About to smoke ribs with what I learned on the forum
- Thread starter Frederic
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Phil Perrin
TVWBB Hall of Fame
Fred,welcome to the forum first of all.
As far as the coals go,just light some of them. They will slowly light the others and give you a longer cook and a lower cooking temp. HTH
As far as the coals go,just light some of them. They will slowly light the others and give you a longer cook and a lower cooking temp. HTH
K Kruger
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
And restrict your air intake dramatically if cooking on a kettle. Otherwise your unlit will light quickly. Conversely, start with all lit (but not a large amount) and simply do the cook at higher temps. You won't need 4-5 hours. More like 2-3.5, depending on rib type.
Thanks guy.
Ribs are on right now. I lit about 20 coals and placed them on top of 20 unlit. I also put 2 chunk of mesquite wood under the coals and one larger on top. Empty drip pan under the meat. I placed a candy thermometer in one of the vent hole on top and right now, it is at 275. Usually, the other thermometer on the grate is 25 degree colder. Now, I just hope the temp won't go up and that my thermometers are accurate
Enjoy your weekend
Fred
Ribs are on right now. I lit about 20 coals and placed them on top of 20 unlit. I also put 2 chunk of mesquite wood under the coals and one larger on top. Empty drip pan under the meat. I placed a candy thermometer in one of the vent hole on top and right now, it is at 275. Usually, the other thermometer on the grate is 25 degree colder. Now, I just hope the temp won't go up and that my thermometers are accurate
Enjoy your weekend
Fred
I just finished eating my ribs and all I can say is that everybody here is my new best friend The ribs were perfect. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that I wasn't able to get good smoke and it shows with the absence of a smoke ring. There was a good smoke taste but far from perfect. I also had to put another 20 coals into the third hour. I had the top intake open 100% and the bottom one a bit under 50%. The problem I think is that I didn't put enough coals in the beginning.
About the smoke, my chunks weren't soaked and started to smoke at the very beginning and burned out really fast. I probably had an hour of smoking (twice 30 minutes) out of 4.5 hours of cooking.
Overall though, they were my best ribs all summer. Moist, tender and tasty. They were almost falling of the bones and I could see my bite in the meat.
I was thinking that I needed a WSM but now, I think I can make my wife happy, keep the money and smoke properly on my kettle.
I took some pictures and will post them later this weekend.
Fred
The ribs were perfect. The only thing that bothered me was the fact that I wasn't able to get good smoke and it shows with the absence of a smoke ring. There was a good smoke taste but far from perfect. I also had to put another 20 coals into the third hour. I had the top intake open 100% and the bottom one a bit under 50%. The problem I think is that I didn't put enough coals in the beginning. About the smoke, my chunks weren't soaked and started to smoke at the very beginning and burned out really fast. I probably had an hour of smoking (twice 30 minutes) out of 4.5 hours of cooking.
Overall though, they were my best ribs all summer. Moist, tender and tasty. They were almost falling of the bones and I could see my bite in the meat.
I was thinking that I needed a WSM but now, I think I can make my wife happy, keep the money and smoke properly on my kettle.
I took some pictures and will post them later this weekend.
Fred
Scott Guerber.
TVWBB Super Fan
Good to hear! Glad they turned out good (minus the smoke ring). I cook babybacks on the kettle all the time. They normally turn out pretty good. I am trying the WSM tomorrow. Hopefully I get the same results.
Here are my pictures from yesterday.
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/004.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/005.JPG
I had read that mustard would help tenderized the meat. Didn't see a whole lot of difference but even though it was very mild, I could taste it. I only rub mustard on half a rack. I won't do it again.
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/006.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/007.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/008.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/004.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/005.JPG
I had read that mustard would help tenderized the meat. Didn't see a whole lot of difference but even though it was very mild, I could taste it. I only rub mustard on half a rack. I won't do it again.
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/006.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/007.JPG
http://cid-277e1f823beee737.ph...elf.aspx/bbq/008.JPG
Mike Hartwell
TVWBB Pro
Great post.
We all love pics!
Just curious, how did you guage "doneness"?
We all love pics!
Just curious, how did you guage "doneness"?
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike Hartwell:
Great post.
We all love pics!
Just curious, how did you guage "doneness"? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Thanks for the comments.
For doneness, when I start to see around 1/8 of the bones, I cut a piece and tasted it. The second slab though, I had to take a piece because it was the rib tip and didn't have a clear bone to gauge the cooking.
