I can get the same flavor out of pellets as any other smoker! I have been using pellets for 14 years and I have owned about every type of smoker known to man and I now cook/smoke smarter instead of harder. And yes, there are crappy pellets that put off little or very weak smoke flavor (blends) and then there are 100% wood flavored pellets that work much better. I can smoke protein on my Cookshack FEC-100 pellet smoker and an offset and I guarantee you couldn’t tell the difference in taste! And I’ll back up that guarantee with cold, hard cash anytime, any day.

You have some of the most original content when it comes to bbq. Every other bbq guy on youtube is showing how to smoke a pork butt for the thousandth time. I really enjoy the science of bbq and seeing why things react and cook the way that they do. Keep it coming.

Late to the party here, I worked for a business that sold pellet smokers. I have sold probably 40-50 of these things over the last 5 years or so. (not bad for a tractor shop lol) I have used pellet smokers extensively in that time and I have a theory on why pellets smokers don't produce the same results as an offset. The whole theory of operation on and auger driven, pellet fueled cooker is inherently many many times more efficient than burning logs. Smoke is created through incomplete combustion, so an inherently less efficient way of burning wood, an offset, is going to produce far more smoke and what I call "dirty smoke". My theory is the dirty smoke has larger particulate matter in it which imparts the smokey flavor that is achieved when using an offset. Pellets as fuel, are like already chewed food, and are prepped for digestion, even at low temps, they still burn more efficiently and create a cleaner smoke, with less and smaller particulate matter to impart flavor. the Too Long Didn't Read version is that pellets burn better and so they don't taste as good.

I noticed a definite reduction in smoke flavor when I switched from my offset to my Yoder pellet smoker. I have found that Mojo Bricks or a pellet tube, pretty much makes up the smoke flavor loss. Offsets are still better in my opinion, but the set it and forget it out weighs that difference for me. I do not miss staying up all night on 14 hour cooks.

I've been searching all over for explanation on this topic! Thanks for posting!!!

I have a Traeger Ironwood 885 and use Lumberjack pellets and the smoke flavour is awesome. Once I found out that Traeger added oils to their pellets, I dropped them like a hot plate!!!

Bro, just want to thank you for educating and inspiring us. We know its takes alot of time for you to do this and your kind efforts are greatly appreciated. Keep up the good work😁

my brother-in-law works for a small sawmill/lumber company that started making pellets for smokers a couple years ago. i had him take about a face cord of seasoned apple wood to work and make me some pellets for my smoker. there was a big difference in taste from store-bought apple pellets. there were no additives at all in mine or the pellets they produce. i asked him your question regarding the difference in flavors between pellets and whole wood. he thinks the pellet process is to blame. pellet mills create a lot of heat producing pellets. he says they're not just warm, but hot coming out of the mill, and this may be the culprit.

FYI the Cabelas brand pelles are also made by Lumber Jack and some of the blends are exclusive to Cabelas.

Thanks for the info! Really enjoy when you break things down like this for us

That is an excellent explanation Jeremy. Thanks for taking the time to test this out. I liked the tip of cooking real low with a pellet smoker for additional smoky flavor. I have never tried that. I just go to the smoke tube. Very well done. Thanks again!

Mate this was the most positive way you could have answered this question, and as someone who just dropped more than a grand on a pellet smoker and polished off some smoked brisket tacos it was really insightful. Keep up the good work brah, it’s appreciated

This is hands down the best channel for smoking meats on the internet. Just came back from Academy here in Austin. Snapped up the Old Country Brazos smoker.

Thanks for a another good video Jeremy. Would you make a video on how to get the maximum amount of good smoke out of a pellet grill? Pellet grills are gaining in popularity every year. I am sure it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again for all the great videos.

You can run a long smoke tube in the corner of your pellet smoker this way your smoker is making smoke and you can add the extra smoke from a smoke tube.

This is why I've subbed to you bro. Great knowledge not other BBQ channels do this.

