CHAPTER 4:
What Types of Pellet and Why to Use Them
M
y first experience with a Pellet Smoker Grill was at my nephews' house in 2015. I saw his grill on the patio and assumed it was a gas grill. Then he showed it to me; he was pretty happy with himself for having selected a superior grill, which he used to do the outdoor cooking for his family. Pellets? What pellets? Why pellets? How does it work, and where do the pellets come from? Is it healthy? Is it safe? Is it carcinogenic? I had a lot of questions.
Now, I have all the answers, and I have joined the Pellet Smoker Grill revolution!
Which Wood Pellets Are Best for Smoking and Grilling?
To comprehend things pellet, grilling entirely, then smoking, you must know what oils these inventive and ingenious barbecue machines. Manufactured wood pellets are the fuel source for pellet grills and smokers. Pellets are called “hardwood” pellets because they are created by utilizing hardwoods.
Pellet manufacturers take great care to be certain that the product is safe, reliable, and right for the intended use in all areas or research. Hardwood pellets are made from hardwoods that are ground into sawdust. Next, it is pressurized at extreme temperatures to compact and compress the pellets.
Food-Grade Wood Pellets for Smoking and Grilling
During food-grade wood pellets production, hardwoods that produce only the finest flavors and aromas are carefully selected.
For this reason alone, a Pellet Smoker Grill is indeed the best choice for a backyard grill.
When using your new Pellet Smoker Grill, you should know how to take care of it by always selecting the finest quality and flavor of hardwood to use to enhance the flavor of your food.
More questions may arise:
Flavored pellets, created from 100% flavored woods, contain no fillers. Here are some available varieties. The best wood pellets for smoking and grilling are:
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Mesquite
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Hickory
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Cherry
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Pecan
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Apple
As for the wood pellet types, there are three types of food-grade wood pellets for smoking and grilling:
Blended
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A blended mixture of all or a choice of the flavored pellets
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A blend of flavored and unflavored mixed together
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Example: blend hickory, maple, and cherry
Non-Flavored
Flavored
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Tennessee Whisky Barrel: Sugary and misty with a fragrant tang. It is the finest blend of 199% oak, and it’s flawless for all your red meats.
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Georgia Pecan: A actual slight and nutty wood that is
comparable to hickory. It is a boundless versatile wood that works fine with beef, seafood, poultry, pork, vegetables, and cheese.
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Texas Mesquite: Strong aroma with a tangy and spicy flavor. It is the perfect level of bold taste to complement your Tex-Mex cuisine.
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Wisconsin Hickory: Rich with a smoky bacon-like flavor. It’s highly recommended for roasts and other smoked meats.
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Pennsylvania Cherry: Somewhat sweet with an indication of the tart. It stretches your light meats, a rosy shade that is unrivaled in appearance and taste.
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New England Apple: Smoky with a mildly sweet flavor. It is highly recommended for baking and pork.
Many flavors are available in wood pellets for all types of food cooked on smoker grills. Here are some recommendations as to how to combine the flavor with your favorite meats. You may want to try to experiment, and when you find something you like, keep a small logbook and make some notes for next time.
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Beef: Georgia Pecan, Wisconsin Hickory, Texas Mesquite, Competition Blend, Tennessee Whiskey Barrel
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Poultry: Competition Blend, Pennsylvania Cherry, Texas Mesquite, Wisconsin Hickory, Georgia Pecan, New England Apple
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Pork: Texas Mesquite, New England Apple, Wisconsin Hickory, Pennsylvania Cherry, Competition Blend
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Veggies: Competition Blend, New England Apple, Wisconsin Hickory, Pennsylvania Cherry
Great quality and great flavor are things you get with today’s wonderful wood pellets for the smoker grill enthusiast. You get the highest quality hardwoods, no artificial flavors or colors, no spray scents, glues, or chemicals. Only the purest ingredients are used in creating your smoker grill pellet fuels that burn hotter and are easy to use.
