If you are in a hurry and want to find out what the Best Smoker Pellets are then we would recommend the CookinPellets Perfect Mix.
If you’re looking for an easy way to get the perfect smoke every time, you might want to think about switching to wooden smoker pellets. They produce tender, flavorful cuts of meat, with a wide variety of flavors from which you can choose.
Here, we’re going to go over our top picks for the best smoker pellets for your backyard grill setup.
Here are the Smoker Pellets that we will be reviewing:
- CookinPellets Perfect Mix
- BBQrs Delight Wood Smoking Pellets
- Traeger Grills Signature Blend
- Bear Mountain BBQ Gourmet Blend
- PIT BOSS BBQ Wood Pellets
Our Picks for Best Smoker Pellets
CookinPellets Perfect Mix
Our favorite choice for best smoker pellets is the CookinPellets Perfect mix. A single 40-pound bag will last you through multiple smoking sessions.
These premium cooking pellets contain a blend of popular woods to deliver a rich, smoky flavor. They include hickory, cherry, hard maple, and apple. CookinPellets only use wood from the heart of the tree, avoiding bark and other ashy components.
Unlike many similar brands, CookinPellets contain no oak or alder shavings. These are often used as filler but can negatively impact flavor. The pellets also leave out harsh chemicals and binders, making them safe to use with any grill. It’s easy to clean up the aftermath with a simple brush, scraper, or cleaning brick.
CookinPellets are small enough to fit in most grill augers, but each pellet’s size and shape can be inconsistent. It’s a good idea to pick through the pile before use to make sure nothing might jam up your pellet grill.
Pros:
- Contains blend hickory, cherry, hard maple, and apple
- Uses only wood from the heart of the tree
- No bark or ashy components
- Avoids chemicals and binders
- Easy to clean
Cons:
- Irregular sizing may cause auger jams
BBQrs Delight Wood Smoking Pellets
If you’re a fan of flavor, this multi-pack offers a wide variety of different options from which to choose.
Instead of just a single bag of pellets, you get six one-pound bags containing a different popular flavor. The set includes apple, hickory, pecan, mesquite, cherry, and Jack Daniels infused pellets.
This multi-pack gives you more control over taste than individual bags and even special blends. You can use a single flavor on its own, or you can experiment with mixing and matching.
All pellets are free of contaminants, containing 100% food-grade sawdust that’s safe to use with just about any smoker. The Jack Daniels pellets mix matured, whiskey-infused charcoal with high-quality oak wood.
While this pellet pack offers a variety of tasty options, it contains fewer pellets in total than most other options. This makes it a bit more expensive per pound than similar products.
Pros:
- Six different flavors to choose from
- Complete control over the flavor profile
- All pellets made from 100% wood
- No chemicals or contaminants
Cons:
- More expensive pound for pound than other options
Traeger Grills Signature Blend
As one of the biggest names in grills, it comes as no surprise that Traeger offers its own line of high-quality smoker pellets for home barbecue enthusiasts.
The Traeger signature blend includes hickory, maple, and cherry to create a flavor mild enough for lean proteins, yet robust enough to pair with red meat.
While the taste of this signature blend pairs with just about any meal, it’s a little bit weaker than other brands. You need to use more pellets or smoke your food for longer to achieve a strong flavor.
All pellets contain 100% hardwood, with no unwanted impurities mixed in. They include no binding agents, fillers, or other chemicals that could harm you and your family.
Traeger works to ensure that their materials are sourced sustainably, making these pellets an eco-friendly option for the environmentally conscientious.
Pros:
- A blend of three hardwoods
- Goes with both lean and red meat
- No impurities, binding agents, or fillers
- Sustainably sourced materials
Cons:
- Weaker flavor than similar brands
Bear Mountain BBQ Gourmet Blend
This gourmet blend is a mixture of sweet and smoky, making it an ideal addition to just about any dish. You can use it with both lean and red meat as well as vegetarian dishes.
The Bear Mountain blend contains 100% hardwoods, including hickory, cherry, maple, and oak. There are no fillers, additives, or artificial flavors in the mix.
These pellets also contain a low moisture content, allowing it to combust more easily and produce plenty of smoke.
Because these pellets ignite quickly, it’s a good idea to keep in mind that a 20-pound bag might not last you as other slow-burning brands.
Pros:
- Goes with meats, veggies, and everything in between
- Blend of four different woods
- Made of 100% safe and natural materials
- Low moisture content for maximum smoke production
Cons:
- Pellets burn quickly
PIT BOSS BBQ Wood Pellets
This hickory blend is a versatile choice for people who love red meat. While it can go with plenty of dishes, the hickory produces a robust flavor that brings out the best in cuts of pork and beef in particular.
