Will Wood Pellets Create Enough Smoke
This is a common question that we see and the answer is definitively, YES.
When you cook with wood pellets you are burning pure hardwood sawdust that has been made even more dense during the extrusion process that forms it into pellets. They will smoke and, under the right conditions, create more than enough of it to impart tremendous flavor and build a satisfying bark.
Some pellet grills do have trouble generating a lot of smoke due to design shortcomings or poor pellet manufacturing. In order to create smoke the pellets have to slowly, but steadily, smolder. This requires relatively low temperatures and just enough airflow to create a constant supply of oxygen. If the fan isnt able to control airflow or the grill has issues reaching or controlling ideal temperatures, the result will be a disappointing amount of smoke or an undesirable billowing white smoke.
If pellets are manufactured or stored improperly, and thus exposed to the elements, they can absorb moisture content from the air. Pellets with an excessive amount of moisture will not burn as efficiently and may have trouble smoldering or reaching high temperatures.
Once pellets are in your possession, storing them indoors and / or in sealed containers will prevent moisture related issues from occurring.
How Are Traeger Wood Pellets Made
While I have my main post on how wood pellets are made, I thought I would share with you Traegers own video on their process. Its slightly different from the normal wood pellet production process. However, most of the equipment is the same. Check out the video below to watch how Traeger wood pellets are made. Please note it takes 40 seconds to get through the promotional content before they start to show the actual pellet manufacturing process.
At 40 seconds into the video, you start to see the process of how Traeger Wood Pellets are made: Video Traegergrills.com
What Exactly Are Fillers In Pellets
When it comes to flavored wood, you are probably only going to get 100% cherry, apple or hickory when using wood chunks or wood chips.
With wood pellets, there is more of a chance of some filler being included, mostly oak. This is a hardwood and will help to create consistency when burning.
This is especially vital in blends. Some woods will no doubt burn faster than others, and this, in turn, affects your grilling as you will keep adding fuel that burns quickly, and which may lead to flare-ups and hot spots.
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Is The Pellet Grill A Smoker
Yes, pellet grills offer smoking option too. Choose a low flame to enjoy wood smoked flavoured food , or go for searing hot temperature to get sear grill marks on your favourite steak.
Smoking on a pellet grill is also an easy option to prepare meals for your friends or family, while enjoying with them instead of babysitting the cooker.
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How To Use A Pellet Grill
As the demand for pellet grills is increasing day by, it is really important to know how to use a pellet grill? Pellet grills are bringing a positive change, joy, happiness, and peace of mind in peoples life because of hot trends, comfort, and the economy.
Moreover, the use of pellet grills make the user tension free, they dont have to babysit the grill, so how pellet grill works is quite important to understand.
As a newbie, you must be thinking of how a pellet grill works. So let me assure you that you have come to the right place to learn the phenomena of their working.
As we have made a comprehensive research to write about the working of pellet grills and their comparison with other traditional Barbeque methods, stick around to learn more.
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Are Wood Pellets Healthy
Once you have learned the difference between the two varieties of wood pellets available on the market, you will understand immediately to avoid simple wood pellets if you want to cook with a pellet grill, and instead opt for food-grade every time.
But are food-grade pellets all that healthy to cook with?
When it comes to the dangers of grilling in general, high fumes themselves, no matter if they are from pellets or gas, are bound to be a bit risky anyway.
Cooking at high heat will generate a large amount of smoke and this may be problematic for your health if you are exposed to it.
Food-grade pellets that are made from cheaper brands can sometimes still feature extra fillers or binding agents.
Therefore, when you are shopping for your preferred pellets, it is useful to do your research and make sure that the brand you are purchasing from definitely doesnt include any binding agents in their pellets, and that way you wont need to worry.
Pg500 Fast Eddy’s By Cookshack Pellet Grill
This unit, made in Ponca City, Oklahoma runs $1,815USD and is designed to be the everything pellet grill. It has a direct flame broiler for searing and a large smoking chamber for barbecue. It is also made entirely of high quality stainless steel. If you live in a corrosive environment, then this might be the perfect pellet cooker for you. On the other hand, this grill lacks modern technology. The controller is good and accurate, but you don’t get WiFi or any type of connectivity you find on many other pellet units. This is a great grill from great people, but it is also comparatively basic.
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How Do Pellet Grills Work
Wood pellets are poured into your grills hopper. From there, the pellets are fed through a rotating auger and into the grills cooking chamber. This is where the pellets are burned and fans send the smoke and hot air into the main part of the grill to cook and flavor your food. Most pellet grills have temperature and smoke control settings so you can maintain a constant temperature, just like an oven.
