# Not much smoke flavour on meat



## dan90 (Jan 22, 2021)

Hi guys I’m new to pellet grills I have a pit boss 850g navigator and I can’t seem to get much smoke flavour in the meat. I’m currently using Traeger Oak pellets with pork at 3 hours unwrapped at 220f and 2 hours wrapped at the same then 1 final hour with some bbq sauce unwrapped. I also tried this with lamb and there was next to no smoke flavour also the meat wasn’t as tender. Do I have to cook longer with pellets. I used this same method on my Weber kettle and the meat was beautiful. Am I missing something when it comes to the pellet grill? Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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## smokerjim (Jan 23, 2021)

You will get less smoke flavor with pellet grills, try starting out at lower temps as the hotter you go the less smoke you'll get, not sure if you have a smoke setting on yours. I ended up getting a amnps smoke tube for mine to generate more smoke.


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## Johnny Ray (Jan 23, 2021)

Lots of people have this issue with pellet cookers. Especially when they are use to cooking on something that imparts a lot of smoke flavor. There are a few things you can do to achieve a heavier smoke flavor using your pellet cooker. 
Pellet brand and type makes a huge difference. I like Lumberjack pellets they can be easily found at Rural King if you have one near by. B&B Brand pellets are good and can be purchased at Academy Sports. Pellet flavors make a huge difference also. Flavors such as hickory and mesquite are stronger than say pecan or maple. Honestly Traeger brand pellets are my least favorite and believe me I’ve tried a bunch of different brands. You just need to try different pellets until you find something you like. 

Also, starting your cooks off at a lower temperature for a while and then bumping the temp up helps with adding smoke. Pellet cookers generate much more smoke at lower temps. On longer cooks such as Boston Butts it also helps not to wrap the meat during the cook and just leaving it unwrapped during the entire cook.
A lot of people use a supplement smoke source such as a pellet tube or tray to add more smoke. I’m not a big fan of these but a lot of guys  on the SMF use them with great success. 
The meat not being tender is a matter of time on the cooker. Cook time using your kettle versus your pellet grill will be different.
Hang in there and keep trying different things and you’ll get your pellet cooker figured out. Lots of great people on here will help you all they can. 

Johnny Ray


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## kruizer (Jan 23, 2021)

I will add a welcome to SMF from Minnesota.


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## BrianGSDTexoma (Jan 23, 2021)

For me I use a pellet tube.  I put hand full chips than hand full pellets.  Shake a little to mix.  Than continue until full.  Use blow torch to get open end going.  Blow fire out after about 5 minutes or so.  Let go for about 10 minutes.  Sometimes have to blow on it.  Make sure going good before putting in smoker.  I elevate it about an inch on open end with piece of metal stock I have.  Handle tube with heat proof gloves.  Last about 3 hours which is enough to give nice smoke flavor.  Everyone has there own method and others will chime in.


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## 6GRILLZNTN (Jan 23, 2021)

I checked on your Pellet smoker and it goes down to 180 degrees.  That will give the maximum amount of smoke.  Run it at 180 for a while, and then turn up the heat to finish off your food.  Now the "while" is going to depend on your personal taste.  try a couple of hours, and adjust.  My Rectec doesn't give a lot of smoke above 225-250.  I like to take my time, and smoke at 180 for at least a few hours, and crank the temp to sear it.  It's trial and error, but worth it.  The guys above gave you great advice.  Follow it!  Don't forget, this is a fun hobby.

Dave


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## calculus (Jan 23, 2021)

dan90 said:


> Hi guys I’m new to pellet grills I have a pit boss 850g navigator and I can’t seem to get much smoke flavour in the meat. I’m currently using Traeger Oak pellets with pork at 3 hours unwrapped at 220f and 2 hours wrapped at the same then 1 final hour with some bbq sauce unwrapped. I also tried this with lamb and there was next to no smoke flavour also the meat wasn’t as tender. Do I have to cook longer with pellets. I used this same method on my Weber kettle and the meat was beautiful. Am I missing something when it comes to the pellet grill? Any help would be greatly appreciated.


I have been using a Pit Boss 700 for over a year. I get great smoke rings. It took a little training. First, take the probe that comes with it, plug it in and set the pickup on the grill just behind where the meat will be running left to right. You will see that just like every smoker, the thermometer on the lid is meaningless. So are the numbers on the controller. On mine, if I set the dial at 200, it will run a grill temp of 230-250. If I set it at 225, it will read 280-300. This is what I think you have going. I think you will find that the meat is too hot and sealing up too soon. I do not use it in the wind. But my main point is to probe the grill surface. There is no other way to get an accurate reading. I like the Pit Boss charcoal pellets the best(regardless of other opinions) I get competition level results. The competition blend is OK if you can't get the charcoal. I have had 5 smokers, 2 I built. But I prefer this one. I can throw some baby backs on it and walk away. I never was one to spritz. I never liked opening the lid several times during a cook.


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## SmokingUPnorth (Jan 23, 2021)

Had a traeger and got rid of it for the reason you said. I never got much smoke flavor. Like someone said you can start with a low temp then bump it up. I used the amnps and used lumberjack pellets. in my opinion the traeger pellets never gave much flavor


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## nchapelheel (Jan 23, 2021)

Like others, I do not get much smoke flavor from my pellet grill no matter what brand I use. I got the AMZN
tube for pellets and that makes a difference. I also keep the grill at 150 for the first hour......that really depends
on the ambient temp and what I am cooking. IMHO LJ pellets are the best.
I smoked some cheese last week with the tube. Excellent results.


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## BrianGSDTexoma (Jan 23, 2021)

Here a Ham I have going today


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## 1MoreFord (Jan 23, 2021)

Like others have said, choose your favorite pellets.  I like LumberJack Hickory the most so far.  Start your cook at a low temp for an hour or two.  You may want to use a tube too.  Don't foil.  You don't get much if any smoke flavor when foiled.


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## dan90 (Jan 23, 2021)

Thank you Johnny I will try some different pellets. I was worried if I didn’t wrap the meat after a few hours it would dry out, I’m guessing you haven’t had this problem.
I am really enjoying having a pellet grill I will keep trying and hopefully get some better results.


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## dan90 (Jan 23, 2021)

calculus said:


> I have been using a Pit Boss 700 for over a year. I get great smoke rings. It took a little training. First, take the probe that comes with it, plug it in and set the pickup on the grill just behind where the meat will be running left to right. You will see that just like every smoker, the thermometer on the lid is meaningless. So are the numbers on the controller. On mine, if I set the dial at 200, it will run a grill temp of 230-250. If I set it at 225, it will read 280-300. This is what I think you have going. I think you will find that the meat is too hot and sealing up too soon. I do not use it in the wind. But my main point is to probe the grill surface. There is no other way to get an accurate reading. I like the Pit Boss charcoal pellets the best(regardless of other opinions) I get competition level results. The competition blend is OK if you can't get the charcoal. I have had 5 smokers, 2 I built. But I prefer this one. I can throw some baby backs on it and walk away. I never was one to spritz. I never liked opening the lid several times during a cook.




Thank you this really good advice I will definitely test this also I will get some different pallets as I have read a few things saying people weren’t happy with Traeger pellets.


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