Need a great smoker (Pellet Smoker Doesn't Smoke, Cooks too hot)

[snakyjake]

Hi Daryl,

Old post, but wanted to see if you found a solution to your smoke issue? I've been considering eggs, pellets, charcoal, and sticks. What you say about the pellet issue is one of the reasons why I'm steering towards something else other than pellet.

Convenience is nice, but the main goal is food flavor. Unless of course it becomes too complex (or expensive) to achieve good food flavor.

From the comments I've read here and elsewhere, seems that stick burning is the flavor gold standard. Buy a quality stick burner, and you'll have the best. Everything else is a compromise between flavor and convenience. At least that's the impression I get from my forum reading.

Jake

[gtsum]

Interesting read...did you ever get your smoke issue worked out? I have never operated a pellet cooker, but I cannot imagine it would generate much of a smoke flavor (compared to stick burner). I have had large stick burners, gravity cookers, and Primo ceramic...I got great que out of all of them and currently do all my cooking on the primo...I have never oversmoked something in it and you do not get the same taste as on a stick burner - the sticks have a deeper smoke flavor that really gets into the meat more imo....the eggs and primo are great all around cookers - can grill, bake, bbq, cold smoke, etc and I cannot imagine not having one, but I am also going back to sticks for my main que because I like the product they put out a little better.

[BBQ Grail]

Originally Posted by snakyjake

Hi Daryl,

Old post, but wanted to see if you found a solution to your smoke issue? I've been considering eggs, pellets, charcoal, and sticks. What you say about the pellet issue is one of the reasons why I'm steering towards something else other than pellet.

Convenience is nice, but the main goal is food flavor. Unless of course it becomes too complex (or expensive) to achieve good food flavor.

From the comments I've read here and elsewhere, seems that stick burning is the flavor gold standard. Buy a quality stick burner, and you'll have the best. Everything else is a compromise between flavor and convenience. At least that's the impression I get from my forum reading.

Jake

He hasn't been back since July 5th, 2009...

[gtsum]

huh..I thought it was this year it was posted! I guess I should look a little closer!

[FretBender]

The Green Mountain Grills are one of the few pellet grills that actually operate on the temps set on the thermostat. The other grills have settings for on/off auger times, but they are only approximates. Set the temp at 200 and have to adjust on.off times for the auger via "p" settings stinks. I have a GMG and set the temp anywhere from 150 to 500 and the grate temp stays constant. It is a few degrees above the thermostat , but steady from start to finish, no big sways of spikes. Just took 1st place ribs and butt, 3rd place brisket, with my GMG and cookinpellets.com 100% hickory pellets. Some pellet poopera are bad designs, but so are some stick pits. Don't sell them sort and if yours isn't working right, get the mfg to fix it!

[Wesman61]

Obviously we're too late but if he wasn't getting a drop of smoke flavor I would suspect the circulating fan wasn't working.

[FretBender]

Check your units start up procedure as far as the initial temp setting. My GMG goes through the start up process and then sets the temp at 320. If I stand by the several minute procedure I can set the temp anywhere I want after start up is done, and at that point it's only at about 125. If I set it to 180 it will go to about 200-210 and then back down, about 5 minutes to do that. Pellets brands can also cause different temps.

[darylrue]

Originally Posted by FretBender

Check your units start up procedure as far as the initial temp setting. My GMG goes through the start up process and then sets the temp at 320. If I stand by the several minute procedure I can set the temp anywhere I want after start up is done, and at that point it's only at about 125. If I set it to 180 it will go to about 200-210 and then back down, about 5 minutes to do that. Pellets brands can also cause different temps.

Yes. I figured it out. After several buys I found that I need 2 smokers. 1 cookshack for wife (she loves it and it has its purposes and is easy to operate and food comes out smoky with 1 -2 chunks of wood) and 1 side burner with mods for evenest heat AND smoke distribution to minimize flippings. And a place for a water pan for huge smoke ring. I nailed it last time I smoked and I was delighted. I am still trying to see if a guy can make something not rinky dink like mine so I will explain later.

[darylrue]

By the way, I was using cookshack happily for a year except no smoke ring and hard to get bark. Found a 1/2 size barrel smoker on craigslist for $20 (thought it was full size) and that was the best thing that could have happened to me. I personally have not turned on the cookshack since I bought an modded the new one. Who would of thunk for $40 you could get perfect everything.

[SmokinOkie]

Originally Posted by darylrue

I used both mesquite from traeger and also 100% hardwood from oscheln farms.

Change your pellets. I think the Traeger pellets are just awful. Once you try something else, you'll see.

Try ordering some of the Cookshack pellets or the BBQ Delight pellets. Both of them use a good blend of wood (you need base wood for BTU's and flavor wood for flavor).

was using cookshack happily for a year except no smoke ring and hard to get bark.

Key point to bark in a CS is you want to reduce the humdity level. It's VERY high in the CS and I would open the door occassionally to dump some humidity (it will also increase the cooking time).

SR is a function of having enough nitrates to "cure" the meat and for that you need more nitrates. Try adding a chunk or two of charcoal. Works well for that.

FYI, I moderate the CS forum so if you have any questions just ask or contact me direct (or over at that forum)

Russ