Blazn’ Grill Works Grand Slam
A favorite among purists The Grand Slam from Blazn’ Grill Works is a heavy duty pellet cooker. Designed to be more smoker than grill you get a basic, but well built cooker for around $1,350. It is available in multiple colors, but you pay more for anything other than the standard red and black. Personally, I wouldn’t pay more for a paint job, but at least there is an option. The controller is a basic PID unit. You don’t get WiFi or a lot of extras, but if you want to do serious smoking over pellets, this is a grill worth looking at.
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How Long Will A 20 Lb Bag Of Pellets Last
Weve estimated that a 24-inch pellet grill will burn through about 3 lbs. of pellets per hour. Keep in mind that cooler temperatures will make your grill work harder, resulting in more pellets burned. So depending on the temperature and whats on the grill for dinner tonight you can estimate how long your bag of pellets will last.
Cons Of Pellet Grills
They are not good for wet conditions, we are grilling with wood after all. The pellets can deteriorate if they get wet. Keep your pellets dry and you should be able to avoid this problem.
Since the grill uses indirect heat the grill marks associated with grilled foods wont be as pronounced. You can purchase accessories to help create that iconic grill marks, but out of the box, most grills will be lacking in this department.
The grill is electric and so is at the whims of electricity. I could throw my charcoal grill in my car and take it anywhere. The pellet grills need to be plugged in. Yes, you could use a generator to power one but now we are just using gas again.
Since the internal components of the grill are electric and moving they can break down, causing your whole grill to become nonfunctional. This is a risk with any electronics. You can offset this con by buying from a reputable company with a strong warranty!
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Pitts & Spitts Maverick 850 Pellet Grill
Pitts & Spitts has been in the smoker business for decades. A huge favorite in their home state of Texas, they are known for their quality construction and now, the efficient design of the pellet grills. This is an old-school company that weld their grills and smokers from raw sheets of steel. This pellet grill has good features including WiFi connectivity. It is also very traditional in design so don’t worry about innovations that don’t hold up to their promise.
This unit is also available in an all stainless steel design for $3,000.
How To Cook On A Pellet Grill
Cooking on a pellet grill does not require years of experience and technical expertise. Ofcourse there are certain aspects you must know, as discussed in our top rated pellet grills review article, cooking on pellet grills is quite easy.
- Follow the recipe you want to cook the food of. You can bake, smoke, grill, broast, chargill, barbeque , bake your food by choosing required mode and temperature.
- Make sure your grill is ready to work, thermometer is working, meat probes are perfect.
- Hopper has enough pellets to go along the grilling hours.
Above mentioned points are a benchmark to start cooking with your pellet grill.
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Blaz’n Grill Works Grid Iron
This is the larger version of the Grand Slam listed above. In every other way, they are the same. It is the construction that makes this a stand out pellet grill. The double wall body holds in heat and the sheer weight of the grill keeps it hot in colder weather and helps to maintain consistency. This is a workhorse smoker though it lacks more modern technology.
Why Pellet Grills Are Made Overseas
Manufacturing pellet grills in America is more expense than building them overseas.
For example, Grilla Grills mentions on their website that they shifted their manufacturing operations overseas because it became harder to compete with cheaper, imported ones. The 40 year old Michigan-based company moved its manufacturing to China to reduce its production cost to make the grills less expensive.
This was a tough choice between shutting down their company or going overseas to lower their manufacturing costs in order to compete with cheaper, imported pellet grills.
So in order for more pellet grill brands to offer products made in the USA we need to buy pellet grills that are made in the USA.
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Are Wood Pellet Grills Healthy For The Planet
You now know the potential risks of eating food cooked on a wood pellet grill, as well as how to mitigate them.
How does wood smoke affect the planet?
Well, wood pellets are a greener option than charcoal. They burn more evenly and produce a much cleaner smoke than charcoal does.
Smoke is always an issue, and it does pollute the air. Moderation is once more the key. You can grill out once or twice a week without leaving a massive carbon footprint.
Perhaps most importantly, pellet grills burn more efficiently and leave less ash. Charcoal is just kind of a messit can be delicious, but it can be a pain.
Gas is cleaner burning, but its also gas, and its sometimes a hassle unless its a stationary grill.
How Are Wood Pellets Made
All wood pellets are basically made using the same process whether they are food grade pellets or not.