One of my cookers is a pellet smoker and I completely agree with you on this subject! Also since your last beef rib video I purchased some peppered cow and really enjoyed it on my beef ribs! Thanks for the great video!

Totally agree. But how about a blind taste test with friends or family... pellet vs offset.

Great vid..I think the consistency of temps and the convenience of use outweighs the extra smokey taste of an offset. I love my Traeger and it produces stunning results and for me a smokey taste and good smoke ring!

Thanks Jeremy for another great video. Would it be possible for you to do a video on how to get the best BBQ out of a pellet grill? Do you use 1 smoke tube or 3? What length smoke tube do you use? What style, round, oval, etc. Where do you place it? Is one brand better than another, etc. Thanks again.

Thanks for this video. I switched to higher end pellets and lower/longer cooks. Made difference for sure. I’d love to see you do a limited series solely focused pellets grills. Basically science your way through bringing out the very best flavors as possible. Looking through comments see lots of good topics. Some ideas: One with custom made pellets - different source wood and high/low heat processes - could become a new super premium pellet product. My reality is the an offset just isn’t convenient for me. But if I could pay an extra $10 / bag for the very best pellets and that mattered! I’d do that for sure. Another one on adding moisture - during cook or prior into pellets - could be huge. You got me thinking what if I could add some moisture to a bag of pellets through outdoor summer humidity? Would that still work in the pellet grill and add a bit to flavor? Back to custom pellets - would a 50% larger pellet help?

Thanks so much for the time & effort you put in to explain what you believe to be one of the factors in yr final conclusion. I do own a pellet smoker and you can be certain I will check to see what if anything else is added to the pellets I've been using. I really learn a lot watching yr videos. Thanks, Mike

My first pellet smoker, I did notice that the smoke flavor was reduced. I love using it and it makes very good food and is a lot easier than my off set smoker was. If I ever got to competition level cooking I'd only use "off set" but because I only do cookouts I'll keep the easy and capable pellet. 😎

Wow, Great information and lots of awesome comments. Can’t wait to try out Lumber Jack pellets on my next smoke. Thanks Jeremy!

I just wanted to say I love all your videos and truly thank you for making these awesome videos that will help me be a great smoker like you….your videos are THE most educational videos I have seen and that are on topics that are really needing to be covered to get the best bbq possible…..you’re awesome!!!! Keep it up!

Dude...you’re killin it with the content lately! Good stuff!! 🔥🇺🇸

If someone goes into using a pellet smoker expecting offset results, then they have been misinformed. However, you can still get damn good flavor if you use a quality pellet and they are EXTREMELY convenient. I have a homemade offset and a Rec Tec RT-700 and I wouldn't get rid of either.

Mad Scientist is da man!! Great way to make outdoor cooking/smoking easy to understand. I watched one of his brisket videos (quite a few times) for this past Memorial day. My brisket turned out great!!! This guy has the best videos!!!! Keep up the great work!!

Thanks for insuring me of my same theory. I emailed Rod Gray about a year ago and he explained to me that you just can't get the same flavor out of a pellet as you can other wood/charcoal smokers because of how dry and clean burning pellets are. I've tried other gadgets to produce smoke flavor while cooking with the pellet grill to no avail.... I bought a 24 inch Louisiana ceramic grill from Costco and never looked back at my traeger....well I still use it for burgers and quick cooks for small cuts of meat occasionally, but most of the time it just sits there under the cover.

Man, I love nerding out on stuff like this. It's fascinating.

100% spot on! And I’ve had quite a few discussions to why in wrong in saying that charcoal/wood smoking gives off better smoke flavor compared to pellets. Awesome video!

I cooked with a bbq champion who uses an FEC 100 but adapts a vaporizor to the intake fan to add a smoke flavor as well as moisture to the chamber. I have to say it really helps in both taste and moisture areas.

