When I first fired up my Traeger Pro 575 three years ago, I was expecting a lot more smoke.
I previously used dedicated smokers with wood chips and flakes that smoldered — but they needed a lot of babysitting. I wanted a pellet grill to make smoking easier, faster and more frequent. My Traeger Pro 575 delivered all that and much more, but the smoke is definitely different.
In my three years of experience using my Pro 575 to cook and smoke meats, veggies, cheese and pizza, I’ve learned more about the smoke output.
The key thing you want to remember is that pellet grills are both smokers as well as grills . . . and the smoke output can be different among models.
Just because you’re not seeing a bunch of super white smoke pouring out of your Traeger doesn’t mean it’s not delivering wood-fired smoky goodness.
The Traeger Pro 575 — and larger Pro 780 — aren’t the smokiest models made by Traeger. If you’re considering buying a Traeger 575 or 780, check out my full Traeger Pro 575 review for more detail.
As for smokiness right now, I have some tips that work with all Traeger pellet grills — and some that don’t.
To make your Traeger produce more smoke and smoky flavor, here are several core strategies:
- Start with lower temperatures
- Use the Super Smoke setting
(if your Traeger has it) - Choose hickory or mesquite pellets
- Add a pellet smoker tube
Lower Temperatures Produce the Most Traeger Smoke
The lowest setting on the Traeger Pro 575 is 165 degrees Fahrenheit.The first thing you need to know about making your Traeger Pro smoke more is that lower temperature settings produce the most smoke.
In general, to produce the most smoke from your Traeger Pro 575 Pellet Grill you’ll want to set the temperature between 165°F and 225°F. While the Pro 575 will operate as low as 165°F, I feel like I get the best blend of smoke and temp control when I set my Pro 575 at 180°F when I use the do-everything Traeger Signature Blend Pellets.
Once you get much over 225°F, the Traeger pellets tend to burn more cleanly and seem to produce less smoke.
Of course, when you’re smoking and cooking at higher temperatures, you’re also smoking your food much faster than you are at lower temperatures. This means that you expose your food to less smoke when you cook it faster. This point should be obvious, but it’s easy for pellet grill newbies to overlook it.
What does Traeger’s Super Smoke setting do?
In the Pro 575, pellets arrive in the fire pot where they are ignited and fed oxygen by a fan that helps regulate burn and temperature.Traeger’s Super Smoke setting works at temperatures ranging from 165-225°F . . . but only on Traeger pellet grills that support the setting. In normal settings, the fan is optimized to maintain temperature. In Super Smoke, the fan works to encourage the pellets to smolder more to produce more smoke. How so?
Basically, when you use the Super Smoke setting, the interior fan pulses to increase the smoke output coming from the pellets burning in the firebox.
Even so, Traeger says its grills are optimized to produce blue smoke instead of white smoke:
“When Super Smoke is on, you may not actually see more visible smoke. This is because the grill is increasing the amount of blue smoke, which forms at lower temperatures; this infuses food with more smoke flavor.”
How do you Super Smoke on a Traeger Pro 575?
Technically, you can’t use a “Super Smoke” setting on a Traeger Pro 575 because this pellet grill model doesn’t support the Super Smoke setting.
The only Traeger pellet grills that have a Super Smoke setting are Traeger’s newest grills, including the Timberline, Ironwood, and Costco Exclusive Silverton 810, Silverton XL, Redland, and Redland XL.
Just to be clear, like the Traeger Pro 575, the Pro 780 option does not have a Super Smoke setting.
Meanwhile, there is another key difference in how Traeger’s high-end pellet grills manage smoke compared to its Pro series: The exhaust systems. The Pro series uses a chimney that lets the smoke escape in a more straightforward vertical way. The Timberline and Ironwood pellet grills have a rear smoke exhaust vent that encourages the smoke to circulate around inside the grill more before escaping.
OK, you’re probably wondering this: If my Traeger Pro 575 or 780 doesn’t have a Super Smoke setting, how can it get more smoke? And how can I increase the smoky flavor?
Use Hickory or Mesquite Pellets to Increase Smoky Flavor
You can use hickory or mesquite pellets to create a stronger, smokier flavor.If you really want to amplify the smoky flavor from your Traeger pellet grill — for instance, if you’re smoking a brisket — use hickory or mesquite pellets.
In addition to using hickory or mesquite, you’ll want to plan to smoke your food for longer periods of time. What does this mean? When I have time, I’ll set my Traeger at 180°F or 200°F and let my cut of meat absorb some smoky goodness for a couple of hours, watching the internal temperature of the cut of meat with a meat probe.
Traeger has many recipes you can choose from or modify based on the time you have available. And don’t worry, the genius of a Traeger pellet grill is how hard it is to really get anything wrong. For instance, I can make a very good tri tip on my Pro 575 in less than 90 minutes at higher temperatures . . . but if I want a great tri tip, I’ll plan for 2-3 hours using a lower, smokier temperature to start.
Use a Pellet Smoker Tube
If you really want to maximize smoke output to deliver a smokier flavor to your meats — or cheeses — you can add an inexpensive pellet smoker tube like the Kingsford Pellet Smoker Tube.
They’re pretty easy to use, and you can use them with your regular pellet grill pellets or mix in some hardwood chips. The biggest benefit of a pellet smoker tube is they can produce a smokier flavor and an improved bark on your meats.
The biggest risk in using a pellet smoker tube is that you can make your food taste too smoky for some people. So, if you use a smoker tube, you’ll want to practice with it first and experiment before you invite a lot of friends and family over for a big feast.
