills.
Infrared
Also relying on gas, infrared grills have the additional feature of using infrared technology to spread heat throughout the grilling surface evenly. Very quick to heat, you can get to its top temperatures in as little as three to five minutes. Plus, they are known for exceptionally even temperatures and excellent for searing foods.
Infrared grills are also very energy efficient. Infrared is essentially a heatwave that is emitted by a hot object (usually steel, ceramic, or glass), which is heated by gas. The difference between an infrared grill and a standard grill is that the former produces actual heat waves rather than heating the air, like the latter.
Charcoal
Another very popular grill type, charcoal, might be a bit more time-consuming to prepare. Instead of creating heat with the flick of a button, you have to light a bed of charcoal beneath the grill, which might take a while to get going. However, charcoal grills offer some of the authentic, smoky flavors that you get with a smoker—especially if you add wood chips to the charcoal.
You can get lightweight, portable options to take camping or traveling, such as the kettle grill. They are often cheaper than other kinds of grills; however, charcoal is typically more expensive than gas or electricity.
Pellet
Pellet grills are one of the world’s greatest inventions. These wood fire grills are fuelled by little wooden pellets that can come in a range of flavors. They are typically quite technologically advanced, and many brands come with plenty of additional features that simplify the cooking process and allow you to get very creative.
Like charcoal, wood pellets are a more expensive fuel, and upfront costs tend to be higher than the average grill.
Kamado
The Kamado grill has experienced a recent boom in popularity, but the concept dates back 3000 years to China. Originally made with clay pots, the modern-day Kamado grill is made of ceramic or stainless steel. Using a charcoal heat source: the ceramic is excellent for heat retention, while the steel is far more lightweight.
Like a smoker, the Kamado can be left to cook foods for an extended period of time without having to manage the fire. Yet, they can reach higher temperatures of around 750 degrees Fahrenheit.
Electric
The best thing about electric grills is that they don’t have to be outside only (unless it smokes, then you shouldn’t use it inside). Both an inside and outside BBQ grill are usually portable and smaller in size.
Electric grills are easy to use; all it requires is plugging into a power outlet, which heats up quickly. However, because they’re smaller than the average grill, they don’t have a lot of room for cooking large amounts of food.
Food Ideas for A Grill
Excellent ideas for BBQ cooking on your grill include:
Burgers
Chicken Breasts
Whole Salmon Wrapped In Foil
Pork Chops
Halloumi Kebabs
Charred Peppers
Vegetable Kebabs
Corn On The Cob
Potatoes
Asparagus
A cooker grill is such a versatile appliance that most dishes taste great; Kamado grills are particularly good at making pizzas.
To satisfy the sweet tooth:
Try making BBQ banana split.
Grill the bananas in their skins (split them first) and put a few squares of chocolate inside.
Douse them in rum or brandy, then once nicely cooked, serve up with ice cream.
Pros and Cons
of Smokers?
Now we’ve covered the differences between a BBQ smoker and grill, let’s turn to the pros and cons. We’ll start with the advantages and disadvantages of smokers before looking at grills.
PROS
The advantages of using a BBQ grill include:
Flavor
The main benefit of choosing a smoker BBQ is the additional flavor it gives to the food. They can make very tender, juicy, and flavorful dishes that melt in the mouth. The smokey and authentic texture is unique and challenging to replicate with other methods of cooking. Lump charcoal and wood, in particular, produce extra-delicious food.
Large cuts of meat
Smokers tend to have significant amounts of internal space with the lid kept shut. The horizontal models offer plenty of surfaces to smoke a range of larger cuts of meat while the vertical smokers let you smoke meat, fish, sausages, and cheese simultaneously.
Plus, larger cuts of meat tend to do better in smokers as they suit the slow and low cooking process.
Slow and low cooking
Gas and electric smokers allow you to cook foods for an extended period of time without regular and consistent attention. Larger cuts of meat can sit undisturbed for up to eight hours. Charcoal and wood-burning smokers might require more care as you need to maintain even temperatures.
To ease the process further, use a probe meat thermometer to regulate temperatures and cook to perfection.
