Finding the Best Pellet for Smoking Your Meats
Choosing the best pellet for smoking is very important that’s why we even check reviews before buying some brands. Incidentally, we need users’ opinions about certain brands because we want to know if the products are authentic or not. Can the brand meet the desired flavor for the meat and can it be used for many types of meat? These are the most common questions that we usually have in mind.
Since the wood pellets have been out in the market, a lot of concerns have been raised about some of them because presumably many cheaply made wood pellets came along. However, some people argue that the problem is not with the wood pellets but how the smokers use it. Nonetheless, some buyers still complained about getting some products that were stained which have raised some apprehensions among the meat smoker communities. So to avoid problems, we want to help and provide you some quality tips in choosing only the best pellets for smokers.
How to Choose the Best Pellets for a Smoker?
If you are regularly buying the best pellet for smoking then one day you’ve bought a product that did not meet your expectations, then there’s something wrong either with your choice of wood or the product is not quality-made. So how can you identify good smoking wood pellets from the bad ones?
First, before you try to have the best wood pellets for smoking, you must know the basics of the production of wood pellets. Wood pellets come from sawdust that was compressed by machines. They were not mixed with any additives or binders but were only heavily compacted so that they stay solid. That means when they get wet they will turn soft and disintegrate. There are two types of wood pellets and these are the heating wood pellets and the premium wood pellets. These two pellets should not mix because one is made of hardwood and the other is of softwood.
Heating wood pellets are mainly used for stoves like for heating homes or buildings and are made of softwood. They burn faster because of their high lignin content and therefore produce higher BTUs. Premium wood pellets are made of hardwood and are not sappy. They burn slowly which you need for cooking food through smoking, grilling, roasting or barbecuing. So if you’re into smoking food, you should only choose premium wood pellets and a branded one. You can find many premium wood pellets among the popular brands that rank among the best wood pellets for smoking. These popular brands consist of dried hardwood with no additives or binding agents to make food tastes smokey and delicious.
Advantages and Disadvantages of the Best Wood Pellets for Smoking
You may wonder what benefits you will get from buying the best pellet for smoking. Well, first, is the flavor of the wood. Second, is the cleaning factor. Hardwood ashes may only be about 1% of the total volume of the fresh wood pellet. Third, premium wood pellets can produce that smokiness you need for your meat. And lastly, you can smoke a lot of food with hardwood pellets. Premium hardwood pellets are more identical to the wood chips but pellets can produce a lot of smoke and it does not burn easily unlike the wood chips. Most of the best pellets for smokers have affordable prices and can be purchased even in grocery stores or can be ordered online which we will show some of them below.
And yet, there are a bit of cons with some of the wood pellets that come from some wood species. And what we mean by this is insect infestations. Wood eating insects will always be attracted to the wood of any form. Another problem is its tendency to absorb moisture and even dirt. Since wood pellets have very low moisture content, they are like magnets in attracting dirt and dust. So keep your wood pellets always away from damp areas, seal them up and keep them in dry places.
And finally, wood pellets pale in comparison with the wood chunks when it comes to infusing flavor into the meat. This is because wood pellets are basically made from sawdust and wood scraps so some of their wood flavors have also been degraded, unlike wood chunks that are in natural form. Some wood pellet products also contain additives which nowadays are common. So we advise you to pick only the natural and the best wood pellets for smoking with a popular brand because the brand will always carry the quality of the product.
How to Store the Best Wood Pellets for Smoking?
Once you have purchased the best pellet for smoking, you must store it accordingly. Like we have said, these pellets can easily absorb moisture and attract dirt and insects. So even if you have loaded some of it in your smoker’s hopper, your hopper should also have a cover or if there’s none, better cover the top with plastic and secure it. Because you never know that some insects can crawl and settle among the wood pellets and when you fire up your smoker, you can imagine the smoke being contaminated and infusing the flavor into your food.
There are two ways to keep the best pellets for smokers in the best conditions. One, store its package in a small and aerated room where it’s dry and safe like a shed or garage or in your basement to keep them away from humidity, dirt and moisture.
And two, you can also keep it outdoors but it must be covered completely like sealing it in a container so that rainwater or snow won’t affect its quality. So remember that even the best wood pellet for smoking will not be vulnerable to certain factors.
Product Review of the Best Pellets for Smoker:
Lumberjack 100% Apple BBQ Grilling Pellet
If you are looking for the best pellet for smoking poultry meat, then check out this Lumberjack premium pellet. This brand consists of 100% pure apple wood and it’s perfect also for smoking fish and poultry meats and will also smoke best with small pork and beef cuts. The wood pellets are made from applewood’s tree bark and cambium layer that can provide that sweet flavoring to your food. If you prefer other sweet wood flavors, Lumberjack also has other products such as cherrywood, oak, and hickory. The Lumberjack brand always contains 100% of these wood types and also some wood blends that can satisfy your need for smokey taste meat.
This Lumberjack product comes in 40-pound weight. Its wood pellets do not contain any chemical components that might cause a flare when it gets burned. The use of Lumberjack Wood Pellets have been proven to be safe and these were regularly tested by numerous testing centers to ensure that these wood pellets do not contain chemicals of any kind. This is one of the reasons why the Lumberjack brand is listed among the safest and the best wood pellets for smoking food by consumers worldwide.
The pellets of the Lumberjack brand are always uniform in size which helps them to burn efficiently. These pellets also produce a very little amount of ash. And with an applewood flavor, these pellets will always give that outstanding sweet taste on your meat that you can only derive from the best pellets for smokers made by Lumberjack.
Pros:
Gives that enticing sweet smoke flavor on many types of meat
Burns slower and hot leaving only a small amount of ash
Made not from sawdust but from the bark and cambium layers of apple trees
Proven to be without any combination of chemicals or binders
Cons:
Compared to other popular brands, this still produces more ash
Camp Chef Cherry Premium Pellets Hardwood
With its sweetness imparting to your meat, we can say that this Camp Chef’s Premium Cherry Wood pellets can be your best pellet for smoking light meats. Proven to be one of the best for smoking chicken, pork, fish, baked goods, and vegetables, you can also use it to smoke high-grade beef and can have that excellent taste if combined with some hickory pellets. These pellets have been processed through kiln drying so there’s the low moisture content that makes it easier to ignite.
We settle for Camp Chef’s Premium Cherrywood Pellets as the best pellets for smokers because their brand is categorized as high-quality food-grade wood pellets. This means that these wood pellets have less than 1% moisture content and are 100% all-natural to ensure that your food can keep its taste without losing its flavor. Moreover, Camp Chefs also has no added oil, chemicals, or binders in its product.
Camp Chef’s Cherry Wood Pellets always ranked among the best wood pellets for smoking various kinds of meat and it’s a known product that’s made in the US. This brand works with any type of cooker that uses pellets such as gas, charcoal, electric, or a smoking machine. Perfect also for newbies who want to start smoking various kinds of meats.
Pros:
100% All-Natural Wood Pellets
Kiln-dried process for faster ignition
Works with any type of grills and pellet smokers
No additives of any sort
Gives a fruity cherrywood flavor
Can add delicious-looking color into food
Cons:
Packaging is quite thin which the content can be prone to moisture contamination
CookinPellets 40PM Hickory Smoking Pellets, 1 Pack
If you’re a smoking enthusiast, you may have heard of the CookinPellets 40PM Hickory Smoking Pellets because this brand has been constantly on the top list among the best wood pellets for smoking even in the previous years. You check on people’s reviews and you’ll see this brand commonly mentioned. And why do people like it? It’s because this brand contains 100% hardwood with no fillers included in the pellets.
The distinct features of this product are its pellets that are a bit longer and thicker than the other brands. Smokers prefer this type of pellet because it burns slower and creates more smoke, especially when used for grilling. Its packaging is plastic and a bit transparent so you can check the state of the wood pellets and you can see if the wood pellets are uniformed in size and quality-dried. The best pellets for smokers should have a shiny appearance with no presence of dust just like this product. Also, this brand indicated some tips on its packaging on how to use the wood pellets accordingly.
