pellets

[Jreilly]

I apologize if this question has been asked a lot before. With all the different Pellets out there which ones provide the best smoke and flavor profiles? I've read that using blends with alder and oak are not as good as say the 100% pure apple or hickory or pecan. I haven't decided on which pellet grill to get quite yet but looking to pull the trigger by the end of the week and get smoking for the super bowl. Thanks.

[Jon Solberg]

Lots of layers to this question. Just get a few bags of what sound good to you. Start playing with them. Get a good brand to start with. Blended pellets are a good choice.

or

buy Smokering Pellets

or

BBQers Delight

Or

B & B. (same as above I think )

[smokenoob]

I've been getting B&B at Academy Sports For $15/20#

[Powersmoke_80]

I use Smoke Ring and use the blended ones. Using oak or maple help give good heat as well as flavor from the cherry or apple. Although experimenting is a lot of fun just buy a quality pellet as Jon said. Lower ash is a benefit from a good pellet and good smoke is usually obtained at lower temps on a pellet rig. Enjoy the journey.

[Pirate Scott]

I have been using Green Mountain Grills Pellets in my GMG. My thought is if they make the grill, their pellets should work no questions.They are 19.99 for 26lbs. I have some B&B I picked up on clearance but have not tried them yet. As far as what type to use, I have been using their Fruitwood blend. No complaints yet.

[JCGrill]

I don't have much luck differentiating pellets by taste, so I gave up. I now run Perfect Mix for everything. And I don't have to clean out the hopper this way either.

[jerrybell]

I use mostly Camp Chef (Sportsman's Warehouse). I've had some inconsistent results with Traeger. A couple bags of Traeger competition blend from Costco were poor for temp control and flame outs but other bags of Traeger seemed fine.

[dshaffes]

I buy Lumberjack pellets at a fantastic price in a variety of woods and am very happy with them.

[icyhawk]

I haven't used a lot of varieties, because if I want to use anything but Traeger, I have to order from amazon. I live in a remote are, and pretty much no one else will ship here. Of the varieties I have tried, this is my take. Keep in mind, that with a pellet grill, the smoke is lighter, so the differences in flavor profile are more subtle. I use hickory, or one of the blends pretty much exclusively. Keeping it simple.
Lumberjack: Awful. (sorry dshaffes) They sent me a sample, which was good. Based on the price, I jumped on a half pallet, and split them up with a couple of friends. So much ash, I had to clean out my grill after every other cook. Burned at least 50% faster than any other pellet I've used, and I could barely get my grill over 300 degrees. If it was a couple of bags, maybe I could call it a fluke, but we're talking 25+ bags. Both of my friends have complained too.
BBQers delight: Good pellets. Didn't stand out on any level, but good. Can't get 'em at a reasonable price any more of course.
Camp chef: Most distinct flavors. Good pellets.
Traeger: Most efficient, and hottest when I need the heat. Easily gets the grill up to 450 or so. Flavor is good. Also the cleanest.
If I could combine the flavor of the camp chef with the efficiency of the traeger, I'd be a happy boy.

[smokinsteve]

Been using the CookinPellets Perfect Mix for some time now and very happy with them. Had some issues with some of the brands mentioned in the posts above. Lots of ash, clumps of residue in the burn pot, etc. I order mine from Amazon and have received free shipping on two bags.

[Troutman]

Lumberjack guy here. Pure wood, nothing else, made from real trees, not table legs. I order in bulk and pay about $0.40/pound to buy 500# at a time.

Having said that, I have tried hickory, mesquite, apple, cherry and several of their competition blends. I can't really tell much of any difference in any of them. Pellet burn pots heat up to a high temperature and you get little or no smokiness from the pellets as they burn at those higher temperatures (like 200* and above). At 300* and above you have a raging inferno. They are, in essence, sources of heat. That being said the hickory ones give off the highest BTUs so I'm just sticking with those.

That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.

[Huskee]

I don't have any advice on pellets themselves, so I won't pretend I do. But I do have some advice on how to find that flavor of wood you'll prefer.

If you get a couple different kinds of pellets, do two cooks close together. I recommend getting some cheap chicken legs or thighs. Delicious, and they're a sponge for smoke.

Season them only with salt so nothing else 'flavors' the chicken except the smoke. Then cook a batch with one type of pellet, and right away cook another batch with the other type of pellet. If you can, take a taste test later on between both types make sure you know which is which. Even if they're cold or room temp. If you notice a distinct difference then there's your answer, at least between those two particular species. Repeat as necessary.

[CandySueQ]

You may want to try 2 different brands of pellets in the same flavor too. Huskee has given you a good test method! I test woods (all kinds) on 3 Weber Kettles out on the porch. Count out the briquettes even! That way all my samples are done at the same time.