Wood pellets are a by product of the wood industry. Barbecue wood pellets are made from hardwood and the raw material, sawdust, is pulverised and then dried. Lignin which is a pure natural glue is used to hold the material together which is processed under heat and pressure and shaped in to small pellets

The pellets measure approximately 1" x 1/4" and have the appearance of rabbit food.

BBQ wood pellets come in a range of 'flavors', typically:

• Alder
• Apple
• Cherry
• Garlic
• Hickory
• Maple
• Mesquite
• Oak
• Onion
• Pecan

Pellets burn at about 8500 BTU and maintain a very even temperature.

Fed by means of a hopper, the rate can be controlled. This means that the temperature can be raised higher by increasing the deed rate, for grilling, or reduced to a much slower rate to achieve tha low and slow temperatures required for smoking.

The temperature inside the pellet grill can be very finely tuned and maintained.

If you're thinking of buying a pellet grill you'll need to consider the availability of supply for the barbeque wood pellets; there aren't all that many about.

That said, there are a number of on-line sources, one that I can recommend is Capitol Supply.