Thought I'd share my experience with my new ProQ Excel - I got the little meat rocket last week, and did some lovely chicken but yesterday morning while in Morissons they had a special offer on baby backs, and the butcher at my local branch is an American, so was quite into helping me select the best meat and trimming them properly, he even took off the silver for me which saved some time ..
Anyways : Here's my cook "journal" : It's a bit photo heavy!
The Meat : Nice meaty baby backs, still needed a bit of trimming -
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrPrep - I like to put a light coating of yellow mustard on my ribs, followed by my own rub, which has a slightly sweet and hot flavour -
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrAfter a couple of hours at around 250 (where my Excel seems to sit naturally) I start spritzing with a mix of apple juice and white wine vinegar...
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrWhacked a chicken on the bottom tier, just because!
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrI do a slightly modified 3-2-1 method for baby backs - But I foil with some apple juice, and a drizzle of maple syrup!
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrAfter 3 hours, she's still burning beautifully - I used Makro restaurant charcoal and mesquite wood. (I don't use much, as mesquite is pretty strong)
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrMy Chicken takes about 3 hours at 250 - same rub as ribs..
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrBelieve me, there is a slight smoke ring! The flavour profile is there for sure - Moist? you bet...
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrRibs are done, I'd taken out of foil and basted with my own glaze and back on the grill for about 30 min -
Untitled by alphadynamic, on Flickr
Untitled by alphadynamic, on Flickr
Untitled by alphadynamic, on FlickrI'm delighted with my ProQ, I had a very old Brinkmann pit style thing for years, and I could never control the temps as easily..
I line my water pan with foil and it's filled 3/4 with sharp sand, then another layer of foil to help clean up... I find that this help with keeping the temp stable.. I checked the temps after 9 hours and she was still holding at 250, dropping to 200 after about 12 hours.. so Brisket next!
Oh, the ribs tasted IMHO good, I'd lower the heat a little in the rub and maybe foil 20-30 min earlier, but that's just a personal preference.