Meat preservation
Smokers are helpful not only for cooking your BBQ there and then. You can also use your smoker to cold smoke. This imparts excellent flavor and preserves meat and fish by removing the moisture where bacteria and fungus grow. Temperatures should range between 70 and 85 degrees, so the meat and fish need to be cured beforehand or cooked after cold smoking.
Cold smoked meats and fish can last several months without needing to be put in the fridge. However, the process can take more than 24 hours. You can also smoke cheese, nuts, and fruit—but this is done for taste, not preservation.
Experiment
With all the different kinds of wood chips, there is plenty of room to experiment with flavor. You can buy a whole host of varying tastes of wood chips, including apple, beech, cherry, maple, oak, and olive. It can be great fun experimenting with different combinations of wood chips and meats.
Variety
Smokers come in all shapes and sizes. No matter what you’re looking for or whether you’re new to the BBQ game, there is a smoker out there that suits you. If you lack space, vertical smokers are more adept at fitting into your backyard but don’t skimp on cooking space.
Durable
A well-made, quality smoker can last an entire lifetime. Taking good care of your smoker will ensure that it lives for several decades at least. Even if they cost a little more upfront, the purchase is a long-lasting investment.
CONS
Despite the fantastic flavor and creative cooking options, the outdoor smoker does come with some downsides too.
TIME
Smoking foods does require time commitment. Especially in comparison to the grill, smoking foods can take anywhere between four to eight hours. While the end results are good, you need to carve out a good chunk of your day.
Not for quick meals
If you fancy a quick cookout or a burger after work, the smoker is not for you. While excellent at larger cuts of meat, it is not made for speed.
Fire management
Understanding how to manage the fire and heat control can take some users a while to get to grips with. Most smokers have vents to control airflow; it is just a matter of learning what to do and practicing. Electric smokers are far easier for beginners to manage.
Expensive
It is harder to get away with a cheaper smoker. Lower quality often means heat retention is poor, and the smoke won’t cook your food. Quality smokers can cost a fair bit.
Pros and
Cons
OF GRILLS?
The cooker grill also has pros and cons we need to address in this grill and smoker debate.
PROS
The advantages of using a BBQ grill include:
Heat
Grills get hotter and heat up faster. Good for steaks, burgers, charring, and quick meals, the grill is the more practical option if you lead a busy life and struggle to find free time.
Ease
Gas and electric grills, in particular, are exceptionally easy to use. Even the charcoal grill is manageable for most chefs compared to a smoker.
Versatility
With so many types of grills, there are many that can adapt themselves for most types of cooking. Some can even offer smoker additions. Plus, there is more room to experiment yourself with different techniques.
Cost-effective
Grills tend to run a lot cheaper than smokers. Also, many budget grills are actually very high in quality.
CONS
As always, the backyard grill isn’t perfect.
Requires attention
Outdoor grills require more attention than the smoker. As you will primarily be using high heat, more active attention is needed, so the food doesn’t burn.
Hassle
Charcoal grills are more effort to set up and clean—particularly if you’re in the habit of using your grill more than once a week.
Flavor
The main downside of grills is that many of them lack that deep, smokey texture and taste. While some grills, such as the Kamado or pellet grill, have smoking functions, nothing can quite match the smoker itself when it comes to taste. That said, grilled food does taste amazing. But, relative to the smoker, it falls slightly short.
Grills with
Built-In Smokers
The smoker vs. grill debate might stumble to a halt at the suggestion of a grill smoker combo. Some purists prefer one or the other; however, there is nothing wrong with getting a hybrid model. Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of grills with built-in smokers.
Hybrid grills can run on gas or charcoal, or both. You can use the charcoal to smoke the meat on a low and slow basis before switching the setting to gas to turn up the heat and char the meat to polish it off.
Use the charcoal to smoke the meat on a low and slow basis.
Switching the setting to gas to turn up the heat and char the meat to polish it off.
Pros
A backyard grill with a BBQ smoker attached might be the answer to all of your problems. There are, indeed, many positives to this combo model.
Budget-friendly
Rather than spend large sums on getting a grill and a smoker, you can save yourself a fortune by getting both at once. The Kamado and pellet grill are both great options that come with smoking abilities without breaking the bank.
Plus, as many combo grills use both gas and charcoal, you can strategically lower your ongoing costs. Many stores have offers on gas and charcoal at different times. With the flexibility to use either, you might be able to save money in the long run.