Great video! Curious what you think of the Masterbuilt Gravity Series. Seems like the flavor and smoke of an offset with the convenience of a pellet cooker.

Why did you stick a tree into the chimney?

Throw wood chunks on top of your heat diffuser. All pellet smokers I've ever seen have a heat diffuser. You may need to start at a higher heat to get it burning but when you drop back down to your 225-275 cool temps it will burn slowly. Works wonderfully. They're are products that are modified heat diffusers meant to hold actual splits alongside the fire to achieve the same basic thing. If you're doing this frequently it's smart to buy/make one because the steel is much thicker.

So glad I came across this video. I’ve been scouring for a couple months to pick a better pellet smoker because I just don’t think mine is putting enough smoke in the foods. Ive been wondering if adding an offset to the bbq pad is a better choice and this solidified that for me.

I’ve had Traeger grills from the Pro 22 to the, currently Timberline and Ironwood. I get much more flavor from the Timberline/Ironwood due to better sealing and more importantly the convection action of the grills. I also put a water pan directly on the drip pan. Gets moisture on to the meat and smoke clings to the moisture.

I really appreciate the details you explain in your videos

If using a smoke tube on a pellet grill to add more smoke flavor, where should the tube be placed and at what time during the smoking process?

Love your videos Jeremy. Always very informative. You are bang on! I own a Rec Tec Bull pellet smoker, which I love and do not regret buying, but there is definitely a difference between offset smokers and pellet smokers. I did tons of reading before buying a smoker and the reason I went with a pellet smoker was for convenience. The RecTec Bull is built like a tank, holds temperature really well, has a 40 lb hopper which is great for long cooks, I can control it from my phone, and it comes with a 6yr bumber to bumber warranty. Having said that, I am now in the market for an offset smoker as I have tasted the difference. I will be using both depending on my schedule. It would be appreciated If you could put out some more pellet smoker videos, preferably one on beef short ribs. Thank you for continuing to put out great content. Stay safe

Before I watch my prediction is volume , I use allot less pellets vs my off set, I use a ton of wood for a 10hr cook on the offset, that same cook on pellet is like 1 bag

Really interesting thanks. As a pellet smoker owner (YS1500S) I agree. Been burning exclusively BBQ'rs delight Hickory blend for 1.5 years but am keen on trying Lumberjack as I feel the smoke is a little too light for my taste. On thing I think is important to mention is although cooking lower for longer does increase the level of smoke I feel it may also dry out the meat too much due to the high rate of constant airflow (at least with my Yoder) as I did an 18 hour brisket last week at 195f and it was dry and crumbly Vs. my hotter faster cooks (but with less smoke flavour). Have tried smoking tubes etc. but dont like the flavor of smoke they produce.

Keeep up the good work Jeremy. Great job :)

Love the technical aspect of your content. Curious though, what’s the approximate moisture content of a seasoned piece of oak or similar wood? That would be a valuable piece of data for comparison.

I did my first briskett on my Rec-Teq 700 over the weekend.. I used a nice prime brisket and smoked for 13 hours... I have used offsets for years.. I live in Austin and have eaten Franklins multiple times plus most of the other really good places in central Texas. I will say the brisket I made was absolutely comparable to the best of the best I have had. Perhaps I got lucky with it, perhaps it was the pellet choice (B&B championship blend, oak, pecan and cherry) but my family said it was one of the best briskets they have ever had.. and WAY better than most commercial places we have bought briskets from. My boss has one and after eating brisket off his several times and the glowing feedback from some co workers who bought one I decided to order one. My first long cook was a boston butt, 18 hours at 225 and I had two die hard offset guys come over, one of which has a large one on a trailer and sells his as a side job was like "damned, dude, that was freaking amazing" Both of them raved about it and were asking questions.. after giving me crap about my "easy bake oven" when I said I was going to order one.. If I didn't like it I would have returned it or sold it at a loss.

Hey Jeremy another great video as always. I've noticed the same thing too, but let me tell you something that has happened to me twice. At two different times I've started to smoke ribs and butts and realized after I got my fire going that I didn't have any wood chunks or splits so I get out my smoke tube and fill it with pellets. I have a very large UDS that I use a lot , anyway I've used the smoke tube twice loaded with pellets and my food is waaaaay over smoked. Can you try a comparison video using this method vs regular wood and see what you come up with? Thanks and have a great weekend.

Are you going to do a pellet comparison video between the companies that produce them?

Is lumberjack your favorite? And what other do u recommend? Ty for this video!!

I get great flavour from pellets..for me you have to cook at a lower temp than the standard stick burner to impart that flavour... means longer cooks but the flavour is great..

New to the channel love the content. Not sure if you have a video on this but can you do a video on how to cook a brisket on a pellet smoker? Also maybe one on your top brands.

I use a smoke tube and it absolutely helps

i just saw this video (making my way through your archive after having found your channel and subscribed only a month ago). You may also be able to produce more smoke with a pellet smoker by using a smoking chips in the cook chamber (if your pellet grill has the space). I put my smoking chips in water before I grill with them. I think it makes a huge difference (at least for the first 30 minutes or so). Also, on my Big Green Egg, when doing a longer smoke (e.g. brisket or pork shoulders) I use wood chunks (1.5 inches to 2.5 inches in size generally) and I soak them in water for at least an hour, sometimes overnight. I think that helps as well. I wonder what you and others think about these techniques.

Malcolm Reed did a great vid a week ago on pellet smoker brisket. Demonstrated/proved your even lower and slower hypothesis - 16 pounder, 195* for 8 hrs, wrap, then 8hrs at 250*. He seemed pretty happy with it.

I believe that you are being genuine about “not trashing pellet grills” but it’s funny that you filmed the whole video in front of your massive offset cooker.

Would adding a water pan help? I assume you would typically have one anyways. Also just a crazy thought here but could you soak pellets in water and then dry them? Would this help add moisture or would they just fall apart?

Nice job! I appreciate your fact-based videos. For a backyard BBQ'er I think you have to factor in everything (grade of meat, prep, cooking process, etc.) in addition to the cooker. I only use prime grade of brisket, I trim it aggressively, I inject and I'm selective about my rubs (flavor AND freshness). I monitor internal temps, I use a consistent cooking process, and I rest the meat for 4 hours before slicing. I run my MAK pellet smoker on the "Smoke' setting for 2 hours before raising the temp to 265 and cooking from there. I've had a stick burner in the past, a gravity-fed smoker, and now I have a kettle, a MAK pellet smoker and a griddle. The ease of use for me outweighs the slight difference in flavor. That said, I agree that similar product from a stick burner will be better. My goal is just to consistently turn out better BBQ than the neighborhood joint, and I usually do.

I really enjoyed this analysis. I've learned so much from you. in the coming months I'm going to buy my first offset smoker. I am thinking of a lang reverse flow smoker. Would love it if you gave us a review of a really good quality reverse flow smoker, especially something along the quality lines of a lang.

what is the best brand pellet in your opinion and where would you rate pitboss pellets on a 1 - 10 scale ? thanks keep up the great videos

This is why I sold my rec tec for masterbuilt. If you grew up on charcoal, you know pellet isn't the same. Everyone loved my cooking, but I wasn't feeling it. I could tell something wasn't right and the only thing I could think of was the smoke flavor. Once masterbuilt came out with their smoker, I finally got one and cooked on it this passed weekend. So much charcoal flavor that I love. Wife couldn't believe the difference and loved it way more than pellet.

Great video. i use either smoke ring pellets or lumberjack exclusively...but alt cut some chunks to put on the diffuser over the fire pot. not sure if the chunks over the fire pot is helping, but they are buring/smoldering.

Man , thats a beast you have there ! I love the smell of bbq smoke in the air. I bet you have the whole neighborhood smelling good.

