Pellets on a charcoal grill

[TNHarley]

So I ran low on wood chunks today and didn't feel like driving all the way to town. Local dollar store was out of wood chips so I thought I'd try pellets.
Seems to be going ok, smoke amount is good and the smell is normal.
Making some ribs and doing a chicken for chicken salad. Hope it don't mess them up lol

 

[TNHarley]

Btw, electric smokers and pellet grills are for people that don't have skill

 

[1srelluc]

Btw, electric smokers and pellet grills are for people that don't have skill

LOL....I've smoked fish using hickory twigs and a wet pasteboard box for a cover.....But I have skills.

 

[petro]

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Btw, electric smokers and pellet grills are for people that don't have skill

Yeah...I have a MAK 2 Star General that is incredibly accurate and cooks to perfection but like all pellet smokers they lack when it comes to the quality of the smoke.
It's like those BBQ logs you get at Academy,they're kiln dried and they dont have the flavor of slow dried oak or any other logs.
The best thing about the pellet pooper is when I cook a huge brisket. I'll start it on the stick burner for around four or five hours and then put it on the pellet pooper to finish. That way I can just let it go overnight. I do have the remote for the MAK which is handy,it'll let you know if the meat has reached the proper temp with an alarm.
There's just no way I can stay up long enough to do a large brisket anymore and even If I did I wouldnt even want to eat,I'd want to go to bed.
But yeah,I pretty much use my stick burner for everything that doesnt take 20 friggen hours to smoke.



I did do these Dino ribs strictly on the pellet pooper and I gotta say they were kickass!!!

I got rid of my Pitts and Spitts because it was a wood hog and way to big for my needs these days.
Got a new Lang Reverse Flow and it kicks ass!! Uses half the wood as the Pitts and Spitts and is way more controllable as far as temp goes.
I'd heard so much about reverse flow pitts that I really wanted to try one.
Everything they say about em is spot on! The temp is almost the same from one end of the pitt to the other almost eliminating the hot side issue.

 

[TNHarley]

This chicken is amazing. Had an astounding color. These ribs look good too but they still have another hour or so.
Honestly, I might have found a wood chip replacement. And it's cheaper

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

This chicken is amazing. Had an astounding color. These ribs look good too but they still have another hour or so.
Honestly, I might have found a wood chip replacement. And it's cheaper

I picked up one of these to use on the gas grill if I'm looking for a light smoke profile like with fish.
Just pack it with pellets and light the end with a propane torch and set it on the grill.
I did find it works best if you block off a lot of the air vents and just leave them open enough to keep it burning.

 

[Flash]

There's just no way I can stay up long enough to do a large brisket anymore and even If I did I wouldnt even want to eat,I'd want to go to bed.

I've been doing BBQ for many decades.

Like you I don't do a brisket in one setting anymore.

Sometimes I separate the point from the flat and cook them separately. That can be done in one day. That way I can do burnt ends out of the point.

However, lately I have smoked the whole brisket for eight or so hours one day. Let it cool down in the refrigerator overnight and then put it back on the smoker the next morning and it is finished by the afternoon and then let it rest. Not really a deterioration doing it that way. It taste about the same as cooking it straight through. The traditionalists will ridicule me for doing it that way but it works.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I've been doing BBQ for many decades.

Like you I don't do a brisket in one setting anymore.

Sometimes I separate the point from the flat and cook them separately. That can be done in one day. That way I can do burnt ends out of the point.

However, lately I have smoked the whole brisket for eight or so hours one day. Let it cool down in the refrigerator overnight and then put it back on the smoker the next morning and it is finished by the afternoon and then let it rest. Not really a deterioration doing it that way. It taste about the same as cooking it straight through. The traditionalists will ridicule me for doing it that way but it works.

Yeah...when you get one that goes for 20 plus hours and no ones around to spell you you're better off finishing it in the oven than trying to stay awake.
Thats the best thing about the pellet pooper. It's far more accurate than my oven when it comes to holding temp and at least you're still kinda BBQing.
And with the remote and alarm it'll wake you up if it's done while you're sleeping off the beer you drank while running the pit.

 

[Flash]

Yeah...when you get one that goes for 20 plus hours and no ones around to spell you you're better off finishing it in the oven than trying to stay awake.
Thats the best thing about the pellet pooper. It's far more accurate than my oven when it comes to holding temp and at least you're still kinda BBQing.
And with the remote and alarm it'll wake you up if it's done while you're sleeping off the beer you drank while running the pit.

I have used every kind of grill or smoker you can imagine over the decades.

Now I have a Big Green Egg.

The best BBQ comes from a Pit but damn it is labor intensive and you need great skill to make it work.

Next are the stick burners with the offset fire box. I had one for years and turn out great BBQ with it. However, it also takes significant labor to keep the fire going and steady.

The third best is the Komado type smokers like my BGE Much easier to use than the stick burners. 90% as good and 100% easier to use.

