What is the Difference Between Pellet Grill and Smoker

The main difference between pellet grill and smoker is that pellet grills offer many cooking options like grilling, smoking, roasting, and baking, while smokers mainly offer the option of smoking food.

Smoking meats and barbecuing have become a popular trend in recent years. Many people are increasingly choosing pellet grills for this function. Pellet grills are also known as pellet smokers. Pellet smokers/grills are different from traditional smokers.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is a Pellet Grill 
     – Definition, Features
2. What is a Smoker
     – Definition, Features, Uses
3. What is the Difference Between Pellet Grill and Smoker
    – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Pellet Grill, Pellet Smoker, Smoker

What is a Pellet Grill

Pellet grills, also known as pellet smokers, are outdoor cookers that act as electronic upgrades to traditional smokers. Pellet grills have elements of ovens, smokers, gas grills, and charcoal grills. They have a similar appearance and mechanism as traditional smokers.  The most important feature of pellet grills is that they work on pure hardwood pellets. They act as the fuel source that provides indirect heat. Unlike in a normal grill, the food in a pellet grill is not cooked over direct flame.

To operate the pellet grill, you have to pour the wood pellets into a storage container (we call this a hopper). The pellets are then fed into a burn pot by a rotating device that is powered by electricity. When the pellets ignite, they cause a flame. As we pour more pellets into the burn pot, the flame is maintained. A temperature controller controls the timing of the feed. When the setting is high, it takes a shorter time for the pellets to get fed into the burn pot. The intake fans in the grill bring in air, which blows heat and smoke throughout the device.

Why Should you Use a Pellet Grill/Smoker

• You can use multiple cooking options in a pellet grill. This includes smoking, charring, grilling, roasting, baking, etc.
• The use of wood pellets gives the food a delicious smoky flavour.
• You don’t have to pay much attention to the smoker, unlike with a traditional smoker or grill.

What is a Smoker

A smoker is a device that allows cooking at low temperatures in a controlled, smoky environment. It’s ideal for smoking food. We mainly use smokers for making barbecue. There are different types of smokers available on the market. In this article, we’ll mainly look at offset smokers and electric smokers.

Offset Smokers

Offset smokers are the most traditional and basic types of barbecues. They mainly consist of a small firebox connected to a larger barrel or box where the cooking takes place. They run on firewood or charcoal.

Electric Smokers

Electric smokers usually have a vertical design, which allows multiple cooking racks to be stacked on top of one another. As their name suggests, electric smokers are powered by electricity.  

Difference Between Pellet Grill and Smoker

Definition

Pellet grills or pellet smokers are outdoor cookers that act as electronic upgrades of traditional smokers while smokers are devices that allow cooking at low temperatures in a controlled, smoky environment.

Function

Pellet grills have elements of ovens, smokers, gas grills, and charcoal grills, and support multiple cooking options like smoking, grilling, baking, and roasting, while smokers are mainly for smoking or barbequing food.

Fuel Source

Moreover, pellet grills run on pure hardwood pellets while smokers may run on firewood, charcoal, wood pellets, electricity, or a combination of these.

Electricity

Although pellet grills run on wood pellets, they need electricity to operate. Traditional smokers, on the other hand, do not run on electricity.

Conclusion

Pellet grills are also known as pellet smokers. Pellet smokers/grills are different from traditional smokers. The main difference between pellet grill and smoker is that pellet grills offer many cooking options like grilling, smoking, roasting, and baking, while smokers mainly offer the option of smoking food.

Image Courtesy:

1. “WebSmallElitePlus Center” By Jfosterbolton – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Propane smoker” By Dennis Brown – Own work (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia