I just bought the Char-Griller 5050. It is a combination gas/charcoal grill. It also has an option to add on a side smoker.
In the user manual, it says that I can use a water pan on half the charcoal side of the grill to smoke meat in about a third of the time that it would take in the side smoker. I've never smoked meat before, so I'm curious to know how similar/different these methods would be.
Has anybody tried the indirect heat method with a water pan on a charcoal grill? How does it compare with the slower smoking, taste-wise? Is it good enough, or should I just shell out the extra $50-$75 for the side smoker?
Here's the grill:
And a picture with the optional side smoker attached:
http://www.google.com/products/catal...ed=0CG4Q8wIwAg