Right now, you can score it for 38% off—a total of $300 in savings. Pellet grills at the sub $500 price point have digital controls that allow the user to dial in a specific temperature, making them very easy to use. The hopper on a pellet grill holds the pellets the grill uses as fuel. Its capacity determines how long the grill can cook before you need to add more pellets. Hopper size significantly impacts ease of use, given that smoking certain types of food, such as brisket, can take 15 hours or more.
Yes, it is pretty much maintenance-free (besides a simple cleaning of course), but when I first started using the Pit Boss, I was a bit surprised with how much food actually does stick. You will need to use a scraper to get food off the surface, and you may sometimes need to put a little muscle behind it… don’t be surprised. We may earn a small commission through products purchased using links on this page. Free up precious space on your side shelves, making it easy to swap between tools as you cook. The pellet grill market is incredibly competitive, so there isn’t a lot of room between.
Featuring a robust 4-burner heating platform, the Ultimate Griddle is the perfect fit for whatever your needs may be. As practical as it is inventive, this line of griddles is our most versatile product to date. Backed by the best-in-class two-year warranty, the choice is simple. The Ultimate Griddle by Pit Boss Grills is the biggest, hottest, heaviest, and smartest griddle on the market. This versatile pellet grill is a great option for those who love to grill just as much as they love to smoke. It features a digital controller that allows the chef to dial in temperatures ranging from as little as 180 degrees Fahrenheit for slow-and-low smoking up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit for grilling.
While thick walls are desirable for some types of cookers, they are not required in pellet smokers. As a guide, a pellet grill with a 40-pound hopper will give you around 40 hours of cooking time at standard smoking temperatures. pit boss flat top Considering some cooks take around 20 hours, an 18 pound hopper, for example, is going to be problematic. This grill offers a generous 570 square inches of cooking surface plus a removable upper warming rack.
Despite its travel-friendly size, the Tailgater holds 12 burgers, two chickens, or three racks of ribs. While it doesn’t need as much fuel as larger grills to maintain its temperature, its 8-pound hopper will need refilling during longer smokes simply due to its smaller capacity. Ahead, learn more about what you can expect at this price point and find out which models are the best pellet grills under $500. The 440 outperformed some more expensive models in heating time, retention, and temperature recovery. The grill does have some hard-to-avoid hot spots, with the firebox adjacent to the cooking space and a heat shield that doesn’t cover the entire grill. We also noted some temperature dips during our long smoke test, about 50°F below the preset temperature.
While you won’t win any points with old-fashioned pitmasters, the ability to produce excellent barbecue without fussing over a fire makes buying a pellet smoker very tempting. If you don’t need a large cooking area and can look past a few inconsistencies, the 440 delivers good results at an unbeatable price. While it lacks built-in connectivity, an add-on device is available for purchase.
We were able to grill burgers with nice sear marks and cook chicken more slowly and evenly done throughout. Traeger’s versatile new flat-top propane grill features three burners to help create specific heat zones, with a heat range of 325 to 600 degrees to griddle, fry, steam, sauté, and more. You want to invest in a griddle for the cooking experience, which is why this is an important feature that needs to be taken into consideration. You will find that the griddles have individual burners and more or less the same cooking system.
You also get competitive tech with an app that gives you tracking, grill controls, and a pellet sensor alarm. Unlike the grills mentioned above, you don’t get WiFi or app connectivity. Because there is so much technology involved, there’s more that can break (or never work correctly). The Pro comes with WiFi for remote control and monitoring of your grill.
Weber, Brinkman, PBC,
No need for budget breach,
They cook great food, just ask me dude,
‘Cause I have one of each. The how, the why, and what to try,
When things arn’t going good. If you have questions related to barbecue or grilling, please post them to the comments section at the bottom of any page. If you have business or technical issues, please contact us with this email form. Greg Baker is an award-winning chef, restaurateur, and food writer with decades of experience in the food industry. His written work appears in Food & Wine, Food Republic, and other publications.