Backyard fire, explained
Pizza in minutes. Brisket in hours.
Plain-English guides to backyard pizza ovens, pellet grills and smokers: what each one does, what it costs and how to cook on it, with specs from the makers.
Photo: SalvatoreMonetti on Pixabay
Two ways to cook with fire
Hot and fast Pizza ovens Small ovens that run very hot, so a pizza cooks in a few minutes. Gas, wood, pellets or electric. Read the guides
Low and slow Pellet grills and smokers Grills that hold a low, steady heat for hours, fed with wood pellets, charcoal or electricity. Read the guides 
Every guide, by topic
Pizza ovens
Gas, wood, pellet and electric ovens, portable or built in: what each does and costs.
Guides coming soon
Pellet grills
How pellet grills work, hopper sizes, controllers and what to compare.
Guides coming soon
Smokers
Electric, offset, kamado and vertical smokers, and how they differ from pellet grills.
Guides coming soon
Cooking with fire
Pizza dough, launching a pie, brisket, ribs and pulled pork, step by step.
Guides coming soon
Cleaning, care and fixes
Cleaning, seasoning, storing and fixing ovens, grills and smokers.
Guides coming soon
Straight answers
What’s the difference between a pellet grill and a smoker?
A pellet grill burns wood pellets fed by an auger and a controller, so it can smoke low and slow or grill hotter. “Smoker” covers several kinds, from electric to offset and kamado. Our smoker guides compare them.
Gas or wood-fired pizza oven?
Gas ovens light with a knob and hold a steady flame; wood and pellet ovens need fire management. Many ovens take more than one fuel. Our pizza oven guides set out what each fuel means day to day.
Can I use a pizza oven or smoker in my garage?
No. They give off carbon monoxide, so they belong outdoors in the open, with the clearances in the maker’s manual.
Do you cook on this gear yourselves?
No. We explain ovens and grills from the makers’ own specifications, manuals and pricing pages, cited and dated, so you can check every claim.
How we make our guides
- We read the makers’ specs. Top temperatures, cooking areas, hopper sizes and prices come from the maker’s own pages and manuals, dated and cited.
- We don’t rank or review. We explain what each oven, grill and smoker does and who it’s made for. Which one suits your backyard is your call.
- We’re upfront about money. Some links earn us a commission. Here’s how that works.