I finally gave in and bought a pellet smoker after swearing by my offset for 8 years

I ran a stick burner for almost a decade in my backyard in Austin. Thought pellet smokers were for people who didn't want to learn the craft. Then last summer my neighbor let me tend his Traeger during a brisket cook while he went to the ER for a kidney stone. I came home with a 10 pound packer that had perfect smoke rings and bark. That got me thinking. Did a 14 hour cook on my offset last weekend and the temp swings about drove me crazy. I got a pit boss at Costco for $350 on clearance just to test the waters. It held within 10 degrees for 12 hours without me touching it once. Feels like cheating but I don't think I can go back for long weekday cooks. Anyone else make the switch and end up keeping both? My offset is starting to feel like a project instead of a tool.

3 comments

3 Comments

wade_dixon15d ago

Heard this exact thing from my buddy Mike down in Lockhart. He ran a hundred year old stick burner his grandpa left him for like five years. Swore up and down it was the only way. Then he got a pellet smoker as a gift from his brother in law. First time he used it he put a pork shoulder on at 10pm and went to bed. Woke up and it was dead on 203 degrees with no fuss. He told me he felt like he was cheating on his grandpa but now the offset only comes out for competitions or when he wants to drink beer in the yard all afternoon. Kept both but uses the pellet way more.

the_elizabeth15d ago

Yeah that's basically what happened with me too. I fought it for years thinking real BBQ meant babysitting a fire all night, then a buddy let me borrow his pellet grill for a weekend and I never looked back. Now my offset sits under a tarp most of the year and I just use it when I want to feel like I'm working for it.

the_ben14d ago

You guys are missing the whole point of BBQ though. Part of the fun is the work, the ritual, the smoke and the fire. A pellet grill is just an oven that makes things taste a little smoky.