sub333

7 hours ago, Icefever said:

@sub333 I had the very same reply when I rang from maybe the same lady?? I wish now I'd pay the extra £7 for next day delivery. 

It's good to know that they are shipping the latest models, must admit I was hoping to fire her up over this weekend, can't see that happening at the moment.

I was going to christen  her with a Tri-tip,  may have to use the Brinkman after all..

I said exactly the same thing to her - it took 7 days to arrive, not the 3-5 they promised.

But it wasn't their fault - they were let down by the company that supplies the smokers who basically bullshitted them that it was on its way.

They did everything they could to fix it, and my smoker arrived on the Saturday, at lunchtime, so I fired it up to season it, then cooked on it a day or two later 😀

Hope your one turns up soon.

2 hours ago, Icefever said:

That was the deciding factor for me,  https://hotsmoked.co.uk/food-smokers/new-proq-frontier-elite-2018.html

They say it is the New 2018 with all the extras.....will have to wait and see?? How long have you had yours??

 

Ice.

I ordered my Frontier Elite from Hotsmoked a few weeks ago.

It was the new one with the cool-touch handles etc

Hotsmoked were really good - my order said 'dispatched' for days but didn't update, so I called them and they were great. I was keen to get it before May bank holiday, and the woman I spoke to said there'd been a delay from the supplier, and assured me that if it didn't turn up, she'd personally drive to the warehouse and sort it. Excellent customer service.

I ordered the smoking kit, which comes with the ProQ CSG and some dust/chips.

21 minutes ago, tedmus said:

Whole series here https://www.pbs.org/show/bbq-franklin/

I watched all of them in one go. Fascinating, and made me want to barbecue so much!

Has anyone on the forum ever been to Franklin BBQ?

Having my first crack at smoking cheese in my ProQ Frontier. 

Coming up to 3hrs, which I think will be plenty. 

Had a taste 30mins ago and was delicious! Will follow advice on here and Ieave for a short while before vac-packing. 

This forum has been incredibly useful. I now own a vac-packer, and it was only 20 quid or so -it's the Cooks Essentials one that I think Justin uses. Had never thought of buying one before but am sure it will be a v useful purchase. 

Once the cheese is packed, I need to leave it for minimum 2-3 wks, right? 

Yes, he's the guv'nor!

I know he's a firm believer in simple rubs – I saw a brisket video of his where he just uses salt and A LOT of black pepper.

Seems such a cool guy. Doesn't take himself seriously and clearly knows way more than his easy-going persona lets on 😎

Very good point, thank you! 
I didn't realise they were as straightforward as that – I'd always assumed that rubs had a few secret ingredients that would be hard to replicate at home.

Very useful video – thanks for sharing 🙂

Hello,

I've been looking to buy a few rubs and sauces, but it's very difficult to know where to start.

Almost all the ones I've seen claim to have won countless awards/trophies, but there's very little to go on. And most of them seem to say "Great with beef/pork/chicken/fish" which isn't very helpful!

The ones I've already bought are:

• Bad Byron's Butt Rub
• Sauce Shop South Carolina BBQ Sauce
• Butcher BBQ Liquid Brisket Injection 

The rub and the sauce are great. The sauce, in particular, has a nice piquant vinegar thing going on. I'm not a huge fan of overly sweet sauces – I prefer some heat (not loads) and something sharp and piquant (I always have chimichurri on steak, for example, not blue-cheese or creamy sauces).

Are there any others people would recommend?
I was on bbq gourmet and they have dozens of options, so would be great to narrow this down.

All advice welcomed!

2 hours ago, Phlashster said:

Hi Sub333

The water acts as a heat sink regulating temps and can keep the food moist too. 

It can stop the smoker temp going too high unintentionally. By using some sand, you can more easily go to higher temps, but retain some of the stability. If you really want hotter temps, you can run the water pan empty too. 

The benefit of not using water is on the longer cooks. The pan needs topping up every 3-4 hours to maintain that stability. On the 15hr cook I showed above, I would have had to get up in the night to refill the bowl. This would've slowed everything down too because of the heat loss in the chamber.

I personally think using water uses more fuel too. You are having to keep heating/boiling off that water and the energy absorbed by it isnt going into your food. 

Phil.

Thanks, Phil.

Excellent advice, thank you, everyone.

What are the benefits (and drawbacks) of using sand in the waterpan as opposed to water?

I thought that a full water pan helps to regulate temperature - does it also keep the meat moist?

1 hour ago, sotv said:

Hi Stu and welcome to the forum. I have a ProQ frontier as well. What temp were you trying to reach to cook your Pork Shoulder. Maintaining 225F is what I usually aim for when cooking Lo&Slo?

Cold Smoke Generator works well with the ProQ. Just microwave the dust in a bowl for 30 seconds before adding it to the generator, removes any moisture that might be in the dust

Hello! I thought I should get it at 275˚, at least for a few hours, but it wouldn't go above 225˚, and hovered between 200-225 after 4hrs or so. Was on for 7hrs in total, but I guess it needed another 3-4 easily. But I put nowhere near enough briquettes in to start with, which would explain things. And if the water pan was too full, would that affect it? I used cold water, too, rather than hot (probably another rookie error).

Thanks for tip re dust!

Hi everyone,

I'm Stu from Berkhamsted.

I bought my first-ever smoker this weekend – a ProQ Frontier Elite –and have been getting stuck in!

Seasoned it on Saturday, then tried slow-cook pork shoulder yesterday. Didn't start with enough fuel, as struggled to get beyond 225˚, even with all vents open – a lesson learned!

Bought a cold smoke generator, too, as I fancy doing some smoked salmon and a few other bits.

I've watched plenty of stuff online, from the likes of Baby Back Maniac and Aaron Franklin, and the amazingribs website – I clearly have a lot to learn, but I can't wait to get stuck in!

Thanks,

Stu.