The wood products are first put through a hammer mill, which is a machine that takes all the wood chips and sawdust and breaks them down into a consistent, small size.
The raw material is next sent to a dryer that dries it to a nice consistent moister level.
Next, its off to the Pellet Mill where the sawdust is pressed at very high pressure. The pressure causes the sawdust to heat up and bind together.
The pellets come out of the Pellet Mill soft and heated to around 225 degrees F. They are then cooled until they harden up.
For a closer look at the process of How Pellets Are Made, Click Here.
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Fast Eddys Cookshack Pellet Smoker Review
I can think of few things that will give you a solid idea of what Fast Eddys Pellet Cookers are capable of than a testimonial by Todd Johns of Plowboys Barbecue Team, Grand Champion of the 2009 American Royal Invitational. Todd cooked on a Fast Eddys Pellet Smoker and youll see first hand from this video what he thinks of the brand.
As you can see, for Plowboys Barbecue, as with most other winning teams out there, competition BBQ success is all about mastering a process that you can duplicate. Not having to sweat the fire management side of things is what Todd Johns loves most about his Fast Eddys Pellet Smoker.
For a more official overview of the Fast Eddys Pellet Smoker, heres an introduction of the Fast Eddys PG500 Pellet Smoker.
Another video I thought itd be cool to show you guys is one that features BBQ Diva as she shares her thoughts about how Fast Eddys Pellet smokers work with BBQ Ribs. Youve likely read the Diva Q DIY BBQ Sauce post we highlighted here. And no doubt you know about Danielles work with the now famous BBQ Crawl television series. Without question, shes one of BBQs greatest treasures. Check out what she says here about Fast Eddys. The video starts out with Ed Maurin showing you the recipe he used for the World BBQ Championship Perfect Score Ribs in 2000 using both baby backs and spares. Diva chimes in near the end with her take on how these ribs taste.
Heres a close up view of the Memphis Pro temperature control.
Where to Buy:
Yoder Ys640s Pellet Grill
For $150USD more than the Yoder YS480S above, you get a good deal of additional space with this model. Costing around $1,800USD this is a big smoker with a great, heavy metal look. This is a 335-pound unit built to produce a lot of great barbecue. No wonder it is a favorite among those serious about hardcore smoking. If you don’t need the large cooking chamber, you can save yourself some money by getting the Yoder above, but considering the price difference, I don’t really know why anyone would dig a little deeper and buy this pellet cooker. It is one of the best in its price range.
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Tips For Choosing The Best Smoking Pellets
Last updated: by Judith Fertig
The online research, the model comparisons, the pricingchoosing the right pellet grill can be challenging, so much so that, by the time you settle on a grill, choosing smoker pellets often becomes an afterthought. While some people simply default to the wood pellets sold by their pellet grill manufacturer, too many others settle for the cheapest pellets available. Because, really, how much difference can the pellets make? A lot, actually.
- 100% of what we say it is NO oak or alder filler
- 100% hardwoods
As both a fuel source and flavor enhancer, wood pellets can affect everything from how well your pellet grill performs to how good the food tastes. And while one might assume that because all wood pellets look alike that theyre all the same, which pellets you use can make a big difference. These 6 tips will help you choose quality smoker pellets that will keep your pellet grill performing its best and producing great wood-fire flavor.
Pellet Grills Made In The Usa
Derrick Riches made in the usa
Pellet Grills have taken the outdoor cooking world by storm. These must-have, grills are widely available and almost every major manufacturer has a model on the market. The prices of these grills range from a few hundred dollars to several thousand. You will also find a number of variations. Some are better at grilling, while others are better at smoking. Regardless, almost any pellet grill will do both. When it comes to US-made pellet grills, you won’t find many under a thousand dollars, but you will find some impressive units. I have compiled this list for those looking for pellet grills made in the USA. I have arranged this list by price, from the least to the most expensive.
Before we get to the grills, let’s talk about what “Made in the USA” means. Legally, this is a dubious term. It is understood to mean made or predominately made in the US. If you are talking about a spoon, then it has to be made in the United States to make that claim, even if the metal is imported. When it comes to something as complex as a pellet grill, it generally means assembled in the US with a majority of its components of domestic origin. The only court case in the grilling market was leveled against Weber. They used the “Made in the USA” claim even though many components were imported. They are now required to include the phrase “with globally sourced parts” on their products.
Also, see my list of the Best Pellet Grills Today.
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