Stick burners stay off this thread

I am a long time BGE fanatic but got tired of the time it took to get the lump charcoal going for simple things like burgers and steaks.

So I just bought a RecTeq bullseye that seems phenomenal right now for my needs

https://www.recteq.com/RT-B380-Bullseye-Wood-Pellet-Grill

My question is what is the best pellet brand and wood to use to get as good a smoke on food as you can get with a pellet smoker?

I have nothing to add to the thread from experience but I'm in - been shopping for my first smoker (pellet, WSM, stick burner) for months trying to find a good deal. The grill you have looks interesting - I might be blind but I haven't seen anything like that (kettle but a pellet grill).

Let us know how you like that pellet grill once you get some cooks under your belt!! I may jump on one of those in the near future.

Just make sure you get 100% oak (or whatever wood you are looking for). Then it's about cooking on the low end of the temp range to get the most time on smoke. Need to experiment with your cooker. I've read that some people cook their briskets on pellets at 195 and then crank it up to 225 to get it to temp (203 or whatever).

Personally I used my offset for 3-4 hours then finish on pellet. Best of both worlds.

This halfway through

Wings turned out great, 100% satisfied with this grill. I think it's a perfect compliment to my BGE for shorter cooks/grilling


Read today that blended woods aren't great pellets and that's what I used. Traegar Reserve? Mix of oak apple and cherry. Will get just oak next.

Still, let me know if you have any recommendations

I have never owned or used a pellet smoker, but as a long-time owner of a multiple electric and propane smokers, I can say that some units have a sweet spot, about 5 or 10 degrees wide, where they produce significantly more smoke than at a few degrees cooler (probably because the chip basket is so dang close to the heat). On my current propane smoker, it's about 215. On a previous electric, it was about 240.

At that sweet spot, the smoke is a dark grey and voluminous. That's where you want to be, even if it's a little faster than at 220 or even 190.

Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

I have a friend who swears by LumberJack. I need to start experimenting with other brands other than Traeger pellets. I just never think far enough ahead.

As far as getting better quality smoke, when it comes to brisket, 15-18hrs depending on weight, plus 1 1.5hrs rest in a cooler. I've done 9/10/12/16hrs and each time the quality of the final product improved so now I'm at 15-16hrs. I was pretty bummed when I did my first brisket on the Traeger per instructions and I saw other recipes call for 15-18hrs and I thought it was BS. Until I just did it and damn, what a difference.

Now I need to find a better quality pellet. I'm still not overly happy with my smoked cheese, and I'm looking at modifying my smoker with an external smoke generator as well. But before I do that, change up pellets.

I've had good success with Lumberjack pellets

I've used the expensive Traeger pellets. Have used the Sams Club pellets. No difference in burn quality or auger issues. Compressed wood is compressed wood it just matters what species mix you want.

If there's an all oak or better yet post available that's what I'd use for brisket but I've never seen all oak.

I have a red tec. My favorite for brisket is pecan. Post oak pellets are good too. Look for it at academy.

I generally use the B&B brand oak pellets they sell at HEB. Never had any issues on long smokes around 250 or higher up to 425 or so. I use these in a Traeger and probably have it on 2-3 hours per week for multiple meals.

When I had a pellet smoker I always used CookinPellets brand. Never had any jams with auger. I was told cheaper brands mix cheaper wood as filler.

Just bought the B&B and looking forward to giving it a go.

I generally run Pit Boss Comp pellets in my Green Mountain. When I don't have those or feel like going to past Heb I will grab B&B. Never had any complaints from either brand.

Positive Yardage said:

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Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

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Found some from a guy who buys them by the pallet for personal use. Got 4 / 40lb bags for 20 bucks a piece. Excited to try them out

FriedTex said:

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Positive Yardage said:

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Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

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Found some from a guy who buys them by the pallet for personal use. Got 4 / 40lb bags for 20 bucks a piece. Excited to try them out

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This in Houston? I think I saw that and when I google street viewed it...it was a house.

AlaskanAg99 said:

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FriedTex said:

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Positive Yardage said:

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Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

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Found some from a guy who buys them by the pallet for personal use. Got 4 / 40lb bags for 20 bucks a piece. Excited to try them out

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This in Houston? I think I saw that and when I google street viewed it...it was a house.

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Not even close. Some place in Iowa, I live in Sioux Falls

FriedTex said:

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AlaskanAg99 said:

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FriedTex said:

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Positive Yardage said:

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Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

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Found some from a guy who buys them by the pallet for personal use. Got 4 / 40lb bags for 20 bucks a piece. Excited to try them out

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This in Houston? I think I saw that and when I google street viewed it...it was a house.

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Not even close. Some place in Iowa, I live in Sioux Falls

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Ha, ok. I looked at pellets from a dealer here and it's some weird ass house way up 59.

"He went for smoker pellets, murdered by a tweaker with a knife, who then smoked and ate him."

AlaskanAg99 said:

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FriedTex said:

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AlaskanAg99 said:

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FriedTex said:

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Positive Yardage said:

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Smoke Ring BBQ pellets are by far and away my favorite. No auger jams, they burn really clean and I use way less of them than other brands and they produce. They can be tough to find as they had some problems through the pandemic, but worth the hunt. Cookin Pellets are next on my list. Lumberjack probably third.

---

Found some from a guy who buys them by the pallet for personal use. Got 4 / 40lb bags for 20 bucks a piece. Excited to try them out

---

This in Houston? I think I saw that and when I google street viewed it...it was a house.

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Not even close. Some place in Iowa, I live in Sioux Falls

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Ha, ok. I looked at pellets from a dealer here and it's some weird ass house way up 59.

"He went for smoker pellets, murdered by a tweaker with a knife, who then smoked and ate him."

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Ha! Well I did actually drive a couple of miles down a dirt road to get to this guys farm

But that's not unusual in this part of the country