Traeger Woodridge Professional Evaluation: Fearless Smoking

I additionally needed to name out one oddity I seen in testing, which is that canine appear very drawn to the massive knob on the Woodridge’s management panel. Three completely different canine who came visiting to my home throughout smoking periods pressed it with their noses, in all probability because of the mixture of meat odor and seeing different individuals touching it. They would not be capable to activate the grill, however they’ll mess with you whilst you’re setting the temperature in the event that they’re mischievous or curious like mine.

The Smoke

Coming from the world of propane grills, the scale of the Woodridge Professional actually struck me. You could possibly simply smoke two full-sized pork bellies on the identical time, and I hope to very quickly. Because it was, my normal Costco pork stomach hundreds up half the smoker, which is greater than sufficient to feed some mates and have leftovers for myself.

It couldn’t be simpler. Set the temperature, hold the hopper crammed, and the whole lot else is managed routinely. As a substitute of worrying about vents or fan speeds or gasoline, I usually simply hand around in the yard, get some work carried out, play with the canine, and deal with the meat.

{Photograph}: Brad Bourque

I’ve discovered myself extra keen to do all the additional steps that actually make a meal nice. I’m marinating and brining forward of time, getting rub recipes from mates, making pickled onions as an alternative of shopping for them. Stuff that sounds easy however may be simple to skip should you’re feeling lazy. Figuring out I’ve a scrumptious chunk of meat on the smoker motivates me to go the additional mile.

In consequence, I’ve made or contributed to a few of my greatest meals ever during the last couple of months, and introduced my mates collectively to take pleasure in them. We have eaten tender pork stomach tacos coated in a savory and spiced rub fastidiously refined by my neighbor, juicy pork chops with a crusty exterior, coppa sandwiches on a good friend’s do-it-yourself focaccia. In between, I’ve loved luxurious leftovers like fried rice, smoked egg salad, and easy sandwiches. Greater than only a grill, the Woodridge has turn out to be part of my kitchen and cooking routine extra rapidly and seamlessly than I’d’ve imagined.