I was waiting for u the break out the moisture meter, to show the moisture content of the logs you usually burn.... To compare that 5.3% moisture of the pellets, to your logs. 🤷‍♂️ In my area, I usually have to order kiln dried online, and you are correct, the flavor is lacking from regular seasoned wood. But, we all make due with what we have. 👍🍺

I have a vertical pellet smoker and I typically put a wood chips box or a pellet tube at the bottom to get more smoke flavor. I'm sure you can probably put some wood chunks close to the bottom to get even more smoke flavor

Awesome video man

Jeremy - what if you 'reverse seasoned' the pellets? Like, open the bag and leave them to season outdoors (covered from rain) for months like you would split wood. Do you think they'd come up to ambient moisture the same way that green splits come down to ambient moisture? And would this get pellet smokers closer to offsets? Maybe this same idea could be used for kiln dried splits?

I purchased my first pellet cooker Dec. 2021. I bought a 20"x 42" Lone Star Grills. I don't have a problem with the lack of smoke, in fact I have to open both ends of my barn so the smoke can get out of the building. I use a pellet sold in Kroger's, not sure if it is one of the high-end pellets that guys say are the best, I buy it because it comes in a 40 lb. bag. I do cook low & slow for 2-3 hrs. then ramp up to the 270's range. I cook a Texas style brisket with very little difference in the profile if cooked on my offset pit. I bought it so I can cook & sleep with no worries.

Very tricky Traeger, might be adding oils to their pellets to make them fake “Hickory.” I didn’t know about that, thanks for the heads up!

Jeremy I enjoy your more scientific videos like this and I've got an experiment I would love to see you try. I'd be very curious how much cubic feet per minute your Fat Stack uses when smoking at different temperatures. It'd be easy to figure out the volume rate of flow by holding an anemometer over the top of the stack to find the speed of flow, then using the inner diameter of the stack to calculate volume of flow per minute. It would also be cool to see the difference at temperatures when the smoker is fully loaded vs completely empty. I may do the same with my Yoder YS 1500s. I wanna see just how much that Fat Stack draws!

This is a large part of it...however, I've noticed that a Pit Boss seems to get more smoke flavor than a Green Mountain. Perhaps the different air flow in the burn pots, fans, etc. make a difference too...but only a stick burning offset will have the flavor of a stick burning offset!!

Would using a tube smoker inside a pellet smoker with the same pellets running at 220 -240 or so give you a stronger smoke flavor? I have heard it mentioned but have never tried it.

What if you humidify pellets just slightly to the point where they actually don't fall apart but just putting them into a very humid environment for a while?

Aaaaaaw......no funny gag reel bloopers this time?! Always look forward to that!!

If you had to go with a pellet smoker. Which one’s do you think are the best?

Jeremy, you are a great source of information on bbq cooking. Could you please share your thoughts on this. For someone who does not have long hours time to do fire management cooking briskets for over 10 hours, what are your thoughts on smoking on an offset smoker using sticks till the meat reaches near 145 F then continuing cooking on a set and forget smoker such as a pellet smoker, a Kamado or a Weber Smokey Mountain? Have you ever experimented that? I wonder how much cook quality would be compromised compared to offset smoker cooking throughout.

I’ve always used an offset. I got a pellet cooker one day and after my first cook, I couldn’t help but notice the lack of flavor. One thing I suggest for pellet grill owners, buy a smoke tube! It really helps. After watching this video, I’ll pay more attention to what pellets I buy in the future. Thanks for sharing your info.

Would a water pan be an effective way of adding moisture to the smoke chamber in a pellet grill to overcome the lack in the wood itself?

Great Info Thank you for that

I use a smoker tube which burns around 110oF allowing me to add smoke to my hearts content (as you stated: To use pellets,, smoke longer at a lower temperatures). Add a moisture container and you have addressed your two major issues, at a fraction of the cost and hassle of burning logs in an offset. Worth a blind test?

