Pitt Boss Copperhead 5
Cooking surface: 1,657 total sq in. | Hopper capacity: 55 lb | Temperature range: 150°F to 450°F | Recorded high: N/A | Temperature probes: 1 | Sear zone: No | Wi-Fi/app compatibility: No
- Makes smoking very easy
- Not as versatile as a grill/smoker
We pulled the best brisket of the test off the Copperhead 5-Series. Admittedly, as a dedicated cabinet smoker, this Pit Boss has an advantage when it comes to that particular cut. The glass door is a nice feature, allowing you to monitor things without opening it and losing heat. It is a double-edged sword, though, because we had to clean it after each use to see what was going on inside. The first meat we put in the smoker was that brisket, going for 9.5 hours at 225°F. As it fed in pellets, the unit produced visibly more smoke, something we found quite reassuring. Cleaning the resulting ash out the fire pot and smoke chamber afterward was a simple process and should take you just a few minutes with a shop vac.
BEST PORTABLE PELLET GRILL
Easy To Clean Features
Most of us hate to clean. So, finding features to make the job easier becomes an important consideration. Some features to look for are:
- Removable firepot or access door to clean it
- Easy access to grease and ash clean out system
- Pellet hopper clean-out door or easy access
Some cheaper or older pellet cookers, you have to open the lid and scoop out the pellets from the top to empty it. Worse, you need to disassemble the insides to clean out the firebox.
Definitely look for modern time-saving and effort-saving design features. Your future self will thank you.
Tips & Hacks For More Smoke On A Pellet Grill
Here are a couple of ways I have gotten more smoke into a pellet grill.
Foil Pouch
Fold the edges to make a nice square pouch, keep one end open so you can put either pellets or other chip/chunks of wood in.
It just needs a tiny pinhole or poked with something else.
Place on the metal diffuser above the burning firepot so produces a bit of extra smoke when needed.
Pellet Tube for Boosting Smoke
I love pellet tubes, they are an incredibly simple device, you fill the tube with pellets and then light one end with a Brulee torch or other decent kitchen blow torch .
Once burning for 6-8 mins, blow it out and place on your grill, in a cardboard box with some airflow, in an electric/gas smoke cabinet, under a kettle grill wrap the legs with tin foil, a bit hill billy I know.
Extra Smoke for 3-6 hours depending on size, generally they are 6 or 12. You wont regret getting one of these, they are super useful for all sorts of stuff. .
Get one of these they are super useful 6 pellet tube or 12 pellet tube start off with some cold smoked cheese!
Cold Smoking some Hungarian Salami
Boosting with a Smoke Generator
Ok, these are kinda next level, they use the venturi effect to slowly push some cold smoke anywhere you want it, but I have seen folks modifying the pellet grills for this.
However
You probably need to drill a hole into the hood grill around the back.
I have drilled a hole into an old charcoal kettle grill I have, which I use sometimes for cold smoking.
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The Best Pellet Smokers For 2021
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If youre looking for a versatile, simple to use cooker then you should seriously consider a pellet smoker.
While you wont win any points with old fashioned pitmasters, the ability to effortlessly produce excellent barbecue makes buying a pellet smoker very tempting.
In a rush? We think the Camp Chef Woodwind WiFi 24 hits the sweet spot of value to performance and is the best pellet smoker for most people.
In this guide, well break down the best pellet smokers available in 2020. Well also run through some of the pros and cons of cooking with pellets to help you make up your own mind.
Dont be confused if you see the pellet grill and pellet smoker used interchangeably. They refer to the same thing.
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Read our full Camp Chef Woodwind review.
What we like:
What we dont like:
Best Portable Pellet Smoker
- Fits in the trunk of a car nicely
- No step down in food quality from a standard-sized grill
- No easy way to remove pellets for lighter transport
Small enough to fold up and throw in the backseat and powerful enough for a 12-hour brisket smoke. Traegers Ranger impressed when we reviewed it at launch in 2018, and it remains the standard bearer for portable pellet grilling. The drip tray and porcelain-coated grates are easy to clean, too. One thing to note: its small and portable, but not so small and portable to take much further than a car camping trip. Its still 60 pounds of metal.
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Pit Boss 700fb Pellet Grill
If youre looking for a grill that gets good and hot for searing steaks while still offering low-and-slow smoking capabilities, the Pit Boss 700FB should be high on your list. This grill has a maximum temp of about 500 degrees, which is higher than many pellet grills. It also has a unique flame broiler feature, allowing direct heat for searing burgers and steaks. This ability is a rarity in the pellet grill market, which tends to opt for indirect heating.
