On May 31, 3:04*pm, Mark Thorson > wrote:
> It went onto the BBQ at 10 AM, along with the
> hickory chips. *I ignore convention and do not
> soak chips in water. *My theory is that the
> flavor compounds should be transferred from
> the wood to the meat as quickly as possible,
> followed by a much longer time for diffusion
> of those compounds into the meat.
>
> I put the chips onto the coals immediately
> after the meat. *This is BBQ, so the coals
> are at one end of the chamber and the meat
> is at the other. *I use a rectangular small
> Weber.


I used to soak chips until I realized that doing so didn't make any
difference. As long as you keep the fire low (not TOO low though) and
steady for at least an hour per pound, you should be fine.