Getting perfectly smoked meat requires fuel to provide the heat and smoke. Quality wood pellets are essential sources of fuel for offset smokers and grills. They have a shiny surface that is smooth to touch, have a very low moisture content, and come in various flavors.
Wood pellets are made by compressing sawdust and wood residual from food-safe wood into small cylindrical shapes. This compression allows some natural substances in the sawdust to be released. These released substances harden and allow the sawdust to stick together. Wood pellets can be 100% of a specific hardwood or a blended combination.
You probably already know that good wood pellets are made from clean and bark-free sawdust. It is still possible to get confused by the large variety of wood pellets on the market. We have taken out time to narrow it down for you. Below are our five (5) best wood pellets for smoking reviews.
Best Wood Pellets for Smoking
| Image | Best Wood Pellets for Smoking | Rating |
|---|---|---|
 | 1. CookinPellets 40PM Perfect Mix | 99% |
 | 2. BBQr's Delight Wood Smoking Pellets | 96% |
 | 3. Louisiana Grills 55405 Competition Blend Pellets | 92% |
 | 4. Traeger Grills PEL305 Mesquite 100% All-Natural Hardwood Pellets | 89% |
 | 5. Bear Mountain BBQ 100% All-Natural Hardwood Pellets | 85% |
Want to learn more?
Here are our Best Wood Pellets for Smoking reviews.
1. CookinPellets 40PM Perfect Mix
The CookinPellets Perfect Mix is the right fuel for your smoker. These premium wood pellets for smoking are made from a mix of hickory, cherry, hard maple, and applewood. Only sawdust from the center of logs is used to make these pellets. Luckily, they contain 100% of these hardwoods and nothing more. With pellets that sport a smooth and shiny finish, you can be assured that they will burn and smoke nicely. Be careful not to allow any form of moisture near the bag, as this can cause the pellets to disintegrate.
Interestingly, each 40-lbs (18kg) bag has useful tips and tricks that can be employed to give you the best smoking experience. We are impressed with the flavor these pellets give to your food through the smoke. Your guests would enjoy the taste of the meat you prepare in your smoker with these pellets as fuel. The moisture content of each wood pellet is very low and would smoke well at low temperatures.
We would like you to note that cherry stems are not used in making these pellets. Only the sawdust from the wood center. There would be ultimately no case of toxicity when you use the CookinPellets Perfect Mix.
Why do we like it?
- No alder or oak fillers
- Works perfectly as fuel for all types of grills
- Pellets are of the standard 6mm size
2. BBQr’s Delight Wood Smoking Pellets
With the BBQr’s Delight, you’ll have the flexibility of choosing from the Mesquite, Pecan, Apple, Cherry, Hickory, and Jack Daniel’s wood pellets for smoking your food. Each of them has unique flavors that they add to your food. Be it pork, beef, fish, wild game, or poultry. These food-grade pellets will complement your smoking skills and give you outstanding results. All contaminants present in the wood are eliminated by the heat created by pressure during processing.
With its 1-pound packaging, you’ll be able to use the content of each bag 10 times if you stick to 1/3 cup per use. We are impressed with the fact that it works well with offset smokers, gas, charcoal, and electric grills. Combine either the pecan and hickory or the apple and cherry pellets to get a combination of flavors.
You’ll get the most out of these wood pellets when you use them to smoke at low temperatures. If you are a novice to smoking, the BBQr’s Delight Wood Smoking Pellets is the right fuel to usher you into the world of smoking. It won’t be easy to go back to normal wood pellets once you’ve used these flavourful high-quality wood pellets.
Why do we like it?
- Each bag has a set of instructions for use
- Quickly infuses the flavor into the food
- Low ash content
3. Louisiana Grills 55405 Competition Blend Pellets
We recommend the Louisiana Grills Pellets if you want superior quality smoke with a savory, sweet, and tart flavor blend. This blend comprises 25% Cherry, 25% Hickory and 50% Maple for a strong aroma. Your health and safety concern is paramount; that is why no artificial flavors and spray scents are added to these wood pellets. These exceptional wood pellets are perfectly dried out but seem to produce a lot of ash after burning.
