Smoker recipes are every BBQ pitmaster’s focus, but where do you start?

In this article we are going to consider some of the best pellet smoker recipes you simply have to try out at least once.

We’ll also look at Pit Boss pellet smoker recipes that will take your grilling and smoking game to the absolute next level, and might just make you a Backyard BBQ hero. Obviously you can use whatever pellet grill you have whether it’s a Traeger, Z Grills etc.

We’ll finish with a look at one of the most popular meats to smoke – chicken.

You can also use these smoker recipes in your offset smoker or stick burner as well, but you will have to adjust the timings and use a mixture of charcoal and wood chunks insteak of wood pellets.

Pellet Smoker Recipes

Pellet smokers allow for consistent results and a ‘set it and forget,’ approach to smoking food. You simply plug in your pellet grill, fill the hopper with your choice of wood pellet and set the dial to your desired temperature.

Smoking in an offset smoker or stick burner requires continual refueling and controlling the smoke, and while we have a real respect for this approach it can make it a lot harder to focus on the smoker recipes themselves – the actual cooking.

That being said a lot of people think that the smoke flavour you get from pellet smokers is milder than those from old school smokers, and they’re probably right.

By way of a passing tip, consider using a smoking tube if you want extra smokiness in your pellet smoker – they are cheap, easy to use and you can even make one yourself easily if you like!

Also you can make sure your pellet grill is on the smoke setting (S) for extra smokiness – not all all grills have this setting, but Pit Boss and Traeger certainly do for some of their models.

Let’s dive into more smoker recipes and ideas.

Smoked Trisket or Tri Tip Steak Treated Like a Brisket

This is a great BBQ idea for beginners because it’s essentially an easy and quick smoker recipe which is a perfect alternative to beef brisket. Brisket can take 12+ hours (depending on the size of the cut) and it can be difficult to get right.

Smoked trisket can be done in around 3, can be served medium rare and will give you similar results.

You can also watch the smoked tri tip video below if you like.

Smoked Venison Roast

Venison is another great pellet smoker recipe and a leaner and quicker thing to smoke than beef.

It’s also one of the more unique smoker recipes that you need to try before you die, and it only takes 2-3 hours in the smoker at 225F (107C).

Smoked Pork Butt in Cider Brine

Smoking pork butt for pulled pork is a right of passage for every BBQ enthusiast and this recipe works really well, partly because of the extra flavour imparted by the cider brine in advance of the smoke.

It’s just one of the best smoker recipes that you need to try for yourself.

Smoked Chuck Roast Recipe (For Pulled Beef)

Smoking chuck roast for long enough will give you a similar texture to pulled pork, and you can serve it in a similar way – in sandwiches etc.

Not only is it a cheap meat to smoke it’s also great for making fork tender pulled beef. This is well worth a go especially if you haven’t tried smoking pulled beef before.

Brisket in the Smoker

Sooner or later every BBQ enthusiast will want to try their hand at smoking brisket. This article takes you through the process step by step from start to finish.

There’s no denying the fact that beef brisket takes a long time to smoke, but in the end it’s definitely worth it!

Smoked Ribeye Steak with Garlic, Lemon Chilli Butter

Steak is great cooked in a pan but doing it in the pellet grill just adds that extra smoky flavour which elevates it to the next level. This recipe calls for the reverse sear method where the steak is smoked low and slow first, and then finished off at high heat at the end for a delicious crust.

The compund butter is delicious with it too.

You can also watch the video below.

Smoked Turkey Breast

Although a lot of people associate turkey with Thanksgiving or Christmas it’s such a delicious, lean meat that takes on smoke flavour so well.

Depending on the size of your turkey, you can have it smoked and ready to eat in around 3-4 hours, especially when you’re not smoking the whole bird.

Hit the button below to get the recipe for smoked turkey breast.

Competition-Style Ribs

Although a lot of people think that BBQ ribs should have a fall off the bone texture, ribs at a BBQ competition are judged on the fimness of the bite from the middle of the rib.

This recipe for ribs takes more of a Competition-Style approach and is done at a higher heat (300F or 149C) and takes under half the time of the popular 321 method.

If you like a melt in the mouth texture to your pork ribs (we aren’t judging!), try our 321 method for smoked ribs or our 221 method for ribs (which works best for Baby Back Ribs).

Smoked Goat – A Unique Thing to Smoke

If you have never tried smoking goat before we would highly recommend it.

It has a similar taste to lamb, but a unique flavour profile all on its own. It’s probably best to start off with goat leg or shoulder which are excellent cuts of meat to smoke in your pellet grill.

Homemade Smoked Bratwurst Recipe

Sausage is always great to smoke on your pellet grills, but this recipe shows you how to make your own bratwurst sausage from scratch and then smoke it.

Once you have made the sausage with hog casing and ground pork meat and spices, it won’t take very long to smoke it – only around an hour or so.

Pellet Smoker Breakfast Recipes

You may not have thought about making breakfast on your smoker, but since you can pretty much cook anything in your pellet grill there’s no reason why shouldn’t. Click the button below for 8 great ideas for smoker recipes for breakfast.