The kettle grills can be used as smokers if you know what you are doing. However, you really have to watch it.

Pellet smokers will cook the meat perfectly and are very easy to use. However, you will never get the robust BBQ flavor. You will get BBQ and it will be OK but not as good as you would have got with a stick burner or Komado.

An electric or propane smoker? Might as well use the kitchen oven or an Instatpot.

Propane grill is not for BBQ. Nowadays I have the BGE and a Blackstone Griddle and don't even have a gas grill.

 

[1srelluc]

I picked up one of these to use on the gas grill if I'm looking for a light smoke profile like with fish.
Just pack it with pellets and light the end with a propane torch and set it on the grill.
I did find it works best if you block off a lot of the air vents and just leave them open enough to keep it burning.

View attachment 691309View attachment 691309

In before the ATF bans it as a suppressor part and comes knocking on your door.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I have used every kind of grill or smoker you can imagine over the decades.

Now I have a Big Green Egg.

The best BBQ comes from a Pit but damn it is labor intensive and you need great skill to make it work.

Next are the stick burners with the offset fire box. I had one for years and turn out great BBQ with it. However, it also takes significant labor to keep the fire going and steady.

The third best is the Komado type smokers like my BGE Much easier to use than the stick burners. 90% as good and 100% easier to use.

The kettle grills can be used as smokers if you know what you are doing. However, you really have to watch it.

Pellet smokers will cook the meat perfectly and are very easy to use. However, you will never get the robust BBQ flavor. You will get BBQ and it will be OK but not as good as you would have got with a stick burner or Komado.

An electric or propane smoker? Might as well use the kitchen oven or an Instatpot.

Propane grill is not for BBQ. Nowadays I have the BGE and a Blackstone Griddle and don't even have a gas grill.

I've got a Kamado Joe and love it!! It holds temp very well and if you load it up with charcoal you can get multiple cooks out of it before you have to refill it.
It's definitely my favorite when it comes to grilling. When I first got it I thought the factory gauge was lying to me so I used my my Thermoworks stuff and it was within 4 or 5 degrees of the factory gauge. I was shocked in a good way to be honest. While it doesnt turn out BBQ as good as the stick burner you can kinda BBQ with it,the biggest problem is you cant add wood to it very easily and if you do you get temp spikes and inconsistent smoke.

I've been using offsets for over 30 years so i'm pretty well versed in their use. My old Pitts and Spitts was somewhat difficult to keep temps.
The Lang is far easier, holding at 225 is a breeze,as long as you toss a split in every once and awhile it will hold temp pretty accurately.
I put fire bricks in the firebox and the smoking chamber which really helps with keeping a steady temp.

I've never owned a kettle type grill. I did cut my BBQ teeth on those cheap upright water smokers.
They work surprisingly well and you now see them made with much higher quality materials and are used in competitions.

Yep...pellet smokers most definitely dont compare with an offset smoker.
But then neither do the kiln dried logs they sell at Academy,they're just to dry,but they do burn very accurately because of their consistency but with little flavor compared to naturally dried woods.

I had a Cookshack electric that made great beef but it made chicken rubbery.
It was a no joke electric smoker that ran me $700 bucks. I ended up using it as an electric cambro which it was excellent for.

Of course a gas grill isnt for BBQ but it is useful.
I have a Fire Magic built in in the backyard kitchen. It has an infrared searing station and a vertical infrared for the rotisserie that'll hold a 50 lb pig.
Also have their gas burner for crawfish built in.
The Fire Magic was over $5K and all parts are warrantied for life. It's a friggin tank!!!

I've got the Stainless Blackstone.
We dont use it all that often but it is great for smash burgers,Philly cheese steaks and breakfast.

 

[Flash]

. While it doesnt turn out BBQ as good as the stick burner you can kinda BBQ with it,the biggest problem is you cant add wood to it very easily and if you do you get temp spikes and inconsistent smoke.

I agree with everything you said in your excellent post but to add my thoughts to that sentence.

My BGE turns out BBQ that I would rate as being 90+% as good as a stick burner.

I never heard of anybody putting wood in a Kamodo type smoker, only lump charcoal.

My son has pellet smoker. I don't remember what brand. He loves it for the ease of use. He works and is busy with a family and really doesn't have time to mess with a offset smoker on his valuable time off. The pellet smoker fits the bill for the busy family. That is probably the reason why so many of them are being sold nowadays.

This afternoon we are having smash burgers on my Blackstone. Tomorrow pork ribs on the BGE.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I agree with everything you said in your excellent post but to add my thoughts to that sentence.

My BGE turns out BBQ that I would rate as being 90+% as good as a stick burner.

I never heard of anybody putting wood in a Kamodo type smoker, only lump charcoal.

My son has pellet smoker. I don't remember what brand. He loves it for the ease of use. He works and is busy with a family and really doesn't have time to mess with a offset smoker on his valuable time off. The pellet smoker fits the bill for the busy family. That is probably the reason why so many of them are being sold nowadays.

