Pellet comparison

[AHoneyman]

Any update on these pellets? I was wanting to try them.

I just did a low and slow run with the Smokehouse brand from Sam's and I had no problems. Good smoke flavor. I did discover that the pellets from Scheel's, which cost $24-26, are made by the same company that supplies Sam's pellets, which cost $14-16. Lesion learned.

 

[Brad S]

Well, guys, I found a new fatty pellet. Was going through Sam's and they had Smokehouse pellets, a mix of cherry, oak, hickory, and maple. Fourteen bucks for 40 pounds. But it is the fattest pellet that I have measured - 0.270 inches in diameter. So if I go with the premise that larger pellets feed worse in the SF, it may have problems. But I am going to try them. Inquiring minds want to know. Happy Fourth of July and great grilling/smoking/BBQing.

I Think you will like them.
Here's my list.
Smokehouse from Sam's club Good
Traeger from costco Bad
Lumberjack Good
Pit boss lowes Bad
Pit boss mesquite walmart Good
Pit boss hickory walmart Good
Weber Good

In all fairness the bad ones from costco and lowes were all beat to snot with small broken and powdery pieces. Better condition might yield different results.

 

[FX4 Driver]

First post. Just got my EX4 assembled yesterday.

Due to lack of time this weekend it has been used as a grill twice. Burgers yesterday and reverse seared ribeyes tonight. Both turned out quite well although I was a little disappointed with the smokiness of the ribeyes.

I have cooked them on my Performer in the past many times with hickory wood chips. No reverse sear with that. They have had a pronounced hickory flavor though. I see the Weber pellets are only 40% hickory. I‘m sure that was the difference. Has anyone tried the 100% hickory from LumberJack for something like this? One website I was on said that using 100% for a long cook would lead to over-smoking.

 

[JimG]

Hi everyone, I just joined. I have been using Cuisinart, Jack Daniels and Pit Boss (walmart).

 

[AHoneyman]

I am currently using a couple of Smokehouse produced pellets, which are both competition blends. The Sam's Club pellets are a little darker (smokier) than the Scheel's pellets, which are lighter in color and flavor. Now, I have not done multiple bags so this may be the luck of the pellet bag choice.

 

[Dassman5]

From experience with my 22” WSM over many years, using too much pure hickory can be strong and potentially impart a bitter flavor. I learned to add the chunks sparingly to avoid overpowering the meat.

I actually like the results using the Weber Hickory Pellets on the SF, especially when making bacon and cooking other red meats.

I have done several USDA Prime ribeyes on the SF using Hickory pellets and a reverse sear, and have had excellent results by: heating the grill and allowing it to stabilize at 200F, then using the smoke boost setting until steaks get to around 110F or so.

My options then are: (1) take them off momentarily while heating the SF to 600F for finish searing or (2) moving them to the sear station of my Summit 670 (preferred) , which can get much hotter.

 

[FX4 Driver]

Thanks for that reply. I was thinking about using Smoke Boost but didn't try it. I'll give that a shot next time. I just cooked two ribeyes. The were about 1-1/2 inches thick and quite large. But even with the SF set at 200 degrees they still were over 100F about 15 minutes in. Took another five minutes to finish them up.

 

[dikcccb6]

I just picked up some Traeger Alder wood pellets. Only reason I purchased this is I am smoking some sockeye salmon and wanted to go with a lighter smoke. Alder not available with Weber. Initial observation, Traeger pellets are definitely larger. Could be giving me some feeding problems. Also, definitely more ash! im going to give Lumber Jack a try.

 

[Dassman5]

I have been using Treager for short hot grill cooks with no problems but yesterday I did a low and slow and the Treager pellets turned to what looked like a coked ash and it encased my ignitor and snuffed my fire pot out at the 7 hr Mark at 250F. I should have taken a picture of it but I was in a hurry to get my cook on again. I have a picture of piece of it after I broke it up. Now I really want to find some Weber pellets. This weekend I am doing a brisket so I am going to try some of the cooking pellets 40PM.

The reason I only use Weber pellets.

 

[Bruno]

The reason I only use Weber pellets.

I use Weber pellets to keep variables to a minimum, They have done a great job for me.

 

[topkatt4518]

I have been sticking with Weber pellets for 5 months now with no issues. Good smoke and flavor the SF seems to run without a hitch. They are a little more expensive up front, but what would a ruined Prime Rib cost if the SF chocked and you did not catch it in time. Just my 2cents...

 

[Bruno]

I have been sticking with Weber pellets for 5 months now with no issues. Good smoke and flavor the SF seems to run without a hitch. They are a little more expensive up front, but what would a ruined Prime Rib cost if the SF chocked and you did not catch it in time. Just my 2cents...

Agreed!

 

[Dassman5]

Agreed!

Off the topic, but : Kind of reminds me of my wife who ordered a high-end Kia Sorento SXL a couple of years ago and then complained that it cost $106 to replace the low beam headlight because it was unique to the limited edition models. She wanted to know if there was a cheaper bulb she could use.

 

[AHoneyman]

I do not disagree with any of the above comments but when Weber pellets are over twice as high as any of the other suppliers, I start looking for that fish in the newspaper.

 

[Dassman5]

I do not disagree with any of the above comments but when Weber pellets are over twice as high as any of the other suppliers, I start looking for that fish in the newspaper.

My concern over pellets, as with the comparison of any two products is quality ( size, compression and polish) and the ingredients of manufacturing ( mix of types of wood, whether fillers are added like with charcoal and briquettes, etc.) and performance. Not wedded to Weber, just have yet to find one that is better.