Pellet smoker fuel

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Pellet smoker fuel

Postby 3 little pigs » 15 Jun 2016, 20:25

Hi again folks.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

I'm 90% sure I'm going to take the plunge with a daniel boone gmg.

What do people advise for fuel sources?

Looking on their website, they seem to have blends and separate wood types. Is it the same as whiskey? I've read the chart posted on this forum about the flavours but don't know where to start. Any advice there?

Are gmg ood price wise and quality wise or are there any other sites I should be looking at?
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby BraaiMeesterWannabe » 15 Jun 2016, 21:51

I'm sure you've considered this already but I believe that pellet smokers are very expensive on fuel to the point that some users only use them for the first hour or two on long cooks to get the smoke flavour, and then transfer the food to the oven. I must add that I have zero experience of them myself.
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby Pompey Dinlo » 16 Jun 2016, 06:41

I have a Yoder YS1500 which I use for commercial purposes (as well as my own use). It's a hefty unit and consumes a lot of fuel, a 14 hour cook will easily use up a £15 bag of pellets. This isn't a problem commercially as I factor in the costs however for home use it is a bit excessive so I typically smoke for a couple of hours and once the smoke absorption has stopped I'll finish in the oven.

I've mainly used GMG pellets (Texas blend) from the American BBQ site and they are fine. I've also used Lumberjack pellets and found no discernible difference in burn time. I achieved a better smoke ring from Lumberjack however whether this was down to the cut of meat I cannot be sure. I haven't tried Cookshack pellets yet.

Personally I would go with the GMG pellets. At £30 for 25kg vs £50 for 27kg (Lumberjack and Cookshack) the difference in the end product is negligible and not representative of the price difference.
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby JBBQ » 16 Jun 2016, 08:56

Plus Texas Blend burns much faster than the Gold blend!

I've used everything on the american bbq site and have stuck to the GMG Gold and GMG Fruit
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby essexsmoker » 16 Jun 2016, 10:41

I have gold and fruit. Found both good. I do tend to smoke, then oven now. That way it works out fairly cheap and quick to do. At the end of the day once you have foiled it's a waste of pellets, or charcoal for that matter.
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby Pompey Dinlo » 16 Jun 2016, 11:22

JBBQ wrote:Plus Texas Blend burns much faster than the Gold blend!

I've used everything on the american bbq site and have stuck to the GMG Gold and GMG Fruit


Interesting! Thanks for that nugget of info, I'll give the gold a go.
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby JBBQ » 16 Jun 2016, 13:44

Also I know that the Smokewood Shack have a machine and are trying to make pellets with little success so far but I will certainly be trying those when they get it right
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby Tiny » 16 Jun 2016, 18:22

Ok here goes.......

Have tried all the pellets from ABBQ Co and I also have settled on Gold and Fruit from GMG as my 2 favorites, did like a single malt cherry but not better enough to trump the fruitwood.
Texas Oak from GMG were OK but my smoker ate them like sweets.
Expensive ? Testicles, about the same price as an big gasser and a ton cheaper than charcoal and wood, but I also opt for smoke and oven finish, if it is wrapped in foil then it is cheaper still in my fan assisted oven.

One fact they don't advertise on there website is you can mix and match bags in a box, eg GMG come 2 bags to a box you can have one Gold and one Fruit, Lumberjack are 3 in a box so you could go cherry oak and hickory.

Liverpool wood pellets are cheap but I have never given them a go.

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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby tommo666 » 16 Jun 2016, 20:40

I've been using the lil devil wood pellets this year, they are a good general purpose pellet. They burn ok and don't leave piles of ash. Also they are a bit cheaper. i buy 6x 20lb bags for £61 delivered.
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Re: Pellet smoker fuel

Postby 3 little pigs » 19 Jun 2016, 07:52

Thanks for the replies folks.

Still convincing the missus that she wants to chip in for one, for my birthday but getting there.

Seems like gmg are the way. Also sounds like a good blend will sort me out and no need for having several bags to mix n mash flavours?

Out of interest, is it worth starting off with one type and changing to the other? If will one lend flavour to the crust and 1 sink into the meat or is that just complicating things :)
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