PIT BOSS pellets contain very little ash, with a 40-pound bag producing just ½ a cup on average. This not only improves the taste of your food but also makes cleanup afterward a little easier.
You should keep in mind, though, that these pellets can break apart easily. You should be careful when using them and store the bag somewhere out of the way to avoid accidental contact.
There are no unnatural chemicals, scents, or artificial flavors added to these pellets. They contain only food-grade ingredients, including hickory and other hardwoods.
Pros:
- Hickory-based blend goes well with red meat
- Made of 100% premium hardwood
- Produces less than 1% ash
- No unnatural ingredients such as artificial scents or flavors
Cons:
- Pellets break apart easily
What Are Smoker Pellets?
Smoker pellets, or BBQ pellets, are still a fairly new idea, but in recent years they’ve revolutionized the grilling industry for us barbecue masters.
Traeger was the first company to patent a pellet grill back in the 1980s, but now, there are plenty of options available on the market.
Pellet grills use smoker pellets to produce a rich, robust flavor in foods. Pellets make an ideal alternative to more traditional smoker chips.
Smoker pellets are concentrated to give off a stronger flavor than other smoking methods. They also come in a wide variety of flavors, including special blends for a unique taste.
Companies make smoker pellets by compressing sawdust waste from lumber mills, generally into a cylindrical shape. They’re more economical than many other smoking options, and take advantage of waste products to make them more sustainable.
Heating Pellets Vs. Smoking Pellets
You may have heard the term “heating pellets” thrown around, but don’t mistake these for smoking pellets.
Heating pellets are specifically designed for use in stoves and space warmers. Often, they have chemicals and even insecticides coating the surface to keep bugs out of your stash.
Although they might be cheaper, using heating pellets in your grill can be dangerous. Inhaling or ingesting chemicals such as pesticides can cause irreversible damage to your body.
Smoking pellets, on the other hand, are food-grade. They have to meet certain health and safety standards that make their byproducts fit for human consumption.
How to Use Smoker Pellets
Smoker pellets are easy to use, whether you’re a grilling pro or just starting. Unlike wood chips, you don’t have to prep pellets before using them.
With a pellet grill, all you have to do is load the pellets into a small compartment called a hopper. Using an auger, it automatically distributes pellets as needed while you cook to maintain a constant temperature.
While smoker pellets are supposed to work with pellet grills, they’re much more versatile than that. You can also use them on a charcoal grill to create an even stronger smoky flavor. However, it requires a bit more of a hands-on approach.
To use pellets on a charcoal grill, simply light the coals and wait for them to heat. When they’re ready, lay down a layer of smoker pellets.
You may need to keep adding pellets depending on how long you plan to cook your food. A third of a cup will last about a half an hour.
How to Choose the Best Smoker Pellets for You
Quality can vary wildly when it comes to pellets. It’s always good to do your research before choosing the best smoker pellet brand for you. There are just a few critical things to keep in mind when looking through the different options available.
Type of Wood
Standard
These basic wood pellets are the cheapest variety, but also the poorest in quality. They tend to contain high amounts of ash.
While some standard pellets are safe for cooking, many are heating pellets designed for stoves. They contain artificial binders and additives that can be dangerous for consumption.
Food-Grade
Pellets labeled as “food-grade” are safe to use in just about any grill or smoker. They contain no dangerous additives or chemicals and limited amounts of ash.
Premium
The highest quality option around, premium pellets offer rich, concentrated flavor without any undesirable components getting in the way.
Unlike regular food-grade pellets, premium formulas don’t contain any bark and have a very low ash content.
Flavor
The flavor of a smoker pellet depends on the type of wood they contain. Some just offer a single flavor, while others offer a blend.
Some of the most common mild flavors include alder, maple, beech, and apple. These are ideal for lighter dishes such as poultry and seafood.
Oak, pear, and peach add a little bit more robust taste to foods, while hickory, walnut, pecan, and mesquite are some of the strongest flavors available. They work best with red meats.
Size
When looking at smoking pellets, the size of the package is always an important consideration. It can have a significant impact on the cost.
In general, the bigger the bag, the more you save. Many companies sell pellets in 40-pound bags, though you can find both smaller options as well as bulk sizes.
The Verdict
Using wooden smoker pellets is a foolproof way to bring out the best in any dish, and they come in a wide variety of delicious flavors. Pellets make a great alternative to wood chips for those who find them too finicky.
In our opinion, the best smoker pellets for any backyard grilling enthusiast are CookinPellets Perfect Mix. This premium option features a blend of delicious hardwood flavors. In our opinion these are the best pellets for smoking all kinds of meats.
The CookinPellets Mix lasts longer than options such as BBQrs Delight Wood Smoking Pellets thanks to its large size and offers a more complex flavor profile than choices such as Traeger Grills Signature Blend.