Traeger Ironwood (2023) review: Upgraded smart grilling comes at a cost

In 2022, Traeger started a significant overhaul of its Wi-Fi-connected sensible grill lineup. Solely essentially the most inexpensive Professional Collection fashions have been left untouched because the redesign course of that started with the Timberline made its option to the Ironwood this yr. The corporate has debuted a number of modifications alongside the best way, all aimed toward extra environment friendly cooking, simpler cleanup, customization and expanded sensible options. A whole lot of what Traeger added to the Timberline trickled right down to the Ironwood ($1,800), however this mannequin is now considerably costlier consequently and the most effective additions are nonetheless reserved for essentially the most premium mannequin.

A significant redesign

When Traeger revealed its overhauled Timberline grills final yr, one of many largest updates was a brand new touchscreen show. The corporate has introduced that to the brand new Ironwood grills too, changing the single-knob navigation with a bigger dial and a touchscreen. There are devoted buttons for the complete menu, timers, Preserve Heat and Tremendous Smoke to the left of the touchscreen, above the 2 wired meals probe ports. Whereas how you employ the show to manage the grill has modified, and the bigger full-color panel is less complicated to see, I’m not satisfied these grills wanted a touchscreen. It doesn’t add a ton to the general expertise and a less complicated replace of only a bigger, coloration show would’ve been greater than sufficient and would possibly saved costs down.

One other merchandise Traeger borrowed from the Timberline is its so-called Pop-And-Lock (PAL) accent rail. That is one new addition that I can get behind. It permits you to customise the grill primarily based in your wants or what you’re cooking. PAL add-ons embrace a folding entrance shelf, storage bin, butcher paper/paper towel roll, instrument hooks and a cup holder. These all snap onto a rail that goes virtually all the means across the grill and could be simply moved or eliminated as wanted.

Inside, Traeger changed the stable metal drip plate that directed grease to the catch can and the smaller fireplace pot protect. Now there are two bigger items of steel that span the width of the grill. First, a diffuser spreads warmth over the cooking floor and directs ash to the catch keg. A second piece above it nonetheless serves as a drip tray to channel grease to the identical bin because the ash particles, but it surely now has holes across the exterior to information smoke and warmth across the cooking floor. A dual-wall development of the chamber itself supplies higher insulation, so temps stay constant even within the colder months. Lastly, the auger was raised above the fireplace pot, so pellets drop right down to burn. This could assist with jams and decrease the chance of auger and hopper fires. As soon as once more, these modifications debuted on the Timberline, but it surely’s good to see them carry over to the mid-range Ironwood.

The important thing variations between the Ironwood and its pricier Timberline sibling are the vertical area contained in the grill, the cart/leg design and the dearth of an induction burner on the left facet. The place the Timberline has two adjustable racks above the principle cooking floor, the Ironwood solely has one, and its most top is decrease than that of the Timberline. Cooking grates on the Ironwood are additionally porcelain the place they’re chrome steel on the costlier mannequin.

Traeger nixed the four-legged design on the brand new Timberline in favor of a storage cart look that’s just like Weber’s fuel grills. The enclosed area is a pleasant addition that didn’t make it to the Ironwood, however the firm did add an open shelf beneath that bolts to the legs. You possibly can simply put a pellet bin and unused grates right here whenever you’re not utilizing them.

Lastly, the Ironwood doesn’t have the induction burner that the Timberline presents. It does have a bigger facet shelf than the earlier iteration of the Ironwood, with a detachable panel and a further outlet on the again that implies assist for a burner add-on, however Traeger doesn’t at the moment promote one. I requested the corporate if it plans to take action sooner or later, but it surely declined to touch upon unreleased merchandise.

Upgraded sensible grilling

Following its acquisition of Meater in 2021, Traeger made the corporate’s wi-fi meat probes normal gear on the 2022 Timberline grills. These gadgets get cumbersome cables out of the best way, whereas sending inner meals temperatures to the Traeger app for distant monitoring. The brand new Ironwood grill additionally helps the specially-designed Meater probes, however they don’t come within the field. As a substitute, you’ll must make an additional $230 purchase to get a two-pack — which is greater than in case you purchased two Meater Plus probes.

The issue is that this two-pack solely works with Traeger’s touchscreen grills and doesn’t sync with Meater’s app. This implies you don’t get ambient temperature readings or estimated completion instances — two beneficial items of knowledge. The Ironwood does include two wired probes and the information from these is viewable within the Traeger app similar to it has been on earlier WiFIRE-equipped grills.

The corporate debuted a wise pellet sensor in 2019 and, whereas it could later ship grills with it included, it was a separate bolt-on element that wanted to be put in. With the Timberline and Ironwood, that is now a fully-integrated piece of tech. Like earlier than, the sensor displays your pellet degree and the app will warn you so that you don’t must maintain watch. It’s not good — it may be tricked by tunneling when pellets are pulled in by the auger — but it surely’s ok to maintain tabs on the hopper when you’re stress-free.

