How a wood pellet grill works...

Wood pellet grills have wildly gained in popularity over the last few years. Traeger started it all in the mid 80s when they came out with and patented the first wood pellet grills.

When Traeger's patent ran in 2008, there were 6 more manufacturers by the end of that year. Last I have heard there are over 60 manufacturers of wood pellet grills today showing the massive expanse of this industry.

Wood pellet grills all operate the same way. By that I mean they have a hopper mounted to the side of the grill cooking chamber that is filled with pellets. Pellets are nothing more than actual wood that has been turned to a sawdust and then pressed into the form of a pellet. When it comes to pellets, you get what you pay for. We sell the Lumberjack brand as they only use pure virgin wood fiber, they leave the bark on it for added flavor and never add flavor oils or binders.

An auger motor feeds the pellets via an auger into a fire pot. There is an igniter or hot rod that during start up will get red hot and light the pellets. A small fan feeds the fire pot the air it needs to burn.  This concept is basically no different than starting a small fire in a coffee can.

The fan not only feeds the fire pot oxygen, it will create a convention style cooking environment within the grill cooking chamber. This allows the heat and smoke to circulate evenly around your food.  Cooking indirectly a wood pellet grill is really no different than cooking in the oven in your kitchen. 

Once the igniter light's the pellets, the digital thermometer that most wood pellet grills come with monitors the temperature in the grill. As the temp begins to climb, the digital control tells the auger to slow down dumping less pellets into the fire pot. As the pellets burn down, the temp begins to drop which triggers the digital control to tell the auger to speed up dumping more pellets and so on and so on throughout your cook. For this reason, WOOD PELLET GRILLS HAVE AND WILL NEVER HOLD THEIR TEMPERATURE TO THE DEGREE.  That would be like trying to control the temperature of a campfire to the degree. Virtually impossible. Therefore, you will have temperature "swings" during your cook. 

The simple graph above shows the normal temp swings that will occur with a wood pellet grill. As the temp rises on the upswing, you will almost see little to no smoke. As the temp lowers on the downside, the grill will show visible smoke.  When you add wood to a fire it begins to burn more efficiently and of course hotter. As the wood burns down and starts to smolder, you typically see more smoke. This is what is going on in a wood pellet grill. 

The question most ask me is "then why are there digital controllers and PID (proportional–integral–derivative) controllers that are designed to hold temp to the degree?" First off, this is a marketing ploy to play on the digital age we live in. Our culture is shifting to more precise results what with digital use of thermometers and controllers. Again, no digital control can effectively hold the temp in a wood pellet grill to the degree. The PID controllers maybe lessen that temp gap but there will STILL be temp swings. 

My experience has been the food that comes off of any wood pellet grill whether it is a $300 grill or a $5000 grill; is the same. The difference are the "bells and whistles" those grills come with. Some offer pellet dumps to swap out your pellets in the hopper easily. Some offer multi-food probes to track the temperature of your food and now we have wood pellet grills that can be solely operated from your cell phone! 

All of this being said, wood pellet grills still remain the easiest way to "set it and forget it" when it comes to smoking and cooking.  These grills are very simple to use and a extremely versatile. 

Stop in some day to our store and we will show you everything there is to know about wood pellet grills! 

Dan M. 

Colorado BBQ Outfitters

Just the facts ma'am....

For the last 6 years I have heard just about every ridiculous idea, rumor, etc about barbecuing and/or grilling.

In this world we live in where it feels like integrity and truth have long gone by the wayside, one things is certain, facts are facts.

One of these so called untruths that exist out there is DO WOOD PELLET GRILLS HOLD THEIR TEMPERATURE TO THE DEGREE. The answer is NO. It does not matter whether you spend 100 dollars or ten thousand dollars on a wood pellet grill, they are not designed to nor will they hold their temperatures to the exact degree. In this digital age we live in, there sure are a lot of people trying to force them to. Adding PID controllers, etc. By doing this, you are actually causing more harm than good.

Pellet grills are designed using a pellet hopper to store the pellets that funnels down to an auger that feeds the pellets to a fire pot. There is a igniter that during the start up process gets red hot. That lights your pellets. Once the pellets are lit, the igniter turns off. The fan feeds the fire pot air that keeps the pellets going. As the auger drops more pellets into the fire pot, they ignite and the temperature starts to go up. The digital thermometer starts to read that the grill is getting hotter and slows down the auger to feed less pellets in the firebox. Then the temperature starts to drop some and the process repeats over and over. IT IS PERFECTLY NORMAL FOR A WOOD PELLET GRILL TO HAVE ANYWHERE FROM A 20 TO 30 DEGREE SWING DURING THE COOK.