The smoked fatty recipe alone is worth the effort!

Pit Boss Pellet Smoker Recipes

This next section is focused on Pit Boss Recipes in particular, but of course you can use whatever smoker you happen to have.

Pit Boss Smoked Salmon

Salmon is of course the first fish most of us think of when considering smoking. The following recipe tells you how to smoke it to perfection in a Pit Boss pellet grill.

If you use salmon fillets (rather than the whole fish) as the recipe suggest you’ll be done in no time at all!

Pit Boss Smoked Hot Dogs

While you might usually think of hot dogs as being grilled hot and fast rather than smoked, giving them that longer cook at a lower heat in your Pit Boss pellet grill really takes the flavour up a notch.

When you make criss cross cuts in the sausages as the recipe suggests you can get even more smoky flavour into your hot dogs for a delicious result.

11 Best Pit Boss Recipes To Smoke This Weekend

For plenty of inspiration and BBQ smoker ideas and pellet grill recipes try the button below. You’ll probably end up with more ideas than you know what to do with!

Pellet Smoker Recipes Chicken

Chicken is one of the most popular and best meats to smoke, whether it be whole smoked chicken, chicken wings, thighs or breasts.

Below are some of our favourite pellet smoker recipes for chicken.

BBQ Chicken Tikka Kebabs

Kebabs (or kabobs in the US) are a very quick but worthwhile thing to cook in your pellet grill.

This fantastic recipe for the ever popular chicken tikka requires a straightforward marinade, a short cooking time at high heat and very pleasing flavourful result.

This could very quickly become your new favourite BBQ chicken recipe.

Buffalo Hot Smoked Chicken Wings

There’s a reason why Buffalo Hot Sauce and chicken wings continue to be hugely popular. Something about the vinegary, buttery, heat of the sauce along with crispy wings is just so memorable.

This recipe will show you how to smoke chicken wings in your smoker and make your own fantastic Buffalo Hot Sauce a home as well.

Boneless Buffalo Hot Wings

If you aren’t a fan of dark meat meat and bones, you might also enjoy this recipe for Buffalo Hot ‘Wings,’ using bits of chicken breast for ‘boneless’ wings.

Whole Chicken in the Smoker

Try this recipe for smoked whole chicken. You’ll be surprised how tender and juicy smoked chicken can be!

Depending on the size of the bird smoking a whole chicken will only take 2-3 hours which is a small price to pay for all that extra smoky flavour.

Smoker Recipes FAQ’s

Unique Smoker Recipes

There are lots of things to smoke if you are looking unique smoker recipes. Try the list below:

• Smoked Cocktails
• Smoked Ice (to put in the cocktails!)
• Smoked Desserts e.g. peach cobbler or cookies
• Cold Smoked Ice Cream (or smoke the milk you will use for ice cream)
• Cold Smoked Cheese (especially over apple wood)
• Ostrich
• Kangaroo
• Guinea Fowl
• Cornish Hens
• Bison
• Elk
• Gator
• Goat
• Deer
• Rabbit
• Bear
• Butter
• Nuts
• Salt

If you are looking something different to smoke on your smoker you could try our unique things to smoke article below.

2 Hour Smoker Recipes

Here are some BBQ ideas of things you can smoke in 2 hours or less:

• Chicken Wings
• Chicken Thighs
• Chicken Breasts
• Smaller Whole Chickens
• Individual Steaks e.g. Sirloin or Ribeye
• Oysters
• Scallops
• Prawns
• Lobsters
• Any type of sausage
• Smoked Hamburgers
• Smoked Hot Dogs
• Smoked Pizza
• Country Style Ribs
• Pork Chops
• Lamb Chops
• Smoked Squash
• Asparagus
• Aubergines
• Corn Ribs

Smoker Recipes For Beginners

If you are just getting to know your way around a smoker you could try these smoker recipes for beginners:

• Smoked Pork Butt (a long smoke but hard to get wrong!)
• Smoked Vegetables of Any Kind!
• Chicken Wings, Thighs or Breasts (Quick and Easy!)
• Smoked Trisket (Tri Tip Steak Smoked Like a Brisket in 3-4 Hours)
• Sausage of Any Kind – Quick, Easy and Painless!
• Hamburgers
• Lamb Chops
• Pork Chops
• Smoked Pork Loin (a short and easy smoke)
• Smoked Mac and Cheese
• Rainbow Trout
• Any Shellfish – Lobster, Scallops, Prawns etc (super quick to smoke)

1 Hour Smoker Recipes

If you are looking for some ie ideas on what you smoke in 1 hour try below:

• Shellfish e.g. mussels, prawns, scallops and lobster
• Hamburgers
• Sausages
• Chicken breast, thighs, wings
• Salmon fillets
• Whole Trout
• Steaks
• Pork Chops
• Lamb Chops
• Mac and Cheese
• Most vegetables (potatoes, sweet potatoes and squash will take longer)

You might also enjoy our smoker recipes appetizers post.