Customers love that this grill holds its temperature well and gets hot enough for a good sear on a steak or burger. And many tout its high quality at a price well below the competition.
700 square inch total cooking surface
Porcelain-coated cast iron grids
Putting Cold Meat On To Start With
Many a pitmaster I have spoken too use this tip, I tried it and it works a treat.
If you put on cold meat that has just come out of the fridge on the smoker. It has time to get more smoke infused.
Also from smoking fish like salmon, turkey, and chicken I have brined or salt-cured beforehand to hold moisture as well as drying the outside to form a pellicle. The pellicle is something which the smoke vapor adheres too, so you can play around with this as well.
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Bbqrs Delight Wood Smoking Pellets
If you are scouting about for a wood pellet with the common flavors, BBQrs Delight Wood Smoking Pellets are an ideal selection. The six popular flavors, in one-pound bags, include cherry, pecan, mesquite, hickory, apple, and Jack Daniels. Each and every flavor is suitable for any kind of smoker or grill you have, whether it be charcoal, gas, or electric.
Each pack can be used roughly 10 times as you use roughly 1/3 cup of pellets for each cooking session. You are free to mix two or more of the six flavors together to experience or even create your own flavor.
BBQrs Delight Wood Pellets, made of 100% applewood, provide a sweet and fruity smoke. It is ideal for grilling fish, pork, beef, poultry, or any wild game. Since they are made of 100% hickory wood, the hickory pellets are quite common and popular for barbequing.
The other flavors of wood pellets are also made of 100% of whatever their name is on the packaging. If you enjoy a stronger smoky flavor, it is better to choose the mesquite pellets. If you prefer a rosy color to the meat as well as a gentle, sweet smoke, go with the cherry pellets. Since it will ultimately come down to your own taste and preference, you just have to try out the flavors and stick with the one you want.
Pros
- Can be used with any grill
- Contains lots of flavors
- Ideal for beginner smokers who want to try different aromas
- Compatible with different smokers
- Packs offer guidance on the best meat types to use
Cons
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Camp Chef Wifi Woodwind 36inch With Sidekick
Camp Chef is a remarkable brand for manufacturing quality products. The organization is famous for producing sturdy, solid, versatile, and reliable products.Camp Chef wifi Woodwind 36Inch With Sidekick has exceptional features that make it unbeatable in-the-line excellence. It is the first choice of those who want a pellet grill that contains all the features. Due to its incredible features, it ranks second position in our list of best pellet smoker 2021.
Construction
The unit is sturdy enough that it will last for several years to come. Stainless steel and powder-coated steel have been used for the construction. Stainless steel material keeps the unit safe from rust. The enamel-coated steel has been used for the lower rack, upper rack of nickel-plated and sear rack of enamel coated cast iron.
To add this, cooking capacity is good enough that you can serve 8-10 people in a single shift. Its total cooking capacity is 1236 square inches. This capacity saves you from cooking in several shifts.
Heat Level
Camp Chef wifi Woodwind 36Inch With Sidekick has been powered by a PID temperature controller, one of the efficient temperature controllers in todays market. It is reckoned as the best one for balancing the heat level even when you intend to alter the smoke level.
Portable
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Are Pellet Smokers Worth It
In truth, pellet smoker-grills are flawed but still valuable, depending on what kind of cook you are. If you want to grill the perfect steak, pork chop or carne asada, consider a charcoal or gas grill. If you’re interested in smoky ribs, pulled pork, burnt ends, chicken, turkey and really any other meat , pellet grills are worth the money, as they effectively eliminate the learning barbequing learning curve associated with manual smokers and smoking on a charcoal grill. The convenience of Wi-Fi controls, which is present in many mid-market pellet grills, accentuates this.
- Excellent mobility with roller blade-style wheels
- 849 square inches of cooking space is a lot for the price
- Beefy build quality
- In and out of stock, price has shifted significantly in recent years
Likely the most popular budget-minded pellet grill maker, Pit Boss consistently offers grills with the space and looks of more premium pellet grills for a couple hundred dollars less. So if this medium-sized back porch pellet grill doesn’t suit your needs it’s wise to browse the company’s many other options in the pellet space.
Lastly, the number of additional accessories and add-ons available to the Pit Boss customer is a plus, albeit a smaller one. Accessories like a stainless steel wing-smoking rack, sausage hooks and other odds and ends more easily fit the grill to the griller.
Think About How Long Your Food Will Be In The Smoke
As mentioned, hickory and mesquite pellets tend to be strong. But what if youre only giving a steak a quick sear or youre whipping up some fast veggie kebabs? In that case, your wood pellet smoke wont take much hold.