If you sit and watch a wood pellet grill, you will notice it does not smoke during the entire cook.  One minute you will look out and not even be sure your grill is going as there is not any smoke coming out of it. That is the upswing part of the temperature climbing as the pellets burn more efficiently. Then 10 minutes later you look out and there is smoke coming out of the grill. That is the downswing part of the temperature lowering to adjust the internal temp of the grill and so on and so on.

If you still aren't convinced, just remember that digital controls and thermometer haven't been around that long, yet bbq has been made for hundreds of years. Don't get caught up in the precise digital age when it comes to good barbecue!

I realize we live in a digital age but that doesn't mean everything in life needs to be digital! :) 

Proper maintenance equals longevity

Boy, it has been awhile since I have posted a blog. My apologies everyone. Life gets in the way I guess. :)

This blog might be more of a rant than anything. I see or hear things in the BBQ world that drive me nuts. They are either blatantly not true or incorrect usage/handling of products.

Here are my top griefs/recommendations:

1. Digital thermometers

• Bluetooth stinks. The range is horrible and it flakes out 80% of the time. Wireless works great but stay away from Bluetooth use thermometers until the technology is better. 
• The probes are almost never water proof. Do NOT clean your probe under water, etc. In fact, do not even wipe your probe wire with a damp cloth. Wipe off the tip that was in the food and store it away. All you need to do. 
• Like everything, you get what you pay for. That $10 wireless thermometer at the big box store is a great deal until it dies half way through your season. 

2. Wood pellet grill digital controllers should hold temperature to the degree. Wood pellet grills are NOT designed to hold their temperatures right to the degree. They are designed to swing in temp anywhere from 5 to 20 degrees. Sometimes more. Unless you have 50 degree swings or more, don't worry about it. Remember that 100 years ago we smoked meat over a fire with no temperate control whatsoever. The auger will feed pellets into the fire pot. The heat will go up. To compensate the auger will slow down feeding less pellets. The fire will die down a bit and the process starts over. When the temp is going up, less smoke. Then the temp is coming down, more smoke. 

3. Your smoker should be air tight. It drives me nuts when people see some smoke coming out from around the lid of the smoker and want to do a bunch of crazy modifications. The analogy I use is to go out in a huge field and light a fire and stand next to it for 15 minutes.  You will smell like smoke. It isn't the smoke leaking you should be worried about. It's the possibility of your temperature not being stable. If your smoker is leaking smoke but your temps are dialed in and do not sway much, leave it. 

4. Tons of smoke equals good flavor. It is possible to over smoke foods. Personally, I prefer my smoked foods to actually be lightly smoked. Some like a heavy smoke and that is great. When you are starting out smoking foods, a little goes a long way. Start with lighter smoke and work up. 

These are just a few of the things that I encourage our customers not to worry about. 

Keep on smoking everyone and keep it simple! 

Dan M. 

Colorado BBQ Outfitters

Consumer's last stand

I apologize for the delay in my lapse in blogging.  Been a crazy summer!

I want to talk about something that can make or break a small business... the consumer.

Did you know that you had the power to make a small business succeed or fail?

Have you had a wonderful experience at a local business? Contrarily, have you had a really bad experience somewhere?

In either case, the consumer wields something so powerful and most don't even know it.

I am referring to REVIEWS. Whether you choose Yelp, Facebook, Google, or any other review site, reviewing a business is actually seen and leaves an impact on future customers.

We at Colorado BBQ Outfitters encourage all of our customers to leave us reviews regardless of the experience. If your expectations were not met, then let us know what we can do possibly the next time to satisfy that expectation. Subsequently, if you had a really good experience, please take a moment to give a review as such.

In this day and age it appears that some Americans have just given up. "It is what it is" attitude towards everything. That is NOT true. You do have the power to make a huge impact on a business. It only takes a few moments to leave a review!

Dan M.
Colorado BBQ Outfitters

Holidays tips

I can't believe it is already November! Where did this year go? Then again, don't we say that every year?

I thought I would take some time to go over the most frequently asked questions Daren and I get at the store during the holiday season. Here we go...

1. Is it best to smoke a turkey whole?

• No. The most preferred way to smoke a turkey is to spatchcock it. Spatchcocking

2. What is the best wood to use for smoking turkey? 

• Apple is probably the most universally used; however, any wood that you like can be used. There are no rules. Sweet woods tend to work best with pork and poultry. 

3. What is the best device used for smoking or roasting a turkey? 

• The Turkey Dunrite seems to be the most popular device we sell during the holidays. 