Great post.
We all love pics!
Just curious, how did you guage "doneness"? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Thanks for the comments.
For doneness, when I start to see around 1/8 of the bones, I cut a piece and tasted it. The second slab though, I had to take a piece because it was the rib tip and didn't have a clear bone to gauge the cooking.
Test for done with a metal skewer (like you use for Shish-Kebob) and push through the meat between the bones. Use light pressure. It's done when it passes through with little resistance.
I wouldn't worry about a ring. That will come with some practice. Put the ribs on cold next time and maybe use some soaked wood chips in the beginning to give a little more smoke. You should get a ring.
In the end you want the flavor and done to the way you like them. The ring is secondary, adds no flavor. It's cosmetic only. You're ribs look just fine from this side of the photo.
Great job IMHO for a first rib cook on the kettle. It can be tricky keeping the temps where you want them. If temps get a little out of control, don't be afraid to foil for a little while during the cook.
I wouldn't worry about a ring. That will come with some practice. Put the ribs on cold next time and maybe use some soaked wood chips in the beginning to give a little more smoke. You should get a ring.
In the end you want the flavor and done to the way you like them. The ring is secondary, adds no flavor. It's cosmetic only. You're ribs look just fine from this side of the photo.
Great job IMHO for a first rib cook on the kettle. It can be tricky keeping the temps where you want them. If temps get a little out of control, don't be afraid to foil for a little while during the cook.
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by r benash:
Test for done with a metal skewer (like you use for Shish-Kebob) and push through the meat between the bones. Use light pressure. It's done when it passes through with little resistance.
I wouldn't worry about a ring. That will come with some practice. Put the ribs on cold next time and maybe use some soaked wood chips in the beginning to give a little more smoke. You should get a ring.
In the end you want the flavor and done to the way you like them. The ring is secondary, adds no flavor. It's cosmetic only. You're ribs look just fine from this side of the photo.
Great job IMHO for a first rib cook on the kettle. It can be tricky keeping the temps where you want them. If temps get a little out of control, don't be afraid to foil for a little while during the cook. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Thanks for the comments and for the tip. I'll try the skewer next time.
It wasn't my first rib cook with the kettle but the first one with fire bricks. I tried it again tonight cooking chicken drumsticks for me and some co worker. I don't know if it's because of the outside temperature (60-70) or just my talent but I get the temperature I want very easily. For ribs, I had 275 with a candy thermometer in one of the vent hole on top of the cover. Tonight, I had 350 for all the duration of the cooking. Both dead on in less than 15 minutes.
Test for done with a metal skewer (like you use for Shish-Kebob) and push through the meat between the bones. Use light pressure. It's done when it passes through with little resistance.
I wouldn't worry about a ring. That will come with some practice. Put the ribs on cold next time and maybe use some soaked wood chips in the beginning to give a little more smoke. You should get a ring.
In the end you want the flavor and done to the way you like them. The ring is secondary, adds no flavor. It's cosmetic only. You're ribs look just fine from this side of the photo.
Great job IMHO for a first rib cook on the kettle. It can be tricky keeping the temps where you want them. If temps get a little out of control, don't be afraid to foil for a little while during the cook. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Thanks for the comments and for the tip. I'll try the skewer next time.
It wasn't my first rib cook with the kettle but the first one with fire bricks. I tried it again tonight cooking chicken drumsticks for me and some co worker. I don't know if it's because of the outside temperature (60-70) or just my talent
but I get the temperature I want very easily. For ribs, I had 275 with a candy thermometer in one of the vent hole on top of the cover. Tonight, I had 350 for all the duration of the cooking. Both dead on in less than 15 minutes.Gotcha, sounds like you definitely have temps under control. Are you finding that the firebricks are helping maintain temps? . My low temp smokes in the Performer are limited since I use the WSM for that.
My Performer is primarily used for grilling and rotisserie use. WSM for smokes and longer low temp cooks. With the one touch system I marked some lines on the ash holder so I know the opening size without having to look in side. Once I did that a couple years ago temp control was much more convenient.
Sounds like you got a good system going.
My Performer is primarily used for grilling and rotisserie use. WSM for smokes and longer low temp cooks. With the one touch system I marked some lines on the ash holder so I know the opening size without having to look in side. Once I did that a couple years ago temp control was much more convenient.
Sounds like you got a good system going.
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