Flower Pot Smoker

Inexpensive ceramic grill smoker made out of flower pots

Comments

[GregP126]

It's unfortunate that this 'ible's only available through the pdf download which you can't access without a premium membership. :(

[Teslas brother]

Love your problem solving for the lid/rim. I am not being nitpicky but, it concerns me to use a chemical compound like auto gasket sealer near my food. Any other options?
Also, those do look to be glazed and NOT untreated. I hope i can find them in an unglazed version.
Thank you for the great inle!

[AndrewG171]

Amazon sells a food-safe silicon designed for grills. You could use that, although personally I'd be surprised if it was any different than the kind at the hardware store. Here's the link: http://www.amazon.com/Grade-adhesive-smoker-silicon-Kitchen/dp/B0114AERBM/

[NiCaam]

I've never smoked anything...on a grill anyway...oh god. Well, My question is the lid. Is there a hole with a cover, or do you just keep that uncovered? I see a clip that appears to be hanging from there...can you please take another pic, or tell us if there is anything that needs to be tweaked on the lid besides handles, etc. Thank you and instructables, my all-time favorite craft website.

[pattiemelt]

Great 'ible. I've been looking at Alton Brown's electric smoker & trying to decide if I want to build one. Now I have to decide if I want to build your charcoal or his electric version.

One suggestion. When purchasing the clay pots for your smoker, be sure you get unsealed, unglazed pots. Many clay pots available have been sealed or glazed & the chemicals in the seals or glazes can be toxic. At the very least, if they're not toxic they can ruin the flavor of the meat.

[JamesW3]

Alton Brown (of TV fame) has an excellent online for making pretty much the same thing except using an electric hot plate.

I see an advantage in combining the two of these.

There are instructions in Browns application that would help anyone trying to make this smoker.

Here is the link.

https://www.instructables.com/id/Flower-Pot-Smoker-...

[Ira7]

I appreciate the idea, but this doesn't make any sense. And before anyone attempts it, think about this:

1) He gave no instructions on how to install the handles for the lid, let alone the fact that the lid will wsigh a ton.

2) These pots do not retain heat well--totally inefficient--and will probably crumble after moderate use.

3) No way to clean out the coals, nor any instructions for air vent control.

4) Ridiculously small cooking area.

5) Don't try this at home. If you want to learn about real BBQ, low and slow cooking, there are a hundred more convenient and cheap WalMart options available.

This smoker makes no sense.

[miked2001]

Have you ever lifted the cover of a BGE cooker/smoker?

I have and this looks a great deal lighter than the BGE cover.

[TDWay]

"4. Ridiculously small cooking area." The cooking area is the standard weber kettle grill size. My grand father was the 'Grill King' for all the family gatherings, and always used the Weber Kittle grill to cook chicken and ribs for 14 a15 people, it's plenty big.

[IamTheMomo]

Severely lacking in instructions, and NO parts list. Most smokers also have a water bowl, which is absent in this, so where does all the waste fat go? It must make a heck of a mess, dripping on the coals. My old lousy Brinkman had, from the bottom up, a pan for coals, above that a grate on which sat the water bowl, above that, the grate for holding the meat. Can this pot hold that much equipment? A rudimentary temperature gauge of some sort is mandatory, as far and I'm concerned, but I'm not going to buy an expensive remote-read one. I have one from the old Brinkman, and I'd mount that in the lid. I'm not worried about clay pots being heated; in a kiln, they are fired at just above 2,000 degress F. Smoking temperatures are only a couple of hundred degrees F. I think this could be nice to have, but I may just save up for the Weber smoker.

[booga007]

Actually, fat dripping on coals is a GREAT thing, it burns and creates more smoke, that's where the BBQ flavour comes from.

But I would have liked to see more detail in the 'ible.

[krush_groove]

It's not very helpful is the main thing for me. If you already know what you're doing you can use it for an idea but there's no listing for a bunch of the stuff he did, like the handles, temp gauge, seal, etc.

[woodNfish]

It makes sense Ira. He even showed a picture of the commercially available "egg" smoker. The walls of the egg are much thicker than the clay pots, but so what, you just use more charcoal. You could add air vent control if you wanted to - these pots can be drilled. Not as convenient as a store-bought model, but a lot less expensive.

[sumoleo]

Would it crack if it gets to hot ?

[layzieyez]

Thank you for this easy looking project. I was going to buy a grill, but this looks much more appealing. I don't plan on feeding more than a dozen people so this is perfect!

[dpruett]

I really love this idea. The only thing I'd be worried about is the stand it's sitting on in that first pic. The whole thing looks really top heavy, and as clumsy as I am, I'd be afraid I'd knock it over and set my deck on fire.

[gemtree]

Stack bricks to hold it then. Mortar them together to keep it sturdy.

[mikecz]

What is the material hanging from the cross wires (that support the plate for the smoke chips) of the smaller inner pot?

Actually, you are barbequing here - generally considered to be slow cooking over fire (maybe) at 220°F-240°F. Smoking is usually lower still, sometimes below 100°F.

It's certainly cheaper than a BGE or Weber Smokey Mountain cooker!

[beemers52]

If you look in the books for smoking food 200 to 240 is ideal.

[enrique22]

it's a rolled up piece of chicken wire, not necessary works equally as good without it