Traeger has made the preliminary seasoning course of virtually solely computerized. On earlier grills, you needed to manually set the temperature and a timer to burn off any residue from the manufacturing course of, however now the WiFIRE controller handles all of that for you. You merely press a button and the grill retains you posted on how a lot time is left. Whenever you shut it down after cooking, both on the show or by way of the app, you get one other countdown so you realize the standing of this 15-to-25-minute course of that burns off extra pellets within the fireplace pot (time varies relying in your cooking temperature).

Cooking with the Ironwood

Modifications apart, cooking with the Ironwood is as easy and simple as ever. As soon as you choose your cooking temperature with the dial or ship a recipe to the grill from the Traeger app, all it’s important to do is press the touchscreen to ignite it. The Ironwood reaches temperature in about 12 minutes, whether or not you are smoking at 225 levels Fahrenheit or searing at 500. You’ll get a notification when the grill is preheated so you realize it’s time to start out cooking.

The Traeger app continues to be a wealth of knowledge for cooks of all talent ranges. The software program homes over 1,000 recipes with adjustable ingredient lists primarily based on how many individuals you propose to prepare dinner for. Step-by-step steerage is there, together with the flexibility to watch grill and meals temperatures remotely, and activate Tremendous Smoke or Preserve Heat modes as wanted. The app nonetheless permits you to regulate grill temp, though there have been just a few instances throughout my take a look at I needed to make that request twice. 99 p.c of the time it really works on the primary try, however each infrequently the app wants a second prodding earlier than sending the information to the Ironwood.

Over the course of some months with the Ironwood, I cooked a variety of meals at a wide range of temperatures. These embrace low-and-slow barbecue pork shoulders and turkey breasts, with hotter baking, roasting and searing thrown in too. I additionally cooked just a few recipes the place the temperature needed to be adjusted through the prepare dinner, like the Over The Top Chili technique that’s widespread on-line lately. The Ironwood persistently produced nice outcomes, with Traeger’s trademark wood-fired flavors.

Traeger touts simpler cleanup on the Ironwood due to the mix grease and ash keg beneath the grill. A part of that can be the warmth diffuser that the corporate says directs ash to that bin. Whereas it’s an enchancment that many of the waste goes into one container, it’s important to assist a number of the ash get there, and a major quantity of it makes its means on high of the diffuser. Some even ventures up onto the drip tray. You continue to want a store vac to do a radical cleansing each few cooking cycles and also you’ll want an all-natural grill cleaner to get the grime off the drip pan, grates, sides and lid.

The competitors

The pellet grill trade is more and more crowded. Most {hardware} shops now carry a wide range of them, most of which no less than cowl the fundamentals and can be found at a variety of costs. Recteq’s Patio Legend 410 is below $600, for instance. Whereas it’s geared up with Wi-Fi connectivity, it’s extra compact with solely 410 sq. inches of grilling area. Pit Boss’ most premium fashions, the Navigator Collection, can be found for $999. The smaller Navigator 850 comes with wi-fi options however the bigger Navigator 1150 requires an $150 upgrade for Wi-Fi. I’ve by no means examined a Pit Boss grill, so I can’t vouch for them, however they’re extraordinarily widespread and available at a number of massive field shops within the US.

For extra direct options to the brand new Timberline, I’d take into account the Recteq Yard Beast 1000 or the Weber SmokeFire grills. The Backyard Beast ($1,099) is the most important “conventional” pellet grill in Recteq’s redesigned 2023 lineup launched in late October. It presents barely extra cooking area at 1,014 sq. inches and contains new legs, improved wheels and a revamped controller. Weber’s SmokeFire sensible grill debuted in 2020, and whereas the corporate has made some tweaks since, the identical fundamental design stays. The primary profit is Weber Join, the corporate’s grilling app that gives step-by-step steerage, together with movies, and estimated completion instances. The bigger EX6 mannequin has simply over 1,000 sq. inches of grilling capability and it’s at the moment accessible for $999.

When looking for a pellet grill, keep in mind that all of them supply the identical fundamental performance. You’ll pay extra for Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to watch issues out of your cellphone, however each mannequin is able to each low-and-slow smoking, high-heat searing and all the pieces in between. There’s some variation within the max temperature, however the low finish of that vary is often 500 levels Farenheit. That’s loads of warmth for ending off a steak. The place firms range most is design and the way frequent options are offered, so that you’ll need to take note of issues like how the steel parts on the within are organized, how the grates match within the cooking chamber and the grill controller.

Wrap-up

The 2023 Ironwood starts at $1,800 and the XL mannequin that I examined is $2,000. That’s $500 greater than the earlier variations, the Ironwood 650 and Ironwood 885. In truth, it’s additionally costlier than each of the first-generation Timberline grills, which had been top-of-the-line choices on the time. I respect quite a lot of the modifications that Traeger made, and lots of of them are enhancements, however they’re now considerably costlier than essentially the most high-end fashions from the competitors. The 2019 Ironwood is a workhorse that also works nicely and I’d argue it’s a greater grill for most individuals. Ironwood was a stable mid-range possibility within the firm’s lineup, however now it’s simply one other expensive different.