Hi Guys,
I'm new to the #3, but not to smoking. My go-to process is a variation on the 2-2-1 method, putting the ribs in a foil pan, rather than wrapping them. Easier to keep the apple juice in there
.
Anyway, I tried doing that in my #3 and got weird results. After 2 hours the meat was moist and gray. I did have a pan arranged between the peak of the smoker box and one of the shelf ledges, which prob explains the moisture. I know that electric smokers don't produce bark, but I was surprised to see an almost total lack of brown. I then put the ribs in the foil pans and the #3 never got about 165. Company was coming over in a few hours, so I finished the ribs on the grill.
After reading a bunch of posts on this forum, it seems lots of people use the "no peeking" method, rather than 2-2-1. Is that because 2-2-1 isn't recommended in a #3? Could it be that the foil pans somehow messed with the thermostat?
I'll try the "no-peek" method next weekend, as this cook was anything but Lazy-q!
Thanks!
I'm new to the #3, but not to smoking. My go-to process is a variation on the 2-2-1 method, putting the ribs in a foil pan, rather than wrapping them. Easier to keep the apple juice in there

Anyway, I tried doing that in my #3 and got weird results. After 2 hours the meat was moist and gray. I did have a pan arranged between the peak of the smoker box and one of the shelf ledges, which prob explains the moisture. I know that electric smokers don't produce bark, but I was surprised to see an almost total lack of brown. I then put the ribs in the foil pans and the #3 never got about 165. Company was coming over in a few hours, so I finished the ribs on the grill.
After reading a bunch of posts on this forum, it seems lots of people use the "no peeking" method, rather than 2-2-1. Is that because 2-2-1 isn't recommended in a #3? Could it be that the foil pans somehow messed with the thermostat?
I'll try the "no-peek" method next weekend, as this cook was anything but Lazy-q!
Thanks!