Grill: Wood vs Charcoal vs Propane

Hey Veeky Forums, just bought a house so I can finally buy a grill. I'm not very experienced with grilling food but I want something that can yield the best results possible and have the widest range of use.

I see the wood pellet grilles are usually advertised as being dual use horizontal smokers, so right now I'm leaning towards one of those, but I don't know much about them.

What kind of grills do you guys prefer?
Should I get a pellet grill so I can smoke, or will it suck compared to buying a dedicated smoker?

Also grill thread I guess.

wood and charcoal are basically the same grille. grilling in its most purest form meat and fire and beer
as for propane you can buy the refills from your service station. its basically cooking over dry gas flame. they were invented because wood is a absolute cunt to get going in bad weather. not so with gas.

Here at Strickland Propane, our motto has always been taste the meat, not the heat. And if you're interested, I'd like to show you some of our top of the line, clean burning propane grills we offer.

if you can find one for a reasonable price, the ideal solution is propane grill with offset firebox for wood

How much are you looking to spend? If you don't have much grilling experience I'd recommend pic related. It's a classic for a reason. From high, direct heat grilling to low and slow smoking, this does it all.

Wood/charcoal always. Propane is somewhat more convenient but just shitty and boring.

This. But be sure to get the foldable grill that lets you add charcoal. The 99 dollar weber doesn't come with it, but I think you can get grills for 25. But to me, you might as well splurge for the 150 dollar model and get the ash catcher and thermometer. Oh, also don't forget the chimney starter.

Charcoal is a pain in the ass if you’re just grilling up dinner during the work week, far more practical to just kick on the propane.

Charcoal and wood are also a pain in the ass for smoking, because you get constant heat fluctuations as the fuel burns up and more is added and when smoking meat, maintaining a STEADY temperature is critical.

Besides, the taste and smell in smoked meat comes from the wood chips, and less from the charcoal (which is made from compressed sawdust).

Yes, this thing is a must if you plan to do any low and slow.

Great grill but not for smoking, too hard to maintain the constant low temps with the thin aluminum. I would get a Kamato style grill which can do it all but can get pricey.

You can't beat an electric smoker for maintaining temps and that's the name of the game.

>charcoal (which is made from compressed sawdust)
Ony shit charcoal. You can get charcoal made form actual chunks of wood, you know.

A pellet smoker like in the pic is going to be great for smoking and low and slow but it won't get the sear of a more traditional grill.

OP just get yourself a good Weber. They aren't expense and they will last a long time. You can grill with wood, charcoal, and even hot or cold smoke with it.

If you want to taste the meat and not the heat then there are better alternatives than a gas grill.

Utter bullshit. We've been smoking on our Weber grills for decades. Its all about controlling the air and properly stacking your wood and while I would always suggest wood over charcoal its stupid to say charcoal doesn't impart aroma or taste(also no one smokes with charcoal)

See comment above. It just takes practice. We've got an old tree stump we chop wood on. You get much better flavor with that than you do with the wood chips things like this use.

While I agree that it's not necessarily ideal, it's perfect for someone not looking to spend a lot of money on something they might only use a handful of times a year. Temp control is important but in a 12-15 hour smoke, a 30-45 minute heat spike isn't that big a deal. I've personally done several successful smokes on my Weber including baby backs, butts, and even brisket.

Now don't get me wrong, I'd love a quality offset smoker or a kamodo but seeing as my Weber sits unused in my garage 300 out of 365 days a year, it's hard to justify the expense. But if you've got the money to burn or want to get serious about smoking meats, go for it.

I've seen these and they look good and all but couldn't something similar be fashioned out of an oven cold smoking kit?

Bruh. Stop. Man the fuck up, quit the beta shit, and smoke meats the way our ancestors have for thousands of years. With fire.

>You get much better flavor with that than you do with the wood chips things like this use.

The meat doesn't care what the heat source is and all the flavor in fact does come from the wood chips, which are also being using in a charcoal or propane smoker, so why go thru the hassle of using charcoal or wood as well as running the risk of fucking up the meat due to wildly fluctuating temps as you continually add more charcoal/wood?

>Bruh. Stop. Man the fuck up, quit the beta shit, and ride down the road the way our ancestors have for thousands of years. With horses.

Do you have a gas outlet outside? If so get a natural gas grill and a dedicated smoker. Propane tanks are kind of a pain in the ass.

>Its all about controlling

Exactly, so why use charcoal that has zero temp control?

Do you sell any butane grills?

This. Also check craigslist. I see nice 22" weber kettles for under $40 i have bought a couple for like $25-30

>Propane tanks are kind of a pain in the ass.

The fuck, who can't hook up a propane tank?

Plus a propane grill can be wheeled around where needed, while a natural gas grill is stuck wherever the gas valve is, plus propane produces 2.4x more energy per cubic foot then natural gas (and is less likely to blow out from a gust of wind).

No but we have many propane grill accessories

>Do you sell any butane grills?

Enjoy having your cheep shit Chinese butane grill blow up in you face....

Thanks for the advice but i was hoping to get the advice of a propane and propane accessory salesman.

Lots of different advice in this thread.
Here come my 2 cents.

Been using a Weber Smokey Mountain for a bit over a year. It's a great smoker that uses charcoal and or wood to smoke meat, that requires constant attention. You have to monitor the temperature and adjust the dampers and add more fuel at regular intervals.
I'm fine with that (using it at work for work). I got the time to babysit. I usually just throw the smoke on for a couple hours (ribs) and finish them in an oven, since the idea is to get a certain amount of smoke and then just maintain a steady, low temperature until the meat is tender.
Pellet fed units are frowned upon by a lot of purists, but .. If you're not doing competition, it's a no brainer. Set it and forget it.
I've considered getting a Trager or something of the sort for long smokes (pork shoulder and the like).

It really depends on the amount of work you want to put into it. You should definitely go to amazingribs.com for more insight.

Anybody can hook one up. Forgetting to check how much you got left and running out half way through something is annoying. It's a lot easier to turn on a valve and not have to worry.

You could use a long ass hose if you really want to play musical bbq's, most home grills stay stationary. Even a cheap $500 bbq on natural gas will stay lit in -30 with strong winds though it will struggle to keep a steady temp.

It's cool. All your neighbors know you're a pussy that uses an electric smoker and talk shit about you behind your back though. Also, I fuck your wife while you're at work.

OMG! fucking rekt! WOW!!!
OMG! totally DESTROYEED!!!!!!!!!
LOL GOOD one!
hahahahaha! you totally pwnd that guy!
...shit. you win. haha lol
#gameover #FTW
#PNW

I recommend both. I use the gas when I'm cooking something quick for myself (sausage, steak, etc) and I use the kettle when I'm doing a big roast or have friends over. The charcoal is great, love standing around it with a beer and the gas is really convenient.
I'd love to get a Weber Smokey mountain too, but I'm happy for now.

All I need is a good digital thermometer for measuring meat temp and air temp. Thinking about getting the Theroworks smoke.

kek