Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby Papa Tom » Mon Sep 11, 2017 2:11 pm

JustinCouch wrote:i just bought an offset and really wish I could have bought a pellet pooper. I know there is a learning curve but I use to make great ribs on my old pit but all the ribs I have smoked taste like crap. that being said I guess its something im doing and not the smoker. Its killing me to waste money trying to learn to use this thing. Wife has banned me from buying anymore ribs because I have wasted the last three racks I have cooked. I hope to learn to use this thing soon because I am almost ready to try so sell it.



On the offset cooker try a smaller fire that you aren't choking the air supply as much.
Also you can try foiling the ribs after 1.5 hrs or so leaving them foiled for 1.5 Hrs. (or so) then finishing naked.

Def foiling: Use a aluminum cookie sheet covered with aluminum foil.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby 02ebz06 » Mon Sep 11, 2017 2:37 pm

JustinCouch wrote:i just bought an offset and really wish I could have bought a pellet pooper. I know there is a learning curve but I use to make great ribs on my old pit but all the ribs I have smoked taste like crap. that being said I guess its something im doing and not the smoker. Its killing me to waste money trying to learn to use this thing. Wife has banned me from buying anymore ribs because I have wasted the last three racks I have cooked. I hope to learn to use this thing soon because I am almost ready to try so sell it.


Besides what Papa Tom said...

Start with chicken, usually pretty cheap.
Our local Smith's (AKA Kroger) put legs and thighs on sale for 77 cents/lb from timer to time.
Once you get the hang of it, move on to more expensive cuts.
Document everything you did for the cooks. Makes it easy to duplicate (or change) depending on what the results were.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby tri3forme » Mon Sep 11, 2017 3:20 pm

JustinCouch wrote:i just bought an offset and really wish I could have bought a pellet pooper. I know there is a learning curve but I use to make great ribs on my old pit but all the ribs I have smoked taste like crap. that being said I guess its something im doing and not the smoker. Its killing me to waste money trying to learn to use this thing. Wife has banned me from buying anymore ribs because I have wasted the last three racks I have cooked. I hope to learn to use this thing soon because I am almost ready to try so sell it.

An important tool to have is an ambient temp probe that you set right next to your meat. The thermometer that typically comes built in to an offset smoker is set way too high and away from the meat that you could be cooking at a different temp than what it says and that could vary by 50 degrees. Good luck! You're in the right place if you're looking to build your bbq knowledge.....
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby tri3forme » Mon Sep 11, 2017 3:48 pm

02ebz06 wrote:I think the end result would be the same, with all outside factors I mentioned being equal.
The only difference that I see, mentioned earlier, would be amount of smoke flavor.
I'm sure there would be no complaints when it came to eating the product from either pit.


I wish I knew someone who has mastered their pellet smoker.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby Papa Tom » Mon Sep 11, 2017 4:38 pm

tri3forme wrote:
02ebz06 wrote:I think the end result would be the same, with all outside factors I mentioned being equal.
The only difference that I see, mentioned earlier, would be amount of smoke flavor.
I'm sure there would be no complaints when it came to eating the product from either pit.


I wish I knew someone who has mastered their pellet smoker.


You just quoted a master.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby tri3forme » Mon Sep 11, 2017 5:03 pm

Papa Tom wrote:
tri3forme wrote:
02ebz06 wrote:I think the end result would be the same, with all outside factors I mentioned being equal.
The only difference that I see, mentioned earlier, would be amount of smoke flavor.
I'm sure there would be no complaints when it came to eating the product from either pit.


I wish I knew someone who has mastered their pellet smoker.


You just quoted a master.

Ha! I don't doubt it. Unfortunately I don't know him as well as I should...or at least enough to school my friends in the art of pellet smoking.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby TexMike » Mon Sep 11, 2017 8:16 pm

I think the offset is the way to go. In a while cooking with it will become second nature to you. The offset is the most versatile cooker. Right now you need a little more instruction and more practice. :laughing7:
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby rockinar » Sun Sep 17, 2017 9:15 pm

You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker. Ever. And if a pellet cooker could give the same results as an offset, none of these places would be wasting their time and money with offsets. They would all have giant pellet cookers.

Not saying you cant make good backyard bbq on a pellet cooker. But if you can, it would be even better on an offset. Theres simply no replacement for real burning wood.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby rockinar » Sun Sep 17, 2017 9:23 pm

JustinCouch wrote:i just bought an offset and really wish I could have bought a pellet pooper. I know there is a learning curve but I use to make great ribs on my old pit but all the ribs I have smoked taste like crap. that being said I guess its something im doing and not the smoker. Its killing me to waste money trying to learn to use this thing. Wife has banned me from buying anymore ribs because I have wasted the last three racks I have cooked. I hope to learn to use this thing soon because I am almost ready to try so sell it.



If you posted a picture of your smoker and even a couple of pictures of your process (try practicing with chicken as mentioned) I bet we could get you pointed in the right direction.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby JokerBroker » Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:01 am

rockinar wrote:You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker.

:laughing7:
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby 02ebz06 » Mon Sep 18, 2017 12:37 pm

rockinar wrote:You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker. Ever. And if a pellet cooker could give the same results as an offset, none of these places would be wasting their time and money with offsets. They would all have giant pellet cookers.

