3 hours @ 325* - not enough?


 
Joe V

Joe V

TVWBB Fan
I grilled a couple racks of baby backs on the Performer yesterday. Used the minion method along with a couple of firebricks to keep the coals banked along the side of the grill.

Temperatures held steady at 325* for the entire cook but the ribs did not come out tender. I joked during dinner time that it must have been an old pig but I'm thinking they needed another half-hour?

Thoughts?
 
I do my loin backs at 325 for 90 minutes and then foil for another 45 minutes or so to achieve tender. Total cook time is almost always 2:15 this way.

Three hours at 325 sure seems like enough time to get your ribs done. Maybe your therm isn't accurate. Were you peeking often?
 
Only peaked twice - once at the 90min mark and once to slather the ribs with Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce around 30 minutes before the end of the cook.

The ribs were moist, but chewy. I probably should add that I purchased them at Walmart.
 
All ribs are not created equal. They are done when they are done.

If you need them to be ready by a certain time I'd give an extra hour and hold them until dinner time.
 
Sure you were cooking that high? Only reason I ask is that the lid gauge reads a good bit higher than the grate temp.

I'm being kind of slow to learn the actual difference on my new Performer since chicken is about the only thing I cook indirect on it.
 
Where were the coals banked? If they were banked on the front side of the grill, the dome thermometer is positioned towards the front and would read higher than the cooking grid. Wouldn't doubt if the cooking area was 50-100 degrees lower than what the dome therm read, which would be too low to expect them to be done in 3 hours. That's assuming it's still accurate. I don't trust mine any more. I rely mostly on a 732 probe hanging though the dome vent, which is always over a drip pan.
 
Coals were banked along the back with the ribs in the front. I positioned the lid so that the vent was over the ribs and the dome thermometer was to the left.

I've avoided the purchase of a probe but now I'm thinking I may not be getting an accurate read from the dome thermometer.
 
Oh, it's probably accurate enough, but I like to check all mine occasionally in boiling water on the stove.

Regardless of the therm's accuracy though, I'd recommend a simple oven therm. placed on the grate next to the meat so you can observe the difference in temps. Keep in mind that fire bricks, water pans, and such will all change things, so keep all variables in mind when trying to figure out what lid temps you need for figuring temp/times.

Maybe some of the guys that have been using Performers longer will chime in, but in my limited experience so far, I think the lid therm is often 30* or so higher than the grate with an indirect set-up like the one you had.
 
I recently (several months ago) bought a Maverick 732 thermometer and put the temperature probe clipped on the grill. Then I record my cooking temperatures for future reference.

I do my ribs (spares)indirect on my Weber 22.5" OTG using the minion method. I use firebricks to hold the charcoal against one side. I cook at 300 degrees. I have no trouble holding that.

Dale53
 
Doesn't much matter where you purchased the ribs. And ribs are pretty much 'created equal'. There might be some quality differences but if they come from a US commercial packer the differences, if any, are limited. One only needs to adjust for thickness.

Temp differences between the grate and lid don't matter either. Well, if the lid says one thing and the grate is, say, actually substantially lower then yes, cooking will take longer. But so what? Either get used to that or simply raise the cooktemp so your lid gauge reflects the higher temp.

If you cook till the ribs are tender - not by time - the ribs will be perfect every time. The meat will always tell you when it is done. A clock won't.

(I temp kettles at the vent.)
 
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