EZ Que review

[Greg_R]

I've been using the EZ Que for the past few months and decided to post my experiences with the unit. I got both the 6" and 8" cradle along with the A/C 50lb motor (could also be battery operated).

Sales / Pre-sales support:

EZ Que was quick to respond to all of my pre-sale questions. Their website shows a few of the features but it's hard to actually find the correct product for the KK grill for online ordering. I recommend calling EZ Que directly to place your order. KK owners want the 17.5" long cradle with either the 6" or 8" width + a motor (50lb or 30lb). Dennis sells the L brackets that you'll need to mount the EZ Que motor to the KK. I got my order prompty but was missing the motor. I called up EZ Que and they immediately fixed the situation. Overall, a good customer service experience.

Setup:

The first step is to mount the motor. You'll attach the bracket by loosening the 2 nuts on the right side of the grill (note that this is where the rod attachment goes). The KK is pretty slick... you'll have 1 small piece of square rod going from the motor to the grill wall (where there is a socketed piece) and another piece on the inside that attaches to the actual rotisserie cradle. In other words, there is no actual 'hole' in the KK... just a 2 sided socket that can rotate. Keep the bracket loose and mount the motor and square rod. Once in place, tighten everything up. I had some issues here... the motor did not perfectly align with the KK socket. I ended up enlarging the mounting holes in the bracket to ensure correct alignment.

Now I had to hook up the cradle. One side accepts a small round rod and the other accepts a square rod (to go into the drive socket of the KK). After hooking everything up, I fired up the motor. It is LOUD (compared to my previous grill's rotis motor). I would not want to sit close to the motor and try to hold a conversation. Also, I noticed it turned in the wrong direction! EZ Que went through some trouble to ensure that the threads of their cradle both screwed in the same way (i.e. one clockwise, one counter clockwise). However, the motor spins in a direction that is opposite of both! Most rotis's I've used have the motor spin so it could tighten the threads. I called EZ Que and they said that I was using the unit correctly and to tighten up the cradle thread with a crescent wrench. This held when I rotis'd 2 turkeys in the 8" unit but I still worry about the threads loosening mid-cook and causing a problem.

The Cook:

The 1st item I tried cooking was a young chicken (brined and dry rubbed with salt and pepper). I used a 6" cradle and the hold downs worked exceptionally well. Getting the meat attached to the cradle is super-easy with this system and a pleasure to use. For later cooks I did 2 small turkeys in the 8" cradle and a pork loin in the 6"... all shapes and sizes were held securely with the EZ Que hold downs. I recommend sticking a drip pan under your meat to limit the mess in your KK. All the meat has come out _great_ and was super-tender and delicious. Chickens and turkeys are especially good. I've been trying various sprays during cooks (juices, booze, oils, etc.) and they've all turned out great.

The Clean up:

As much as I love the EZ Que cradle, the clean up is not trivial (like a spit rod). There are a lot of bars, knobs, and other grooves that need cleaning. It wasn't a complete pain, just do it while the juices are still hot (don't wait until everything has congealed on the cradle!). I keep the EZ Que motor permanently attached to the outside of my KK.

Great features:

- Motor attachment to KK without having a hole in the KK!

- Full stainless construction of cradle

- Cradle and hold-downs are sturdy and securely fasten the meat (regardless of the shape)

- 6" and 8" option are great. The 8" cradle will hold smaller birds but you'll need to be more careful with placing the hold downs (i.e. sides are not held in by the cradle bars). For me it was worth getting both cradles for the peace of mind.

Areas for improvement:

- Motor alignment to KK hole (bracket issue?)

- Have the motor spin in the opposite direction (or change the threading on the cradle). I'm thinking about hacking my motor and see if I can change the direction of rotation.

- Motor noise needs to be reduced

[Farmer John]

I would bet there is something wrong with the motor. Mine is quiet as can be and the pins stayed tight the whole time. I bought the 8" only. By the way for those of you who get one.

Left side is the push-pin type with threads, right side cradle is the one with threads and it is a little tight to slide in to the KK. The other square pin slides in to the motor, then you slide the motor on the bracket, then you slide the pin in to the hole on the KK. Failure to slide it all the way in can cause you to quit turning and you know what that means over hot coals!