Cooking Gift Set Wood Chip Smoking Grill Gift Set

We all had a wonderfully satisfying dinner of hickory smoked bbq ribs tonight. Like their other kits we have already tried (Soup Dumpling, and Hand Pulled Noodles) I was immediately attracted to the simple, bold, tapeless packaging, and lux graphic design. I appreciate the mostly paper/cardboard packaging that lets me know the company is environmentally conscious -which is a must. The smoker set comes with a small metal smoker chest that fits about half a box of wood chips. And with 3 varieties to choose from that means we could enjoy it at maximum, 5 more times! Five more deliciously smoked dinners in our future (to feed my family of 5). I thought the kit is priced great at around $60 for 6 dinners, plus the cost of meat of your choosing. The directions were simple and clearly written with not a lot of words -perfect! It was complete with a QR code that led us to a professionally made video to make things even more clear. It was a nice personal touch to see the CEO on the video teaching the how-tos, and I do think people these days enjoy watching a video, rather than reading a booklet full of words. I must say the video got me more excited, and less apprehensive about the whole thing since I have never really cooked with fire before, except for smores. The equipment the kit comes with; the smoker box, grill scraper, and thermometer is of good, study quality and materials. I love how the scraper is versatile and can be used for a variety of grills, plus bottle opener! We happened to use a digital leave-in thermometer while smoking the ribs along with the hand held thermometer the kit came with. We were happy to see that they both had the same exact readings - so we could tell the handheld was a quality thermometer. I appreciated the doneness temperature guides at the bottom of the thermometer -because, we simply didn't know, and it wasn't written on the instruction cards. We used a propane mini grill with two levels and put the smoker box at the bottom next to rack of ribs#1 and put another rack of ribs #2, at the top level by its lonesome. I was afraid they would taste different because of placement, but I honestly could tell the difference which was wonderful. After the temperature reached 500 degrees, as the instructions said, we left the smoker box to do its thing. Our grill went down in temperature (the digital leave-in thermometer told us) so we had to interfere twice. I think that happened because it was cold and slightly windy that day so it took us a little over 3 hours than the 2.5 it said on the instructions. The recipe for the smoked baby back ribs sauce was outstanding! Although the ribs did taste good on their own, the sauce really complemented the hickory smoke flavor of the ribs perfectly! I really love how the kit did not come with the sauce, so we can choose and substitute the ingredients to our allergies, and diets. For the 3hrs of smoking the ribs, it was consumed within 30min! But, it was well worth the time, because good food takes time! I can say that I am no longer intimidated using our mini grill as a smoker to cook the most deliciously juicy sweet baby back ribs all by myself. I can thank this little Wood Smoked Barbeque Kit from the Cooking Gift Set Company that gave me this culinary experience.

The kit box is compact with a wood design that looks great and adds to the overall aesthetic. Inside, everything is well-organized. I liked the wood chip box design, but the boxes don't seal well, particularly at the base, which caused some chips to leak out. The meat thermometer is lightweight, simple, and sleek, though I’d appreciate a higher-quality model that could be left in the meat while cooking. The hickory salt is well-packaged and useful for a variety of dishes - though would like to see more use suggestions on the recipe cards. The grill scraper is made of solid metal and very useful, though adding a handle would enhance its functionality. The stainless steel smoker box is of decent quality, with functional hinges, and it’s great that it’s dishwasher-safe. However, the how-to video suggests that a full box of chips will fit inside, but only about 80% of the box actually fits. It’s great that the kit works well with both gas and charcoal grills. The instructions are thorough and well-written, which is incredibly helpful for anyone looking to master grilling and smoking. One suggestion would be to include the volume of the smoker box so users know how many wood chips they will need for future smoking. Also, some clarification on when to replenish the chips during cooking and how to discard them safely (especially for those without a garden) would be useful. I appreciate the variety of recipes included, but I’d love to see more traditional smoker recipes like brisket. It would also be helpful to have a table showing different meat cuts, smoking times, and recommended wood chip flavors. While the cards feature pictures of the recipes, which is a nice touch, I’d recommend adding a lamb recipe and providing rub suggestions for different meats on the website. Also, providing more uses for the hickory salt could give customers more value from the kit. Overall, I would say this kit is a solid choice for both beginners and more experienced grillers. A few improvements—such as sealing the chip boxes better, upgrading the thermometer, and enhancing the recipe selection—would elevate the kit from good to great.

Product exactly as described

From when you first open the box, to using the kit, it's really an enjoyable experience. I am not a grill master by far, this was the first time I ever tried a smoking kit, but it was really fun. The recipes are a bit intricate but if you watch the instructional video with it, it's a piece of cake! We decided to make burgers with the cherry wood. I had an urge for fruity. The chips are a bit messy so deff pour them in the container outside. The smoker is really sturdy and made of excellent metal. It fit perfectly on the grill without taking up too much room for burgers. It started smoking right at the 30min mark The smoke made the whole grill smell really yummy. We were a bit skeptical about slow cooking but stuck to the instructions. Burgers came out juicy with a hint of cherry. All in all It was a fun new thing to try! I think the kit itself would be a great gift for an avid griller or someone who loves to slow cook meat. We are excited to try it with brisket and ribs! I think it would work better for a party where you can keep you grill on all day, we just tried it for dinner and leaving the grill on for a hour plus was a bit daunting for two people to eat burgers. I really enjoy all the cooking gift sets I've tried so far. They are a small way to try something new! Especially fun for girls nights in! I can't wait to try the dumpling one and see what other awesome kits they come out with next!

I got this set as a tester. Our first attempt at using this ended with BBQ catching fire. This was completely user error, the product was not defective in anyway. So that being said make sure the bottom of your BBQ is clean, ours was well "seasoned" and an ember from the smoker box fell to the bottom and set it on fire. No one was hurt but the chicken. Our second attempt turned out much better. The product seems to work well, but I think it would work better on a large BBQ. We have a small 2 burner BBQ and though it worked I think there needs to be more space between the smoking box and the meat. I would definitely recommend this for anyone who wants to smoke food but doesn't want to invest or doesn't have room for an actual smoker. I also think it would make a great gift. So my final take is make sure your BBQ is clean before using it so you don't kill your BBQ or your food. Lol 🤣