Space-saving
Smokers and grills can be quite large and hefty. Not all of us are blessed with spacious outdoor kitchens to store numerous appliances in. Instead, opting to combine your smoker and grill will save precious space in your backyard as it has a smaller footprint than if you were to purchase two separate units.
Plus, as there’s only one appliance, you can place it centrally in your backyard rather than negotiate where to put the two different appliances or figure out where to store one or the other when not in use.
Yet, the actual cooking surface area remains roomy. With up to 700 square inches to play with, the combo is perfect for large gatherings.
Cons
However, as with anything, the grill smoker combo has some downsides.
Yes, you save on space and money, but if you're looking for the rich and deep flavor of a smoker, then this combo might compromise on quality.
Cleaning
A combination grill and smoker might require more effort and time to clean. As they usually rely on charcoal and wood chips to create the smoke, you might find yourself spending a fair amount of time emptying and cleaning out ashes after each use.
Plus, as there is usually a larger cooking surface area, there is more to physically clean. This might not seem like a big chore but wiping down oil and fat is not a nice job.
Immovable
With both functions in one, they might be heavier and more awkward shaped than your average grill or smoker. As they are difficult to move about, they are not particularly convenient for traveling or holidaying with them. If you’re looking for an appliance to take on the road in your camper, perhaps look at electric grills rather than the smoker grill combo.
Quality compromise
As convenient and cost-saving as they are, we can’t get around the fact that grills with built-in smokers just aren’t the same as the standalone smoker. Some manufacturers remove essential elements, such as the airflow system for smoking, to make room for the other components needed.
Enhancing Your Flavor
No Matter What You Have
Whatever appliance you opt for, BBQ food always tastes fantastic. BBQ cooking, while often considered the laid-back and straightforward approach to dinner, is actually a fine art.
Here are some tips for preparing and cooking your food for both grill and smoker alike.
Fake smoking
Did you know you can create a fake smoke in your grill to add the flavorsome quality that a smoker achieves?
You can fake the deep, smokey flavor and enhance your food despite lacking the extra appliance by getting a smoker box in the grill.
No peeking
While grills tend to be used with the lid open as you need to be on hand to flip and move food before it burns.
Yet, the smoker is best used with the lid closed. We know it can be tempting to take a peek every now and then and see how your long-awaited meal is doing.
However, it is best to avoid lifting the lid too much. Allowing fresh air in and smoke out can affect the even cooking temperature you worked so hard to achieve.
So, if you’re new to BBQ smoking, don’t give in to the temptation to continuously check how it’s doing.
Season liberally
Always season your meat liberally before cooking. If you want to get more adventurous than marinating or sprinkling some herbs, we have some suggestions.
Try dry brining with salt a few hours before cooking and refrigerate the meat. It will absorb the salt and create a delicious meal when cooked.
Or, you could try using a dry rub to flavor your meat. Using a blend of dry spices and herbs, apply and rub them liberally to the surface of your meat before cooking.
However, you choose to prepare and cook your food, and whatever appliance you use, BBQ food is hard to beat.
Conclusion
We know that deciding on the perfect cooker for your outside kitchen is a significant choice to make. Cost, size, quality, versatility, and style are all important considerations. While we might have just given you more grill and smoker options than you had before, you’re now armed with the knowledge to buy the best backyard cooker for you.
Don’t just think about the specifications listed for each grill or smoker. Also, think about how you plan to use it. While you might consider one is objectively better than the other on paper, if you don’t need or want all the extra features, then it isn’t right for you.
For example, if you fancy the smoker for its delectable and mouth-watering flavors, but you won’t have the time or effort to tend to it, then perhaps you’re better with a grill or hybrid. Remember, you can always buy one now and, if you’re still tempted by the features that the other has to offer, come back and add to your collection down the line.
Key Questions
- When deciding to use a smoker, grill or hybrid, what should you consider?
- What is a smoker?
- How do smokers work?
- What are the different types of smokers?
- What are some food ideas for smokers?
- What is a grill?
- How do grills work?
- What are the different types of grills?
- What are some food ideas for grills?
- What are the pros and cons of smokers?
- What are the pros and cons of grills?
- What are the best ways to enhance the flavor when smoking or grilling?