This afternoon we are having smash burgers on my Blackstone. Tomorrow pork ribs on the BGE.

And there lies the problem with BBQing with a Kamado.
You need that smoke as light as it may be,they dont call it thin blue smoke for nothing.
You just cant get that with lump charcoal,sure you get a better taste than with the compressed crap charcoal you buy at the grocery store but it doesn't compare with the smoke coming off a well seasoned log.
As someone who BBQed in competitions for four years you just cant get that deep smoke flavor and you certainly wont get a smoke ring using charcoal of any kind. I will however toss in some wood chunks in the Kamado off to the sides around the lump charcoal to get a bit of smoke out of it but again ya gotta watch for temp spikes when you do it that way. You basically choke of the air until the chunks stop flaming,in this case kiln dried chunks are a good thing.
The Kamados are great cookers and the best cookers you can get when it comes to charcoal,they just fall flat when it comes to true BBQ.
And the versatility of the Kamado is second to none. It does things you cant do on a stick smoker no doubt.

 

[Flash]

And there lies the problem with BBQing with a Kamado.
You need that smoke as light as it may be,they dont call it thin blue smoke for nothing.
You just cant get that with lump charcoal,sure you get a better taste than with the compressed crap charcoal you buy at the grocery store but it doesn't compare with the smoke coming off a well seasoned log.
As someone who BBQed in competitions for four years you just cant get that deep smoke flavor and you certainly wont get a smoke ring using charcoal of any kind. I will however toss in some wood chunks in the Kamado off to the sides around the lump charcoal to get a bit of smoke out of it but again ya gotta watch for temp spikes when you do it that way. You basically choke of the air until the chunks stop flaming,in this case kiln dried chunks are a good thing.
The Kamados are great cookers and the best cookers you can get when it comes to charcoal,they just fall flat when it comes to true BBQ.
And the versatility of the Kamado is second to none. It does things you cant do on a stick smoker no doubt.

I always get a smoke ring when using my BGE. However, I always put in some wood chips and that is probably where the ring comes from.

Whenever I use the BGE I get a good smoke flavor but the finished product is always a little different than I use to get with the stick smoker. However, I wouldn't characterize the difference as not being real BBQ,

Maybe since you were into competition you are attuned to the difference more than I am.

I turn out excellent backyard BBQ with my BGE and I am happy I can do it with minimal effort. However, every once in awhile I get the yearning to get another stick burner.

My dad taught me BBQ back in the 1950s but he mostly did open pit and it was absolutely great. He would do BBQ for church socials or family get togethers and things like that. He would tend to the coals all day long. About the time I turned a teenager he made his own offset fire box smoker. His BBQ got a lot easier.

In the 1990s I moved to Washington State for my last job assignment with Lockheed Martin before retirement. When I got there I found out that there were no BBQ restaurants within a four hour drive. The people up there thought BBQ was grilling Salmon on a gas grill.

I found a stick burner and would frequently do ribs, pork butt or brisket and our friends had never tasted anything like that before. I was the King of BBQ in my area and I did nothing more than any other Southern boy was born knowing how to do.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I always get a smoke ring when using my BGE. However, I always put in some wood chips and that is probably where the ring comes from.

Whenever I use the BGE I get a good smoke flavor but the finished product is always a little different than I use to get with the stick smoker. However, I wouldn't characterize the difference as not being real BBQ,

Maybe since you were into competition you are attuned to the difference more than I am.

I turn out excellent backyard BBQ with my BGE and I am happy I can do it with minimal effort. However, every once in awhile I get the yearning to get another stick burner.

My dad taught me BBQ back in the 1950s but he mostly did open pit and it was absolutely great. He would do BBQ for church socials or family get togethers and things like that. He would tend to the coals all day long. About the time I turned a teenager he made his own offset fire box smoker. His BBQ got a lot easier.

In the 1990s I moved to Washington State for my last job assignment with Lockheed Martin before retirement. When I got there I found out that there were no BBQ restaurants within a four hour drive. The people up there thought BBQ was grilling Salmon on a gas grill.

I found a stick burner and would frequently do ribs, pork butt or brisket and our friends had never tasted anything like that before. I was the King of BBQ in my area and I did nothing more than any other Southern boy was born knowing how to do.

Yeah...I have a Cousin in British Columbia and her boyfriend wanted to learn how to BBQ properly after they visited us here in Katy Texas.
You couldnt find an offset smoker within a hundred miles..I even checked. I did find a custom pitt maker an hour away from them but he wanted a couple thousand for a pitt which isnt unreasonable even here in Texas.
He about choked when I told him the cost. I then told him to go to his local Home Depot and they could probably order him a decent one for around 6 or 7 hundred bucks.
He still balked at the price. But then most Canadians are known for being cheapskates,you rarely see brand new cars on the road like you see here in the states and their boats are even worse.

 

[Darkwind]

I don't understand. You guys cook the meat?