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ProQ smoke generator

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field hand
field hand Posts: 420
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Recieved my ProQ and saw dust this week and tried it yesterday to smoke cheese. Had been using 6-8 pieces of charcoal and putting wood chips on top. This required using the chimney to get the coals going, etc. The ProQ was much eaiser and faster to get going. They say the unit will go for 10 hours, I only wanted about 2 hours, so I measured the lenght of the burn channels and determined how much saw dust would be needed, turned out about right, it burned/smoldered for 3 hours. Pulled the cheese after about 2 hours. The smoke volume out the top seemed to be less than with charcoal, so I let it go longer. Cheese is now resting for a few days. Did notice the cheese didn't appear to be "darkened" as with the charcoal, could be the charcoal smoke affected the appearance of the cheese. TheProQ cheese looked like it did before I smoked it, but did smell as smoky as the charcoal cheese. Quick taste was about the same as with charcoal. Will post again after the formal taste test. (Looks like I got a little wordy.)

Barry
Marthasville, MO
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  • reelgem
    reelgem Posts: 4,256
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    Barry, I just ordered 2 of the ProQ smokers from Ian yesterday. I can't wait to get mine. After seeing Don Marco's tutorial I want to try cold smoking some salmon. Ian is going to send me some beech dust intstead of the oak which usually comes with the ProQ. I think beech will really go well with the salmon. I definitely want to try smoking cheese with the ProQ also. I'm sure your cheese will be great. You probably could've went a little longer. You can always put it back in the smoker for maybe another 30-45 mins. I've had to do that. It's better to under smoke.
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    Anne, I think you'll enjoy this device, very easy to use. I used a combination of apple, cherry, and a little of the oak. It did look under smoked, but I wasn't sure, the charcoal method only took an hour or so, but really put out the smoke. Agree, can always do a little longer. We've really gotten hokked on the smoked cheese.

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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  • reelgem
    reelgem Posts: 4,256
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    I like the more subtle smoldering you get with the ProQ vs. the heavier smoke with charcoal. For cheese I stared doing Firetruck's method with the bean can and soldering gun and it works great. Have you tried that? It's so easy and no mess.
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  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
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    I am interested in the results. Lets us know.

    Mike
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    Mike, will let you know. Saw your post re the smoke-pistol you bought, have you tried it yet??

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    Anne, no I haven't tried the can and soldering iron. Sounds like it works great, will try it to compare to the other methods. Can't have to many ways to get a good result.

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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  • reelgem
    reelgem Posts: 4,256
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    I can't wait to get my ProQ. Don Marco's salmon he did with it looked incredible. I also want to try a ham with it. I'm going to do a few practice runs before Easter.
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  • Big George's BBQ
    Big George's BBQ Posts: 1,152
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    Other people that I have read on the forums really like them I really want to get one of these. How long do you let thoings rest before eating
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    I'm not an experienced chesse smoker, but rest time varies according to taste. I usually test it after 2-3 days. If it tastes too bitter, I'll let it rest longer. From what I see on the forum, some let it rest for a week. Boils down to personal preference. Usually a coupe days as a minimum for me. Hope this helps.

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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  • probie
    probie Posts: 102
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    what was the cost of this item??
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    It's made in the UK, so it depends on the exchange rate. I ended paying about $42 which included shipping and a bag of oak saw dust.

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
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    Not yet, going to try to this weekend.

    Mike
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  • Ian
    Ian Posts: 4
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    I've found it's best to smoke cheese for between 2 - 3 hours, using the ProQ Cold Smoke Generator, it depends on the type of cheese.
    It produces a gentler smoking process than other methods, and does not add much colour to the food, but adds flavour (I've only noticed a significant change in colour when I used Beech dust on some Haddock).
    I leave my cheese to rest overnight which works fine for me... couldn't leave it for longer, as the family love it.
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  • field hand
    field hand Posts: 420
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    Thanks Ian. I smoked the cheese for about two hours, will be tasting it today (has rested for two days). Agree with you about the color, depending on the taste, I may have to smoke it for another hour or so. Thanks again.

    Barry
    Marthasville, MO
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