A basic rule of thumb is that the longer your food is going to heat up in your grill, the more important your pellet of choice will be to the finished recipe.
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Should You Upgrade Or Change Your Current Bbq Grill
Normally you will get 1- 3 years of warranty for the top pellet smokers from different companies. Traeger will serve you with a 3-year warranty while Camp Chef will give you only 1 year of warranty. Considered this the safe period for your pellet grill, so take advantage. If you own a top quality smoker then you may need not to think of any replacement within 5 years of buying.
When you have owned your smoker grill for 5-6 years you start wondering if owning a new one would be the best idea. This might happen because you are facing problems with your machine and not getting the desired result. The first and primary advice in this situation remains to clean up your grill thoroughly. Open up each and every part then proceed to doing a thorough cleaning. Most of the problems like temperature inconsistency or jamming will get solved this way.
If you really want to replace your smoker grill then you should ask yourself these questions:
Will upgrading solve my problem?
If you have faced or currently face the problem with common things like pellet feed jamming or wear and tear of your smoker, then replacing the exact component will solve your problem. Thus, without changing your whole smoker you can continue with some $40 $50 changes. It might seem complicated for you if you face a problem with your digital control system. Adding the element of professional knowledge will help tremendously. Solving problem with $150 is much better than spending $500, right?
Is It Possible To Use My Wood Pellet Grill In Cold Conditions
Absolutely, but youll typically notice a drop in efficiency if youre grilling in a cold climate. As soon as outside temperatures dip below 35F, cover your wood pellet grill with an insulated blanket. If you neglect this, youll need to burn far more wood pellets to get the grill up to temperature. When youre cooking in cold weather, aim to keep the lid closed as much as possible so you keep all the heat locked inside the grill.
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Traeger Grills Pro Series 22 Pellet Grill Best For Medium Use
This item is the last one from Traeger Grills on our list of the best pellet smokers. The overall design and build quality of the machine makes it useful for medium use. You can easily make up to 24 burgers or 5 racks of ribs at a time. It has a hopper capacity of 18 pounds, which is sufficient for regular use in any household. Additionally, using the grilling does not involve any complexity, and it is as easy to operate the device as an oven.
Perfect for medium use
Have you ever wanted a medium-sized pellet smoker that can meet the typical barbecue demand of an average family? You are in the right place if the answer is YES. This Traeger model packs highly efficient features that make it suitable for regular household consumption. With its main rack of 418 square inches comes an extra frame of 154 square inches. Both of them provide a good cooking surface for chicken, ribs, and burgers.
Highly Advanced Grill Grates
What makes this Traeger model stand out from the rest of its competitors is the availability of top-notch porcelain grill grates. These grill grates are easy to maintain and clean. Unlike many others on the market, you will not notice any stickiness on these grates due to the reliable manufacturing process. You can roast whatever you want without thinking about the complexity of cleaning and maintaining the grates.
Key Features
Is Pit Boss As Good As Traeger
Pit Boss and Traeger are two of the most popular pellet smokers and grills.
The simple answer to whether Pit Boss is as good as Traeger is yes.
But, if you ask people which one is better, they will have different opinions and sometimes end up defending the brand of the product they bought.
To help you make informed purchasing decisions, Ill present the differences between both brands and show how Pit Boss is as good as Traeger.
Well look at:
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Cooking Area Size And Portability:
Pellet grills come in various sizes from the portable types for tailgating to the extra-large units for commercial use. If you are someone who wants to be able to take your smoker on the go, be it camping, partying or any other event youll want something thats easy to lift and has wheels to facilitate movement. If you have lots of parties and gatherings at home, then you might want something bigger. Its all up to what your needs are.
Traeger Tfb57gzeo Pro Series 575 Pellet Grill
Traeger is the original maker of pellet grills and, the Pro Series is the best-selling line of pellet grills in the world. The Pro Series 575 stands apart from the crowd with WiFIRE technology. This convenient feature allows monitoring and adjusting the grill anytime, anywhere through the Traeger app. The Pro Series 575 also comes with Traegers new D2 drivetrain, which heats faster and gives more consistent results than previous models.
While the 575 offers a smaller cooking surface than other models on this list , it gives backyard chefs tons of control through the WiFi connection. You can even grill through Alexa! So for those who want their smoker with a side of technology, Traeger offers a clear choice.
WiFIRE Technology allows you to monitor and adjust your grill with an app
D2 DIRECT DRIVE Improves searing and heats the grill quickly
Max Temp of 500 degrees gives versatility
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