Pellet smoker grills are the most convenient way to get the smokey, wood-fired flavor into your meat, in my humble opinion. The electronically controlled pellet grill keeps the fire going all on its own as long as you keep the hopper full of pellets and you don’t lose power. Very simple grilling or many hours of low and slow smoking. You don’t have to gather sticks, chop wood, or deal with messy charcoal briquets. You can get bags of wood pellets in a variety of types at many nearby locations or by ordering online. No need to drive around looking for the best deal. Just get them delivered to your door – maybe even with free shipping!

But some are finding that their pellet grill isn’t delivering as much smoke flavor as they’d hoped. This is especially true with experienced meat smokers who’ve used other smoking methods involving hardwood logs, or soaked wood chips. Is there a bit of a trade-off that comes with all the conveniences of wood pellet grilling and smoking? A little less in exchange for a lot less work? That could be true. However, with a few adjustments, you just might regain that smokiness you’re looking for.  

3 Tips To Get More Smoke From Your Pellet Smoker Grill

Tip #1: Lower and Slower

This may not work in every situation, but try lowering your temperature and increasing your time on the grill. The longer the meat stays in the smoke-filled grill the more smokey it will be. You might have to experiment to see how much longer you’ll need to grill by dropping say, 25 or 50 degrees, but half an hour to an hour longer should get you more smokiness.

If you drop the temperature, I recommend putting a water pan on your grill as well. Water will help to keep your meat moist.

Tip #2: Try Different Wood Pellets

Some grill manufacturers strongly recommend their brand of wood pellets. Traeger is famous for this. They basically say their wood pellets are the only pellets you should use and using other pellets might void the warranty.

My first pellet smoker grill was a Traeger Lil’ Tex Elite. It was a great little pellet smoker to get started with and came with a couple of bags of Traeger Pellets. I only used Traeger pellets to start with but both my wife and I were unimpressed with the smoke flavor. It was weak.

A few months later, I started looking online to see if others had the same complaint. I found several grillers out there lamenting their lack of smoke flavor but also found recommendations for other, smokier pellets on Amazon.com. I tried a few and they were in fact smokier. The smell of smoke was even more intense while grilling and smoking.

The other plus with different pellets was better pricing and bigger bags. I store my pellets in a waterproof plastic container outside. Click Here for a variety of highly rated, smokier pellets on Amazon.com. Read the reviews from others who wanted more smoke.

One thing I will say about Traeger Pellets: they burn hotter than some of these other pellets. Hotter is better for fast grilling meats like steaks and burgers or other meats you may want to sear. Again, I recommend trying different pellets to see what you like best.

Tip #3: Try A Smoker Tube

This is an inexpensive accessory that just might save your reputation as the neighborhood smoked meat master. There are several variations of these tube-like contraptions that hold wood pellets and add significant amounts of smoke to any grill. It doesn’t have to be a pellet smoker grill. These smoker tubes work on any grill!

Here are a few details about these smoker tubes:

• The pellet smoker tubes offer diffusion holes on its body to let air come in, diffusing smoke efficiently and evenly to your food. The design allows the pellets to stay lit and to fully burn to provide constant smoke. These tubes can hold enough pellets to smoke up to 5hrs.
• Smoker tubes can be used with various wood pellets such as cherry, hickory, mesquite, apple, and pecan to add different tastes. They can also work with wood chips as well. 
• Smoker tubes are great for hot and cold smoking, adding wonderful smoke flavor to many types of food: meats, cheeses, veggies, nuts, bacon, chicken, salt, burgers, steaks, pork, hot dogs, sausages, fruit, corn, and more!
• Smoker tubes are compatible with electric, gas, charcoal, pellet grills, or any other size and type of grill. Just fill the metal tube with wood pellets, lean it against the inside wall, set it on the middle of the grill, or any position really. The smoker tube will release smoke turning any barbeque grill into a smoker without modification. 
• The open cap at one end is easy to fill and to light. The closed cap at other end keeps pellets inside. The whole smoker tube is made of high standard 304 grade stainless steel that is anti-rust and heat-resistant. 
• Smoker tubes are a terrific, inexpensive gift idea that will last a long time!

There are several different makes and models of these smoker tubes, but they’re all basically the same. A simple metal tube of about a foot long, open at one end, little holes all over and easy to use.

So, if you need more smoke for your pellet grill, pellet smoker, gas grill, or electric grill, try one or all three of these ideas. Something will work for you! You will get more smoke!

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