Smoke flavor on a pellet grill?

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On my RecTec Mini, there is a heavy smoke setting which comes on automatically between 180 and 250 degrees. I find that to be excellent in imparting smoke flavor (and yes, my smoker before the Rectec was a stick burner). I think (my opinion only) the reason why people don't get a lot of smoke flavor is that they crank the temp above 250. What I do is depending on what I am smoking, I set the initial temp to 225 and then turn it up (like for crispy skin on chicken) to a hotter temp like 375 or more for the last part of the cooking process. On the fullsize RecTec, you have to push the button on the front for the extra smoke setting. Doing this, I get beautiful smoke rings on the meat and a great flavor. Also, I use good pellets (not Traeger) -- Lumberjack and Pacific Pellets (which I can get for 9.95/20# at Sportsmans Warehouse). And I don't use an additional tube.

P.
 
Most Pellet Grills produce smoke but not enough to give meat that smoke saturated flavor. When I purchased a Camp Chef pellet grill it had a lot of places where the smoke escaped. Especially the lid. I bought a gasket to place a seal on the lid. Also I bought a 12 inch Amazen cold smoke tube. You can find them on Amazon. I am cooking this Sunday so I will find out if all my efforts to produce smoked meat will work. I will say that I get better results with a pellet grill, with tender juicy meat. Lots better than my stick burner.
 
I can tell you how the pellets have worked for us, we started with the "chunk" wood and did not like it because the pieces were to big.  We tried the pellets and liked them the first time.  The smoke flavor is just great.  And with the pellets, it is easy to mix and match for lack of a better way to say it.  If we want some apple and sone hickory we can have it.  IF we want 1/3 apple and 2/3's hickory we can do that.  I would say pellets are the way to go

mr. Martin in north east Iowa      Spring is on the way
 
I have had my Gridiron pellet smoker from BLAZ'N for about 18 months. I have cooked everything from key lime pies to pork butt and I can tell you that when you want smoke you get smoke; and the flavor is excellent! I usually run my smoke temperatures from 185 to 220.. At that range I get great smokey flavor. When I don't want a smokey flavor (key lime pie) I bump the temp up and it comes out perfect.
 
I agree with much of what Bluto says above. Also a little late .

Type of pellets make a big difference, I have read posts on here of people buying "heating" pellets because the bulk price was better.. DO NOT DO THAT - I Can't tell you how wrong that is in so many ways !  With out a lengthy discussion, they are not food safe or recommended in any way other than their "boiler/furnace" intended purpose !

I am using a Memphis Wood Fire Grill and a MES 40" (with and without the mailbox adapter) I don't even break out the Cast Iron Barrel smoker, never. Even the MES use has slowed to a trickle since getting the Memphis. 

I have tried various pellets, the Natures way I get from the dealer are a buck or 2 more, but seem to have better flavor, especially the mesquite.  I tried some others, and I could not get the flavor blast in a shorter term smoke. I cant speak to the traeger pellets, but enough people here have. 

I get the difference in wood stricks/chuncks vs pellets, but hovering over a side box for hours is not my deal.  I obtain just as must or little smoke now on the Memphis without the babysitting.  Even on the MES, I am adding chips and pellets every few hours on briskets and butts.

I will say the mail box adapter (search the forum, lots of info on how to make one) on the MES with the Amaze N tray smoker has made cold smoking pretty easy, especially the cheese.

Espo
 
It really boils down to personal preference. Do pellet poopers impart as much smoke as a stick or charcoal burner, no, but they do indeed get smoke into the food. The brand of pellets do make a difference, not just with amount and flavor of smoke, but with leftover ash in the bottom of the pit. If you like a heavy smoke, stick to a stick/charcoal burner, if you like the flavor of what you are cooking to be at the front of the flavor profile, for my $, a pellet pooper can't beat. I have several smokers, but only smoke on my Traeger now, the rest are bound for C'list. If I want a heavier smoke, depending on what I am cooking, I will set my controller on Smoke mode and leave it for 2-3 hours, on a warm day that usually means a pit temp of about 160'ish, then I'll bump the temp up to whatever I want for the long haul, 225-250. If I want even more smoke, I'll light my AMNPS and let it burn for the duration of the cook.

Some great things about pellet poopers is the convenience factor is very high, and because you are still cooking with wood, they comply for use with KCBS competition rules (if you are so inclined), and the versatility of what you can cook in them is great, from chocolate chip cookies to pizza and everything in between.

When cooking at higher temps with the pellet smokers, they do impart less smoke due to the pellet burn being more efficient at higher temps, but even when cooking at those temps, 325+, everything I have cooked on them has had some smoke flavor added, while not overpowering, it is definitely there, and very pleasant. Try some boneless/skinless chicken breasts with a HOC blend (hickory/oak/cherry) and you will see what I mean, throw some potatoes on for a couple hours and taste the magic. :)

All pits have their plus's and minus, pro's and con's, etc... One great thing about pellet cookers, unlike some other smokers, is you really don't ever have to worry about creosote getting to your food , they are designed to burn so efficiently that you probably couldn't get that tongue numbing, bitter flavor even if you tried.

Again, it is all about personal preference, I think burgers taste best when cooked over charcoal, but they also taste phenomenal cooked on a pellet cooker, and because I am just lazy enough, I will go fire up the pellet cooker in a heartbeat versus digging out the charcoal any day of the week. :)

Because it can be a significant investment, I'd recommend visiting some friends/acquaintances who might have one to see if you like the flavors, ease of use, etc... before taking the plunge. Maybe even make sure where you buy it has a good return policy, or a trial period, etc...

I don't mean to sound like a pellet smoker advertisement, I'm just sharing what I have learned and experienced, but I would suggest their use to anyone looking.
I was going say everything you did. Great answer.
 
I've tried lots of pellet brands and the 100% pecan pellets from lumberjack beat all others for smoke flavor, hands down? Found them on sale at Attwoods this summer and was amazed at the flavor vs. all the others. Attwoods had them for 7.98 for a 10 lb. bag.
 
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