I am planning to try a new recipe and smoke up some chicken thighs and since my smoker is on the larger side (like me) I like to maximize the smoke. I have some frozen tilapia and I was wondering if you have any experience with cooking it on a smoker.
I am guessing that the timing will be much different and that is okay.
I am not a fan of tilapia, but I think it will cook like any other fish but faster. I have a Searwood XL 600 and it is really large. Which pellet smoker do you have? I’ve had difficulty attaching smoke to the food and am wondering if it has anything to do with large volume of space in the smoker verse small volume of food. I would like your thoughts. I am wondering if putting the tilapia on frozen would attract more smoke and even out the cook times with the chicken.
I have a Smoke Daddy vertical smoker, it also has a lot of space. I picked up a smoke tube and it does help, but I'm a little worried that it might be too much smoke for the fish?
That said, I am still learning this smoker. I have had issues with this unit. I have replaced the internal probe, the computer/software and the hot rod two times. They did not charge me for the parts, but like I told them, "it isn't like you are sending a tech over to fix this." October will be two years.
Mike981 Thanks for your response. I find Tilapia to be essentially tasteless, so whatever you do with it adds flavor. If you have multiple pieces why not experiment cooking each piece differently. So try smoking one piece frozen. It is an opportunity to discover something new. I love my Searwood XL 600 except for the lack of smoke taste. I’ve only had it since December 2025.
I’ve always done tilapia on the blackstone. My first thought on smoking tilapia is to wonder if it would fall apart on and through the grates. I like the idea though…
I’d suggest a type of grill basket instead of cooking it on the grate, my experience is it can be a mess trying to turn it on the grate. I’ve got one similar to this and it works great. It has a removable handle so you can put it in the cooker with the lid completely closed. When you’re ready to turn the fish just insert the handle back onto the basket and turn the basket over, no spatula needed!
It may be too light a flesh for smoking. The oilier a fish is the better it smokes. We have perch walleye pike and other white flesh fish here in Michigan but we never smoke them. However we also have Salmon, different Trouts, smelt suckers whitefish and they all smoke and taste great.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Genesis E335 Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Anova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
Non-stick mesh mat that allow for grilling small or delicate foods and easily moving items around on the grill. Dishwasher safe and will last for years.
Mike981 yes I have a few of these Frogmats in various sizes and use them with fish, etc. They make it easy to move the food around and easily clean up after a soak in the sink.
Tilapia is extremely lean. Some fish like bluefish and mullet are really tasty after smoking. I'd put the tilapia on a foil boat that's been hit with a pray oil and add butter pats to try and keep it moist.
Okay I have some frog mats, thank you Skip. I'm thinking of doing a wet brine on the talapia and then smoking it. What the heck, we'll see what happens. And if anything, I have a new tool to play with, with the frog mats.
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