4. Should I wet brine my turkey? 

• Whether you choose to dry or wet brine is a personal choice. Both help with flavor and moisture. Most people probably prefer to wet brine their turkeys. The Urban Accents Gourmet Gobbler is our most popular product as it has the brine, brining bag, and rub to put on the turkey. 

5. How do I keep my wings and drums from drying out during the smoking process?

• Most people cover them in foil part of the way through the cooking process to avoid these smaller piece of the turkey from burning. 

6. Should I stuff my turkey when I smoke it?

• If you spatchcock it, you physically cannot stuff it. If you do choose to smoke your turkey whole, it is recommended you do NOT stuff the turkey for the most part to allow the heat and smoke to get inside the turkey cavity. 

7. What internal temperature should I shoot for on a turkey? 

• 165F no more, no less. Most people overcook poultry when they grill or smoke it drying out the meat. 165F is the ideal internal temperature. You can pull it off at 160 and foil tent it for 15 to 20 minutes. The use of a good digital thermometer cannot be emphasized more here. They are worth their weight in gold. Throw away those little plastic pop up thermometers that come with the bird. They are worthless. 

8. Can I set my turkey out on the counter to thaw or in cold water in the sink? 

• The only true safe way to thaw any meat is in the refrigerator over time. 

9. Are there any times when I should NOT brine or inject my turkey? 

• If the turkey has already been brined or treated (many these days have been already), do not brine or inject the turkey again or you will wind up with a bird that is to salty. Look for turkeys that are organic, non-kosher, non-enhanced, etc. 

10. Do you smoke a rib roast (Prime Rib) the same way you would a brisket?

• No. Entirely two different types of meat. Brisket is very tough and must be cooked over a long period of time with lower heat. Rib Roast is smoked like a pork tenderloin or steak cut; rare, medium-rare, well-done, etc. 

Didn't answer your particular question? Come in and see us and we will answer that question for or at least found out the answer! 

Dan M. 

Colorado BBQ Outfitters

Out with the old...

In early April of 2012, Daren and I first opened the doors to Colorado BBQ Outfitters (CBO) and it's been a wild ride ever since.

Our first location at York and Academy was perfect. Small location to start, lower costs and in a location of town we liked. However, after 4 1/2 years we quickly grew out of that space.

How we fit everything after 4 years in that tiny space is beyond me but we did it. 

Now we are located in a space that is 1 1/2 times bigger than our old location at 5921 N. Academy Blvd 80918 which is on the Northeast corner of Vickers and Academy in the Erindale Square Shopping Center. 

Now we have nothing but room! We are excited to fill this space up with product that our customers want over the next 5 years. 

Although I miss the old location now and then, the new space has so much to offer for us. 

We have room to do customer-centric activities! We are gearing up our Best of BBQ class on the 21st of Sept and will be having a grand RE-opening on October 22nd so keep an eye out for details of that event.

Dan MacDonald

Colorado BBQ Outfitters

719-465-1041

Big guy versus the little guy

I have owned my own small retail business now for almost 5 years.

I have seen it all with regard to consumer behavior.

Some want cheap and some don't mind paying more for better quality. Some only buy from local business and some shop online religiously. Everyone is different.

I am in my fifties and tend to want some customer service with my product. I don't mind pay a few dollars more if I can talk to someone and get insight about the product.

My two millennial boys who will do their own research online and then shop at the cheapest place.  My oldest son worked at Best Buy and would tell me he saw repeatedly young people going in to the store to touch and feel the product but then would go home and order it online. As a result, Best Buy now offers a match price policy with Amazon to stay alive.

Most small businesses are aware that their customer base can shop online for less; however, you often pay shipping and have to wait for that product. Many small businesses also know that consumers are impatient and want their items right away so we way that against the cost it is offered online. The trick is to not only stay competitive but offer that which online shopping doesn't. ie, customer service, answering questions, giving opinion on product lines, training on products and most importantly being able to see and "kick the tires" of a product. 

We have all heard the plea to shop local. The money stays in your local community and your money is not lining the pockets of a CEO making millions a year but rather helping a neighbor pay his mortgage or put his kids through college. It isn't just about keeping money local. It is about getting what you pay for. 

If that product you bought online doesn't meet your expectations, that is when the rubber hits the road as far as customer service and the hoops you jump through to get your situation resolved. 

So before shopping online for every product, go out and stop by a local business and pick their brain. Tell them you found something cheaper. Many times, they will match or come close to the price being offered and you get to take that product home today! 

Dan M.

Colorado BBQ Outfitters