Most consumers use this brand for smoking briskets, pork and red meats to add that smokey flavor. However, some people also add fruitwoods which help to keep the natural flavors of the meat. These pellets do not contain any bark because they come from the core of the hickory logs so it’s all pure hickory wood that’s why this product is also considered the best pellet for smoking many types of meat.
Pros:
100% free from bark, oil, and additives
Can be used for any types of meat
Well-known Hickory wood pellet product
Has clear packaging to see the quality of the pellets
Cons:
People who are used to strong-flavored wood see this only as a mild-flavored wood
BBQ’rs Delight Jack Daniels Smoking Pellets
Here’s one of the best pellets for smoking that can offer a unique flavor to your meat. This 20-pound bag contains only 100% premium Oakwood that was processed using whiskey-soaked charcoal in the Jack Daniels factory. From what we’ve seen, this is the only brand that does this unique process to give that distinct smell and taste to the wood. This brand is very popular among veteran smokers who enjoy hard-flavored meat and if you are new to smoking, it is also worth trying this wood sometimes.
This BBQ’rs Delight Jack Daniels pellets are made of natural components. The manufacturer only uses raw materials with no additives or fillers so that only the natural flavor from Oak comes into your meat with a tinge of a whiskey flavor. So if you want to smoke heavy-loaded meats of pork or beef with a bit of that liquor taste, this brand can be your best wood pellet for smoking your kind of meat.
Jack Daniels Smoking Pellets have been proven to be chemical-free and you can use these for roasting, smoking, or braising meats to perfection. Lots of people in the meat smoking industry have learned to love this product so why not try these wood pellets also and maybe you’ll see this as your best pellets for smoking your meat with a touch of liquor taste.
Pros:
100% pure oakwood soaked in whiskey
Can be used for all types of grills and smokers
No chemicals or additives added
Authentic taste and smell
Residues are easy to clean after smoking
Generates more smoke and burns longer
No additives or fillers included
Cons:
Quite expensive compared to the other brands
Traeger Grills PEL331 Signature Blend 100% All – Natural Hardwood Pellets
This wood pellet has been known also as the best pellet for smoking because it offers that tart cherry taste on meat. It’s made of blended hardwood flavors such as hickory, apple, and cherry that were combined perfectly for your favorite beef cut. This product is also best for smoking fish to barbecuing poultry meat, turkey, and also for cheese and vegetables to achieve that mix flavorful taste that can come only from the mixtures of flavorful woods.
This best wood pellets for smoking weighs 20 lbs. All of its woods components are 100% natural hardwood without any binding agents or fillers added. Its pellets also have less ash content and are very easy to clean so your food will be out of ashes and always safe and healthy to eat.
Also, there are other wood flavors to choose from with the Traeger brand such as pure Alder, Apple, Cherry, Hickory, Maple, Mesquite, and Oak woods or a combination of these. But if you want to use a ready-made mixture of wood pellets to get that mysterious smoky flavor for your meat, we are recommending this product. This product has gathered so many good reviews on the web that’s why we don’t hesitate to consider this as the best pellets for smokers with wood blends.
Pros:
Can produce the smoke ring on thick meat
Affordable price
100% made from a natural mixture of flavorful hardwoods
Blends well with any types of meat
Cons:
Needs to be stored under the best storage conditions
Conclusion:
Wood pellets are the best options for smoking meat aside from the wood chips. These pellets burn much longer and have low ash contents than wood chips so these are perfect for smoking meat indoor and outdoor. However, learn to store them well to preserve their qualities and follow our advice.
There are so many popular brands of wood pellets you can find on the web. But we chose these products because these are the top brands and are always on the top lists among the best pellets for smoking many types of meat. And it’s no wonder why until now they are gathering good reviews.
For our next blog, we will discuss how to find the best beginner smoker and we will share our ideas and tips on where to find the most affordable ones that will let you smoke your food for excellent taste.