What kind of pellet smoker do you have? I’m new to the smoking game and recently bought a recteq RT700 that I’m loving so far. I have definitely learned a lot from your videos and have improved greatly. Now I’m looking at offsets 😀 I just want to improve and make the best bbq for my family to enjoy! Keep up the good work brother!

i am actually experiencing different pellets on my smoker and i can tell you that flavour (and the visible amount of smoke coming out the chamber) is changing depending by the brand of the pellets. I would love to try lumberjack pellets... but they are not yet imported here. Shame. Great video anyway man!

Very good answer. I wondered the same. Getting too old to manage a fire in my offset. I will try and overnight of 195 deg then wrap in the AM. Maybe that will work better.

what' your opinion on pellet tubes for added smoke/smoke flavor?

It's like you were reading my mind. I was looking for a video explaining this last week and there was nothing.

Great content! I love the "science behind" videos. It's real easy to find many opinions on why stuff works a certain way but it is super hard to find said topics with good factual information to back it up!! I love my stick burner but I have also had some good bbq from a pellet cooker. Cheers!

Do you think the moisture created by using a water pan is capable of slowing the combustion process of pellets?

I'm glad you did this. I bought a gmg and returned it, had a kamado before and used lots of huge chuncks in it so nice full smoked flavor couldn't get near that in the pellet grill my feelings where darn near hurt 😅 bought another kamado life's better now. That was until I watched your videos and feel like I need a offset smoker again.

You could also add a smoker tube in the cook chamber to increase the total amount of smoke inside the smoker

Thank you for this I use two pellet smoke tubes on my Weber gas grill and get great flavor. That said, I spritz the meat a little more often and was wondering if THAT could help? I mean it Seems like that added moisture would help the issue.

Great video on pellet smokers producing smoke. I'm thinking of buying my first smoker and i was considering the Rec Tec RT 590 smoker grill. I was wandering your thoughts on this grill and I don't know if you made a video on this grill. Please give me your thoughts. Thanks and keep up the good work you do.

Any plans to try the Camp Chef's charwood hickory pellets? seems an attempt to get closer to the smoke/flavor of regular charcoal or lump fuel

Love your videos. My MAK puts a decent smoke profile on the meat. It’s definitely lighter but good.

This may be just a tad off topic, but some wood chunks are kiln dried before shipping, thus producing less smoke. Would soaking them in water, let them sit and dry a while return moisture enough to produce better smoke? Thanks. Stay safe.

Close, but it has more to do with combustion temperatures. Look at the volume of the fire box (pot) vs cooker space. Tiny fire pot to heat a large cook space means higher combustion temperatures.

Thanks for all the videos Jeremy! Great video. I have a traeger and I’ve been experimenting with the tube smoker. I noticed a slight bitter taste when using the tube. Do you know if there is a way to add clean smoke flavor to pellet grills?

This video needed to be made, and after that "water pan" video, I totally get the "Mad Scientist BBQ" thing. Haha, thanks man, love this channel. I wonder what Randy would say about this?

I just took my Traeger back to Home Depot. One cook and I was done. I needed it for the space cause I had a lot of company and a fairly large cook planned. It would have never fit on my weber kettle with the slow n sear. I was so let down by the end product, I cleaned and packed it once it cooled down.

Do you think the volume (or mass if the density is quite different) of material combusted might also be significant? I'm thinking on a long smoke, the amount of wood used is much more than the amount of pellets.

I had a little box that I put on my gas grill which I'd fill with wood chips and that would produce smoke. Could you add a log of wood to your pellet grill to create extra smoke?

Good job Mad Scientist!! We're starting out our bbq journey with a pellet grill, but as you suggest, someday we may want to advance to an offset smoker. Just fyi, so far our bbq has been delicious, perhaps because we have been cooking on a propane grill for years...

I add a smoke tube to my cook. That helps with the lack of smoke with the pellets.