Hi everyone. So I'm a new owner and new to this forum, so thought in my first post I'd say hello and tell you about my first two cooks. 

Firstly are there any other British eggheads on here? Surprise me - BGE's aren't all that well known in the UK! The neighbours had no idea what the hell I was building. I'd really like to know what charcoal UK folk use - the BGE charcoal can only be bought from BGE UK and with the delivery charge, doesn't work out very economical. 

Only a couple of cooks in, I'm really impressed with the BGE. My confession is that I'm terrible at BBQs, have only owned a £20 crappy BBQ before (the classic British way - used to char burgers and sausages) but my love of steak, British roasts and the American barbecue prompted me to buy a BGE. It's an expensive but impressively made piece of kit. First cook on Boxing Day I followed this recipe, adjusted to cook a larger leg of lamb: http://thebbqbuddha.com/smoked-leg-of-lamb-on-the-big-green-egg

First thing that struck me was how hot it gets, so quickly. I lit the charcoal, waited 10 mins with lid up, closed lid with vents fully open and in about 30 or 60 seconds the temperature hit 250c / 580f (it was a v windy day which probably contributed). After a brief bit of confusion I used the vents to tease it down to 120c so I could put the lamb on. 

I used a few hickory chunks, patiently watched my wireless meat probe for 4hrs and it came out smokey with almost a ham flavour on the outside and rich, soft, medium rare lamb on the inside. I've never been much of a fan of rare lamb (prefer it cooked so it falls off the bone) but this was great. 

The next day I invited the in-laws round, cooking for 6 adults and 2 kids and it didn't quite go according to plan. Two racks of short ribs, following the Pitt Cue recipe book. 

Internal meat temp climbed to 68c after about 3hrs (approx from memory) then stalled for SEVEN HOURS. After 7hrs it had actually only climbed to 71 and wouldn't budge. I think the mistake I made, last minute before putting the ribs on was deciding to put a large pan of water below the ribs. Just a sudden thought to do so without any regard for how much water to use (also wasn't in the recipe) and maybe that kept the ribs moist and unable to climb out of the stall. It was late, and if I was just cooking for me and the wife I'd ride it out and eat at midnight if need be, but because I had a family of hungry inlaws waiting (and because the original recipe suggested 6hrs cooking total) I broke and transferred them to my indoor oven, set to 110c, meat probe still in and then they cooked to 89c in about another hour or so. 



Disappointed that I had to resort to an oven, but they were still delicious - a teeny bit less tender than I'd hoped but with a good crust, soft and full of flavour. I'll definitely try again without the water pan. 

But I feel that's the fun of the BGE - so many variables that I'll learn through experimentation. 

Some newbie questions I'd appreciate help with:

When following recipe guidelines (say it says 110c) do you follow the built-in dome thermometer or use the reading on an electronic grill thermometer? I find that the dome reads about 20c hotter. For the ribs I cooked in the middle - grill temp was about 100c, dome was 120c most of the time. 

I'm planning to get a pizza stone. Where do you recommend placing it? I've seen various configurations: on the plate setter? On the grill?

Thanks in advance. And happy new year!