We recommend that you store them far away from sources of moisture and humidity to keep them in good condition for a longer time. The Louisiana Grills 55405 Competition Blend Pellets will serve as awesome fuel for any grill or smoker that uses wood pellets. Each 40-lbs bag contains enough wood pellets to smoke your pork, lamb, beef, and poultry. Except you smoke food every day for a large number of people, the quantity in each bag is going to last you a long time.
Due to its fragile nature, it tends to get crushed and turn to sawdust quickly when handled carelessly. One great reason why we recommend these wood pellets for smoking is that you would not experience sudden flair-ups during usage.
Why do we like it?
- No accelerants are added
- Offers consistent heat and smoke
- No added fillers
4. Traeger Grills PEL305 Mesquite 100% All-Natural Hardwood Pellets
Consider the Traeger Grills Mesquite Pellets for a clean burn. If you smoke pork, fish, and poultry with these wood pellets, you will be particularly amazed by the result. Processed from 100% virgin hardwood, heat and smoke output are optimal. Remarkably, the ash content of the pellets is low. They work great in pellet smoker tubes to give you a desirable result. No additives are required as all the flavor is gotten from the high-quality Mesquite wood from which it is produced.
High-pressure compression of the Traeger Grills Mesquite Pellets while being pressed into a board gives it its shape. No adhesive is used in this product. Ensure you store these pellets in a safe place from humidity and moisture to keep them in good condition. The 20-lbs bag it comes in is sufficient for regular use. Nonetheless, we recommend that you transfer it to a more suitable container as the bag is prone to damage.
Ventilating your smoker or grill when using these wood pellets as fuel is not recommended. Doing this might shorten the smoking time. If getting very intense smoke is your aim, these wood pellets are the best for you.
Why do we like it?
- Flavour oil is not used in its production
- Resistant in absorbing moisture
- Easy to store
5. Bear Mountain BBQ 100% All-Natural Hardwood Pellets
Finally, a gourmet blend for giving your seafood, lamb, beef, pork, and vegetables a distinct flavor. The Bear Mountain BBQ All-Natural Hardwood Pellets come in a 20-lbs bag and are made of 100% hardwood. No additional binders or additives are used. Since it is compatible with many outdoor grills and smokers like Green Mountain Grills, Pit Boss, Louisiana Grills, and Traeger, it gives it an edge over other brands. Though there are other specific flavors like Hickory, Cherry, Oak, Alder, Mesquite, Maple, Apple, and Pecan, this gourmet blend offers clean smoke that carries a distinguishable flavor. No doubt, these wood pellets are the secret weapon for making tasty smoked food from your backyard smoker.
Keeping a bunch of other flavored wood pellets around is of no use anymore. The Bear Mountain BBQ Hardwood Pellets have a balanced flavor enough not to overpower delicate foods like salmon and chicken. With a burn rate of about 1-lb per hour when smoking, you’ll get absolute efficiency, especially when you have a high-quality smoker.
Storing these wood pellets is not hard work. We recommend that you keep them away from all sources of moisture that can make them swell and disintegrate into powdery form.
Why do we like it?
- Works well with gas, charcoal, and electric smokers
- Infuses robust flavor into your meals
- No fillers included
Wood Pellets for Smoking Buyer’s Guide
The importance of getting the right flavors for your smoked food cannot be overemphasized. You are required to consider a few things if you want to get the best wood pellets to offer you these flavors. Read then in our buyer’s guide below.
Type and Quality of Wood
Two types of wood are used in manufacturing wood pellets. Hardwood that burns for longer due to its density, and Softwood that burns hotter due to the concentration of lignin in the wood. When you consider that wood pellets are made from sawdust, you’ll understand why quality is very necessary. Always ensure that the wood pellets you intend to buy are not the type that is mixed with cardboard and synthetics. The ones made of real wood are always the best.
BTU
The heat output of the wood pellets you purchase is measured in British Thermal Units (BTU). Basically, the higher the BTU of the wood pellets, the hotter the wood pellets will burn and smoke. The average range of the BTU of wood pellets is 8000 – 9000 BTU’s per pound.
Ash Content
The amount of ash left after the smoking process is majorly determined by the ash content of the wood pellet you buy. For the best wood pellets, the ash content should be less than 1% of the weight of the pellets themselves. Regular cleaning will have to be done if you purchase wood pellets with high ash content.
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