Embrace the grill-master within with this accessory, which uses a built-in fan and computer to maintain steady temperatures, making smoking easier
20 grilling tools to upgrade your outdoor cooking game
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The ball-shaped kettle grill is a classic of the genre that has long defined backyard cooking, and on its own, is remarkably versatile. Beyond burgers and hot dogs, it excels at roasting and, with some fire management technique, smoking barbecue. For years, backyard grillers have turned to digital thermostats to regulate airflow and charcoal’s temperature – turning kettles into very capable smokers. But adapting one to a kettle often requires drilling a hole into the bowl – not exactly great for your warranty.
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Weber’s new Kettle Smart Ring offers a cleaner solution for your standard 22in-wide grill. The three-piece donut-shaped ring rests between the bowl and lid, adding a controller, fan and ambient temperature probe that work together to regulate airflow to maintain your target cooking temperature. Paired with Weber’s smartphone app, and with the proper charcoal setup, it can hold temperatures from about 180F to 450F (82C to 232C), to handle everything from smoking pulled pork to roasting a turkey.
From traditional charcoal grills to pellet smokers and cutting-edge infrared grills, I have spent years covering and reviewing outdoor cookers. My verdict: smoking barbecue on a kettle grill is nothing new, but the Kettle Smart Ring makes it easier for newbies. (And if you are a newbie grill-master, consider adding some heavy-duty barbecue gloves and a set of prep and serving trays to your arsenal.)
This accessory is a good entry point into making real barbecue – it’s easier and can make your introduction to real barbecue easier and less expensive than buying a dedicated smoker. It isn’t as hands-off as a fully automated pellet smoker that feeds itself fuel, but it produces food with a more pronounced barbecue flavor. Adding it to a kettle also preserves your ability to grill – something pellet smokers generally can’t match.
Expect to spend a few cooks learning how the fan affects the fire: how much charcoal to use, how to adjust the top vent, how long the fuel lasts and, most importantly, how long it takes food to reach its target internal temperature. Weber’s app is easy to use and lets you remotely adjust two key settings: the kettle’s ambient temperature and the probe’s target temperature. Together, those controls make it less likely that you’ll overcook a steak.
Backyard pit-masters have been turning out brisket, pork shoulder and ribs on these humble cookers for decades with little more than charcoal, wood chunks and careful vent adjustments. Hold the fire between 225F and 250F – the barbecue sweet spot – for hours, and a kettle can best pellet smokers that cost far more.
The Kettle Smart Ring strikes a balance between traditional charcoal cooking and smart technology. It raises the grill by about 4in, adding automation without fundamentally changing how you grill.
Putting everything together takes only a few minutes. First, make sure there’s a nearby outdoor outlet within range of your home’s wifi network, as the controller needs power to operate. (Weber supplies a 6ft-long power cord with a standard wall plug on one end and USB-C on the other.) The controller draws just 5 volts at 12 watts, so you can also run it with a portable power station that has a USB-C port, making it easier to position the grill wherever it has the strongest wifi signal.
When you set the ring in place, its metal air chute hugs the inside of the bowl and positions its outlet just above the charcoal grate, forming an “L” shape with a short lower leg. Beneath the controller are two probe ports, and Weber includes one leave-in thermometer in the box. The probes you may already have could work, but they’re often calibrated for different controllers, so temperature readings may not be accurate. Additional Weber-specific probes cost $25 each. Weber also added silicone-gasketed pass-throughs cut into the ring that allow rotisserie accessories to fit without modification. Use Weber’s rotisserie or any third-party model designed to fit a 22in kettle.
The grill’s lid seals tightly against the ring’s porcelain-enameled edges, and the top vent should be positioned opposite the fan for proper airflow. The accessory fits Weber’s 22in kettle grills, including Performer models that use the same bowl. Although many other manufacturers also build 22in kettles, compatibility with non-Weber brands is unclear. Storage is the only real downside. The standard kettle cover no longer fits with the ring installed, so you’ll have to remove it before storing the grill – it’s designed to be easy to remove, so you can go from smoking with the ring on to grilling with the ring off.
