Spare Ribs - Slow or Fast?


 

Alfred Y

TVWBB Member
I had the opportunity to eat ribs that were cooked by a good friend @ roughly 225-250 and they were amazing. I don't remember the cook time, but the texture was perfect.

I had always done 275-300 for my spare ribs and I've had trouble with overcooking. It was hard to nail the right cook times: usually 2 hours then .5 hrs in a foil. Sometimes it would be way too easy to overcook and sometimes it would be decent.

Has anyone had experience with either temperatures?
 
Time is only a guideline. Since no two animals are exactly the same, neither is the cooking time the same, no matter what the temperature.

Since you indicated you have foiled, then there are at least 2 cooking steps. One in which the ribs are uncovered and one in which the ribs are foiled. This can be followed by another step in which the ribs are sauced and allowed to tighten up unfoiled.

First step is complete when you have 1) the color you like and/or 2) the bark is set. (remembering that time is but a guideline)
Second step is complete when the ribs test correct for tenderness, using either (or both) the Bend Test or the Probe Test.
This leave only the Third step as a variable.

Our family cooks ribs at 275.

HTH
 
Alfred, after lots of racks of ribs, my go-to method has been to cook them at 240. I typically go 6-6.5 hours, no foil, until they are tender to my liking. Bob's point about variability in every cut of meat you cook is dead on, so I usually do a quick test for tenderness around 5 hours to confirm that they are tracking as expected. Sometimes, they are done a bit sooner, and I've had a few go up to 7 hours. There are many different methods used by lots of different cooks to arrive at the finished rib they are looking for. None of them are gospel, so the only way to come up with what works for you to consistently produce product you like is practice. If you are having some trouble getting consistent results you like, change things up (it's good to only change one variable at a time.) Try cooking at a lower temp, or not foiling at the same temp you have been using, use an empty water pan, etc, etc. The great news is that almost every effort produces food that tastes great.

Keep a log of each cook so you can remind yourself what you did and what the results were. Eventually, you'll settle on what works best for you.

Rich
 
Thanks guys, as I understand it from your responses, a good set of ribs basically requires more monitoring than I've done so far.

And yes, I actually have logs and pics saved in Evernote documenting 80% of my rib cooks. I even document the temperature changes at various intervals.

I think I've slacked off on checking and the result is overcooking the ribs.
 
Yep, been there, Alfred! Complacency (and sometimes bourbon) can send a cook into a tailspin! ;)

R

=D

I had thought I could allocate more time to cooking or taking care of other things while letting what's in the WSM cook, but it appears I need rethink that!

Thanks again
 
As the saying goes: Low 'n Slow. IMO, "hot and fast" sounds like someone didn't plan properly or smoking was a last minute option.
 
Actually, hot and fast is being used by some top seeded pro bbq teams. And very successfully, too.

It's just another method in a pitmaster's bag of tools.
 
Actually, hot and fast is being used by some top seeded pro bbq teams. And very successfully, too.

It's just another method in a pitmaster's bag of tools.
Thanks. I've seen them on TV. But I don't see a need for urgency when smoking at home. It's an activity for pleasure, not work. Good things take time. :wsm:
 
I smoked spares 2 weeks ago in 22" WSM with outside temp about 75 no wind. Slow smoked at 225 and took right at 6 hours. Kingsford original coals. Straight on with no foil and water half full.
 
Not traditional BBQ, but I cooked these spares REALLY hot and fast - about 500*F, indirect heat, for half an hour. They were the best ribs I've ever had. Keep meaning to do them again but with a traditional BBQ rub.

Original recipe: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/grilled-italian-spareribs

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I've cooked spare ribs successfully over a wide range of temperatures. Some people say that today's leaner pork is better suited to higher temperature than the traditional, fatter cuts of the past.

It's easier to overcook at the higher temperature end of the spectrum, though. Things happen faster at high temperature and you need to keep an eye on it. Low and slow is a bit more forgiving.
 
for ribs I use the 3-2-1 method @225 degrees, works perfect every time. That's 3 hours unwrapped, 2 hours wrapped in foil by the last hour unwrapped. google is your friend with this one, plenty of articles on it. That's for spare ribs, for baby backs I use 2-2-1.
 

 

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