First, it will always be a great idea to familiarize yourself with the available manufacturers of smoker grill wood pellets and learn about each one. Check to see if they are inside or outside the USA, and if possible, look for the support or maintenance system that some manufacturers use daily. Any other considerations that may arise will probably be worth it. You will only need to do this once when you get started with your new smoker grill. Then, knowing how to order will be easy, and changing or modifying your order when you next need to supply your backyard smoker grill will be a snap.
If you have not yet purchased your new Pellet Smoker Grill, my strongest recommendation would be to go online and find the biggest and the oldest and most well-established pellet grill manufacturer and buy the grill and continue to order your high-quality pellets from them. It’s a one-shop stop.
Another thing to consider when ordering and restocking your pellet stove fuel is the quality of pellets. It is important because a cheaply made pellet is just a bad idea, and here’s why. Cheap pellets can ruin your food and do some serious damage to your new Pellet Smoker Grill. My best assistance on this would be to get online and find the big boys. You know what I mean. The fellas from the inception have been producing pellets the longest and know the finer points of pellet grill cuisine. They will never steer you in the wrong direction, and online ordering is easy. Most good suppliers will even help you track your usage, so you may not even have to keep placing your orders. For the things you use the most, choose automatic ordering and enjoy life.
So, don’t even bother looking for sales on the pellet supply unless you find them on the high-quality brand you are already using. That would be your lucky day, and in that case, I would advise you to buy all you can afford and stock up. Once you have your pellet grill, you will not want to stop cooking on it; they are that good!
Non-Food Grade Wood Pellets for Heating Only, Not Cooking
First-time users of Pellet Smoker Grills must be aware that there are two types of pellets available. These are “food-grade pellets” and
“non-food grade pellets.” Non-food grade pellets are for home heating use only and contain wood that is not meant for smoking your home-cooked meats. This type of pellet often contains pine or spruce and will ruin the taste of your food.
Food grade pellets are created purely from the carefully selected hardwood and never contain any kind of chemical binders, glue, or anything else that would be toxic, or that would detract from the wonderful flavors you get when using food-grade pellets and cooking great food for your family and friends. Since food consumption is the priority, the formulation of the pellets used in your backyard smoker grill is given the same standards and practices as any other food associated product. It means that sanitation and health are always at the pinnacle of the production and packaging process for food-grade pellets.
Take great care to select only food-grade pellets when shopping for pellet replacement supply when you have exhausted your current supply or the one that came with your new stove. You must be aware that non-food grade pellets contain carcinogens, such as glues and other toxic ingredients. Shop very carefully.
It is also worth noting that heating pellets contain certain woods that are not meant for your smoker grill and may contain glues and other binder-related chemicals. These are toxic materials and must not be used to fuel a backyard smoker grill.
Wood Pellets and the Environment
In consideration of buying your new Smoker Grill, questions might arise:
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“Is burning so much wood good for the environment?”
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“What about all the trees it would take just to cook dinner?”
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“Are wood pellets any better or more efficient than other fuel sources?”
These are all valid questions, and we have valid and sensible answers for you. Wood pellets you will use for fuel are sourced from tree farms, storm-damaged trees, or trees after their hardwood forests'
lifespan transversely the country. Tree farms are consistently replacing the trees they remove to be processed as pellets. Hence, the farm is always in contained cycles of life, and every consideration is given to the environment.
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Wood pellets are pretty near to being carbon impartial. Like all the other plants on our planet, trees grip carbon dioxide after the atmosphere for the duration of their lifespan. When a hardwood tree is harvested to burn as pellets, the same amount of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. As that particular tree is replaced, the cycle of life continues productively and sensitively.
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Low CO2 production. The following is an explanation of the total cost of industrial and transport regarding the environment:
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Scorching wood pellets harvests 34g carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour of heat formed (g/kWh)
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Compare that with 211 grams for gas and 64 grams of wood chips