Question about Traeger/Pellet Grills

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

amills1210

Newbie
Original poster
Mar 6, 2017
9
10
Hey Everyone,

I currently have a 2-burner propane grill and a propane smoker. Would be great to consolidate into 1.

I was pitched by a guy in Costco several weeks ago doing a roadshow on the benefits of Traeger grills and convenience and flavor they (or I guess all Pellet Grills) offer. I posted this question initially on Traeger's Facebook page and got no response.

My question is this. If I want to grill some chicken, steak, hot dogs, burgers etc....meats that typically are not smoked...will a pellet grill make them taste smoky because of the wood pellets emitting smoke? Dont get me wrong...lately I have loved smoking different kinds of meats and just got into it this year. But that doesnt mean i want to cook up some filet mignon and have a smoky flavor to it.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts/feedback.
 
When pellet grills are operating at grilling temperatures (>300), little if any smoke is produced. The burning wood pellets may contribute a little to the overall flavor, but the meat will not taste smokey. 
 
I just recently switched from using a Traeger to an Englanders Smoke-n-Sear because you get the best of both worlds. With the SnS you can grill or you can sear then smoke or vice versa. I also happen to prefer the SnS over the Traeger due to the fact that if smoking meats you get a better smoke flavor, I believe due to the design of the SnS.

The Traeger produces smoke from the fire pot under a deflector pan which goes around the meat laying above the deflector pan then exits through the chimney up high. The SnS has a fire pit on one side which is under cast iron grates for grilling at higher temps. At low temps the fire pot produces smoke for smoking meats on the indirect cooker side. The smoke produced goes up above your meat then has to fill the smoker chamber before it can exit due to the fact the chimney exit is below the level of your meat thus putting more smoke into your meat. I never had a smoke ring in my smoked meats using the Traeger but get one from the SnS.

Don't get me wrong the Traeger is a good smoker but for the best of both worlds I prefer the Smoke-n-Sear.

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk
 
Just like bregent said above. The hotter your temp is set to, pellets burn more efficiently. Pellet cookers in general provide a very mild smoke to the meats when you smoke them as is. People always complain that they cant taste the difference between different flavored pellets unless it is hickory and mesquite. 

As a Traeger owner I love the chicken that comes off of the Traeger. It is always tender and juicy. I usually cook my chicken right at 375 when not smoking and they come off just as good. 
 
If you want a do it all pellet grill you need something with a direct sear option, especially when it comes to Burgers and Steaks. Okiefisher's Englander can do it all, it's basically a copy of a FE PG500 minus the SS construction and a slightly less sophisticated controller and a couple of minor differences, Englander is license by Fast Eddy to build the grill and would make a great all-around grill/smoker. 

You could also look at the Camp Chef Woodwind with sear station, the main grill uses pellets and the sear station uses propane, there is also the FireCraft Q450, Louisiana Grills and Pellet Pro with Sear insert all offer direct searing. Those are some of the more affordable PGs that can do it all, then there are upmarket grills like Fast Eddy's PG 500/1000, Blazn Grill Works, Pitts and Spitts, Yoder, Kuma, MAK and Memphis. 

If you don't have a direct searing option it's like cooking steak and burgers in an oven, you can do it but would you want to. 
 
There are a few pellet grills that will get up to 500degrees or so. Tec Tec Mini will and the Pit Boss does as well. If you add searing plates they get another 100degrees and seat steaks really well. Just as good as 600degrees over open flame on my Kamado grill.
 
​A lot ofu the reason for not being able to tell the diff in pellets is that Traeger uses oils to make flavored pellets.. NOT apple wood etc.
 
There are a few pellet grills that will get up to 500degrees or so. 
Actually, most pellet grills will reach 500F - I've heard of a few folks with Traegers that are a few years old that will no longer get that hot, but those are the exceptions.
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Clicky