People line up because "there must be something great that others are lining up for".
It's human behavior.
If you stood in line for two or more hours for a sandwich, you'd tell everyone it was well worth the wait ,even if it wasn't, so you didn't look like a fool.
I wouldn't wait in a line 15 minutes to place an order at any restaurant, even it was voted as having best food in the world.

The reason they use offsets and not pellet grills is for quantity, not quality, Offsets are large, and firewood is cheaper than pellets.
It's about making money. Offsets are cheaper to operate, no question there.

rockinar wrote:Not saying you cant make good backyard bbq on a pellet cooker. But if you can, it would be even better on an offset. Theres simply no replacement for real burning wood.

Let me take a wild guess, you have an Offset Smoker.
What you have and are familiar with is the best in your opinion. We all fall victim to that.
If someone asked for advice on which one to buy, you'd recommend the one you have.
Again, it's human nature.

I'm not trying to say Pellet grills are better, I just contend you can make a great cook on either one.
Last edited by 02ebz06 on Mon Sep 18, 2017 2:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby Okie Sawbones » Mon Sep 18, 2017 12:52 pm

rockinar wrote:You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker. Ever. And if a pellet cooker could give the same results as an offset, none of these places would be wasting their time and money with offsets. They would all have giant pellet cookers.

Not saying you cant make good backyard bbq on a pellet cooker. But if you can, it would be even better on an offset. Theres simply no replacement for real burning wood.


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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby Papa Tom » Mon Sep 18, 2017 1:41 pm

rockinar wrote:You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker. Ever. And if a pellet cooker could give the same results as an offset, none of these places would be wasting their time and money with offsets. They would all have giant pellet cookers.

Not saying you cant make good backyard bbq on a pellet cooker. But if you can, it would be even better on an offset. Theres simply no replacement for real burning wood.


Hmmmm pellets are what?
Let me help, heartwood of the species indicated on the package and nothing else......
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby tri3forme » Mon Sep 18, 2017 2:13 pm

02ebz06 wrote:
rockinar wrote:You will never see anyone lining up at 4 AM at a BBQ restaurant that uses a pellet cooker. Ever. And if a pellet cooker could give the same results as an offset, none of these places would be wasting their time and money with offsets. They would all have giant pellet cookers.

People line up because "there must be something great that others are lining up for".
It's human behavior.
If you stood in line for two or more hours for a sandwich, you'd tell everyone it was well worth the wait ,even if it wasn't, so you didn't look like a fool.
I wouldn't wait in a line 15 minutes to place an order at any restaurant, even it was voted as having best food in the world. I think that theory only works temporarily. If the food isn't great, after 6 months (and I'm being generous) there would be no line and they'd be out of biz in a year. If you're referring to Franklin's, there's a reason he has a line, and it ain't just because there's a line. I speak from personal experience.

The reason they use offsets and not pellet grills is for quantity, not quality, Offsets are large, and firewood is cheaper than pellets.
It's about making money. Offsets are cheaper to operate, no question there. I would imagine the cost of labor for restaurants running an offset smoker would far exceed the cost savings of using wood vs pellets. Also, I would imaging pellet smokers producing a far more consistent product than offset which one would think is a big plus for restaurant owners.

rockinar wrote:Not saying you cant make good backyard bbq on a pellet cooker. But if you can, it would be even better on an offset. Theres simply no replacement for real burning wood.

Let me take a wild guess, you have an Offset Smoker.
What you have and are familiar with is the best in your opinion. We all fall victim to that.
If someone asked for advice on which one to buy, you'd recommend the one you have.
Again, it's human nature. My personal opinion, and if anyone would ask me what I would recommend, is that it all depends on how much labor one wants to invest in their bbq'ing. Me: I love the process of offsets and prefer the endproduct over pellet smokers. Although, I did look up the pellet smoker you have in your sig line......that thing is $4k! No offense, but I hope it puts out a great product. My 2 buddies that each have pellet smokers don't cost $1000 combined. So far, I've been less than impressed (although still good) with what they've been able to produce. But, they both don't want to invest the time into smoking so pellet works great for them

.
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Re: Your opinion on Offset vs Pellet smokers

Postby 02ebz06 » Mon Sep 18, 2017 2:44 pm

tri3forme wrote: I think that theory only works temporarily. If the food isn't great, after 6 months (and I'm being generous) there would be no line and they'd be out of biz in a year. If you're referring to Franklin's, there's a reason he has a line, and it ain't just because there's a line. I speak from personal experience.

My personal opinion, and if anyone would ask me what I would recommend, is that it all depends on how much labor one wants to invest in their bbq'ing. Me: I love the process of offsets and prefer the endproduct over pellet smokers. Although, I did look up the pellet smoker you have in your sig line......that thing is $4k! No offense, but I hope it puts out a great product. My 2 buddies that each have pellet smokers don't cost $1000 combined. So far, I've been less than impressed (although still good) with what they've been able to produce. But, they both don't want to invest the time into smoking so pellet works great for them

.


I didn't intend to imply that the food would be bad at places where you wait hours to get you food.
However I think expectations are high.
And I would guess the majority of patrons don't BBQ themselves so have nothing to compare too.

Yes, my grill was over $4k.
If cost is a concern for BBQing, then why spend $1000 on a grill, or $500, or even $100? Elton Brown made one out of a cardboard box.
To each his own.

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I have owned two of the Memphis grills. Have had zero problems in the 7 years I've had them.
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