We all love a great BBQ night with friends and loved ones while sharing stories and making lots of great memories! But grilling can be a smokey disaster if you do not know how to grill the meat properly, especially if you are a newbie.
Grilling meat is an art, and not everyone can get it correctly. It is a steady but slow process that may take time to complete, which is why, even if you have the best smoker for beginners, you need to know how to grill five of the most common BBQ meats in the simplest way possible. In this post, we will be sharing with you a list of the easiest meat to smoke for beginners.
But prior to that, make sure to check out these top-notch smokers and our BBQ Checklist before you plan your next grill party and impress everyone with your five-star grilling skills!
Now, let us get on with the grilling!
Easiest Meat to Smoke for Beginners: Our Top 5 Picks
1. Sausage and Brats
Sausages and bratwursts are crowd-favorites in many grilling get-togethers. They are small and delicious when cooked right, and do not take much prepping. Thus, they are probably the easiest meat to smoke for beginners—or so we thought.
It turns out, even meat as small and as simple as these two require a great deal of meticulous preparation. One common problem that newbies to grilling sausages make is pricking the sausage’s casing. By doing this, the meat becomes overcooked and dry inside.
If you genuinely want to grill it perfectly, grill it as is and let its juices remain inside. Do not forget that the perfect sausage and bratwurst are juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside! It is a dish that the young (and young at heart) would surely enjoy!
2. Pork Belly
Everyone loves a good pork belly, and this is something that can never go missing in every grill party! To make the best-grilled pork belly, all you must do is make sure that its skin is seasoned and salted a couple of hours before cooking. Aside from sausages and bratwursts, this is also a slice of easy meat to smoke for beginners because it does not require a series of complicated processes.
All you must do is marinate it, and after a few hours, you can already start grilling – an easy process that even a newbie can do! Just make sure not to overcook it. Otherwise, it will taste burnt, and the meat would be hard compared to the perfectly grilled pork belly, which is tender and juicy.
We all love a great BBQ night with friends and loved ones while sharing stories and making lots of great memories! But grilling pork belly can be a smokey disaster if you don’t know how to grill the meat properly, see this review especially if you are a newbie.
3. Tri-Tip
A Tri-Tip is the sirloin part of beef that is common when making a beef roast. You only need to remember two steps to create the perfect smoked tri-tip: seasoning and smoking. You can season this meat by merely smearing it with salt and pepper.
However, if you want to make it more flavor-rich, you can always opt to sprinkle it with premade seasonings. There are many rubs and herbs you can buy in the market, and there is a huge variety in which you can choose from to use.
Next comes the most crucial part – smoking the tri-tip! You will need a thermometer for this step because you will have to maintain a temperature of 225 degrees Fahrenheit if you want to create a masterpiece that is cooked evenly from end to end but remains to be juicy, moist, and tender inside!
Cooking this for the first time may be a considerable challenge if you are a newbie, but once you get it done perfectly, you will surely be the star of the party!
4. Salmon
Next on our list of the easiest meat to smoke for beginners is salmon. Once considered as a luxurious food, salmon has already become a go-to light dish for grilling parties. You can now have smoked salmon on your party plate and prepared in your very own backyard!
You can smoke salmon with or without its skin – it all depends on your taste. You can eat it as is, but smoked salmon can also serve as a perfect base for another dish – you can toss it in salads, prepare it with pasta, and you can even make it into a spread!
5. Whole Chicken
Lastly, but not the least in this list, is a whole smoked chicken. If this is your first time to try a smoked chicken, then you are up for a surprise. You surely will love it!
From its smoked taste outside to its tender and juicy white meat on the inside, everything about this dish is just straight perfection. It is also relatively easy to prep that even a newbie can perfect the art of making a whole smoked chicken!.
All you need to do is to marinate it overnight with a mix you made on your own or by using a premade rub. You’ll then need to smoke it for approximately 45 minutes at 225 degrees or until the thickest part of the thigh is at 165 degrees.
Just make sure to do this process slowly and in low heat. Else, you will have to deal with a burnt chicken, and nobody wants to eat a charcoaled dish!
Conclusion
Those are the best and the easiest meat to smoke for beginners! Of course, to do this, you will need quality ingredients. You can start with the meat (sausage, bratwurst, beef sirloin, salmon, pork belly, and whole chicken).
Then, settle the herbs and spices for your marinade (salt, pepper, rosemary, parsley, garlic powder, paprika, and others), as well as the smoker you will be using.
If you want to produce something delicious and with a “straight out of a magazine” perfection, you need quality ingredients and materials. Remember that you cannot expect to have great results if you settle with mediocre materials.
Do not hesitate to buy quality ingredients or think twice about purchasing a good smoker, because producing a delicious and outstanding dish is a worthwhile investment.
