Traeger Hardwood Pellet Guide
Traeger hardwood pellets - available in a variety of species - are the sole source
of heat and impart a delicious flavor to smoked, grilled and baked foods. Conveniently
sealed in easy-to-handle, 20-pound bags, our pellets are clean-burning, sanitary,
economical and 100-percent pure. They are easier and safer to transport and store
than other types of barbecue fuel.
Traeger barbecue pellets are no larger than the eraser on the end of a pencil. People
who see them for the first time think they look like rabbit food, but there is nothing
small about the heat energy in a barbecue pellet. Over 8500 BTU's per pound! Wood
pellets are not new - they have long been used in industrial, commercial, and residential
heating appliances and applications. There are over 100 fully operational pellet
mills in the United States. Traeger Industries was the first company to use them
for cooking.
Only the finest hardwood raw materials are sourced from all over the country. The
pure, raw material (sawdust) is then pulverized with hammer mills and dried. The
dried material is then processed under heat and pressure. Lignin, which is the natural
glue which holds plant fiber together, softens above 100 degrees Celsius, permitting
the material to change shape. The hot lignin then acts like a glue to bond the pellet
together. Pelleting employs a hard steel die which rotates against rollers forcing
the material through the die with pressures of over 10,000 PSI. As the pellet is
forced through the die it is sheared off at the specified length, cooled, screened,
and bagged.
General specifications for wood barbecue pellets are:
100% hardwood, 1" long or less
in length, 1/4" diameter, less than 2% ash content, less than 2% fines, 10% moisture
content, 8500 BTU's per lb, and about 40 lbs per cubic ft. density. Traeger pellets
are sealed in convenient 20-pound bags and are available in several flavors of wood
as listed in this chart.