Returning my 2nd Pellet Smoker....

[DonfromTexas]

\hello; I am new to the forum...

So far I purchased a Masterbuilt upright large pellet smoker and a Sams club pellet smoker. Returned both. Issues and questions below.

1. No smoke flavor at all.....zero......on the Sam's club smoker, which looks like a stick burners, I smoked St. Louis Ribs for 3 hours at 190 degrees with competition pellets from walmart. no smoke at all!!

2. Is a pellet smoker more like a glorified wood oven? Maybe I am asking too much to have a tiny bit of smoke in the meat.

3. I am not new to smoking meat as I can turn out a good brisket on my stick burner or electric smoker but both are more work and time and cleanup. Is there a smoker that has self loading wood chip burner similar to pellets?

Frustrated in Texas...
thanks for any help given!!

 

[ross77]

This comes up from time to time on here. People have different taste preferences. If you are expecting really heavy smoke flavor you won’t get it from a pellet smoker.

I’m not familiar with the Masterbuilt or the Sams models. The RecTec I use definitely adds smoke to the meats I’ve been cooking.

It’s also dependent on which pellets you use. The Comp blends tend to have light smoke flavor. I’ve used the Pit Boss comp blend pellets from Wal-Mart and could taste almost nothing. I’d stick with 100% hickory or 100% mesquite pellets.

 

[oldsmokerdude]

As ross mentioned, it depends heavily on the pellets you use. As he suggested, go with pellets that have 100% of the wood flavor you are seeking. If you want a blend, blend the pellets yourself. Almost all of the cheaper pellets (yes, Walmart) have only a smaller percentage of "flavor" wood and contain up to 70% of other wood (i.e. ash) that is very, very mild. The two brands most liked are BBQrsDelight and LumberJack pellets. But even they have "blends" that may provide less smoke than their 100% flavor wood pellets. Of course, they are a bit more expensive.

Additionally, lower temps generate more smoke. Some users smoke the first few hours at around 190 to 200 before kicking it up to their preferred cooking temp.

There are plenty of competition teams winning major events with pellet smokers. Don't give up yet.

 

[gmc2003]

I would say since your used to a stick burner a pellet smoker will pale in comparison. Also Ribs smoked at 190* for three hours? Wow!!!. If you want more of a smokey flavor with a pellet pooper you'll need to add a smoke generator - like the A-MAZE-N smoker. Link here: http://www.amazenproducts.com/.

Chris

 

[norcal q]

I own a MAK, but used to own a another brand. The controller makes all the difference in the world. My first two smokers produced very little, if any, smoke flavor and I was, like you, very disappointed. I finally got the MAK and wow, what a difference! All the smoke flavor I was looking for. If you're looking for a lite, stick burner type smoke flavor, this is not the pellet pooper for you.
I guess pellets do matter to some degree, as some are 50 to 70% alder or oak and some are 100% flavor wood, but the way the controller is programmed makes the real difference. I'm sure there are other brand pellet smokers that can do what the MAK does, but MAK is all I have experience with.
By the way, I'm comparing the MAK flavor to my Primo ceramic smoker and my WSM. Hope this helps.

 

[schlotz]

Yup, get a MAK! By far the best. Stay with 100% wood pellets vs oil flavored versions. I've been strictly with BBQr's Delight for the last 4 years.

 

[norcal q]

Let me add...and I really hope this helps. Buy once and you'll save $, time and trouble. Believe me, I bought my first pellet smoker at Costco and regretted it, so I returned it and bought another, name brand pellet smoker and it still didn't produce the smoke flavor I wanted. I added 2 or 3 different smoke generators in an effort to get more smoke flavor, however they were more trouble than they were worth. I got rid of that smoker.
Once I did my research and forked out the $ for the MAK, I truly no longer needed any other devices to generate more smoke. The MAK is programmed to produce the kind of smoke that is necessary to flavor meat with the flavor we are all after. I've even read that some folks think that the MAK produces too much smoke flavor, just to give you an idea.
I wish I had saved the $ and went MAK to start with, but as with everything I seem to do, live and learn. Good luck.

 

[ross77]

I would agree but the price of the Mak is just out of reach for some people.

 

[norcal q]

Don't mean to dominate the thread. Just want to say that I'm sure there are other, more affordable alternatives to the MAK, that still give a smoke flavor like an offset. If OP does his research on this and other pellet sites, he should be able to find the one for him.
My mistake is one that I make over and over again...I buy what's in front of me at the time, then waste time and money working my way up to that, which I should have gotten in the first place, had I done my homework.

 

[ross77]

Any idea what makes the Mak produce more smoke flavor? Does the fan pulse or vary it's speed? My RecTec will pulse the fan at lower temps to let the pellets smolder. I feel like it imparts a pretty solid smoke flavor.

 

[norcal q]

Meat Mopper, I'm not an expert at this, for sure. I've spoken with the developer of MAK a couple of times and from what I understand, it's all in the timing of the burn cycles. For instance Green Mountain Grills programmed their controllers to produce a much or delicate or subtle smoke flavor, which some love, similar to a stick burner. MAK chose to go with a much bolder smoke flavor, like an offset. Also, you'll notice that MAKs have no smoke stack. The cook chamber is designed to disperse smoke and heat in several different directions, to even out temps and smoke throughout the chamber. Other than that, I'm sure someone else here has more technical knowledge than I.