after my latest review i doubt i will ever do low/slow ribs again


 
Tony C.

Tony C.

TVWBB Wizard
saturday i was sitting home alone since my son who just turned 6 on july 1st was having a sleepover and my wife works from 10am until 9pm on saturdays. around noon i had a desire for ribs and headed out to the store and got 2 racks of spares and ABT fixings. i got home and set up the WSM with blue bag K(leftover from HD memorial day sale) and got a half chimney of K started. while the chimney was getting ready to go i gave the ribs a st louis trim and set the trimmings aside to wrap/freeze for another day. not wanting to take the time to make a rub i rummaged in the cupboard and found enough John Henry pecan rub for both racks. i had a hankering for ribs at noon and by 1:30 they were on the WSM at 275º with 3 big chunks of pecan.

the WSM ran from 275-300º for 3 hours no problem with all the vents wide open. after 3 hours i foiled the ribs(no liquid) and put them in the oven at 275 and put my ABTs on. i had the lid offset to get up to 350 and after an hour they were done. i put both racks of ribs back on the WSM to firm and sauced one rack. after 15 minutes i took them back off and rested under foil for 30 minutes. since i was the only one here and i had ABTs, i barely got 1/2 a rack of the sauced down. they were juicy,pull off the bone tender and smokey good.i food saved the remaining rack and a half. me and my son decided we wanted ribs tonight so i took the unsauced rack and put it in a foil pan with a little chicken/beef broth mixture, foiled and heated in the oven at 400 for 30 minutes, then put them on a cookie sheet and back in the oven for 7 minutes to firm up. i sliced them up and put them on my son's plate and put some sauce(no. 5) on the side. i went about my business because i wasn't hungry after working in the 100º heat all day. so here's where the review came. i was on the computer and my boy came up and hugged me and said "thanks for the best food i have eaten ever. those ribs were juicier than any of the ones you've made so far" i swear those were his exact words. i had tears in my eyes.

but also on another note, i opened a can of bush's southern pit grillin' beans to go with tonights ribs and he said those were the best i've ever made too
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. while i do think they are good for out of the can beans, they don't compare to hog-apple beans
 
I feel your pain Tony. I went to a BBQ competition a couple of weeks ago with my 7 y.o. daughter who absolutely loves my BBQ. They did not allow the competitors to serve food, but did have vendors selling somewhat passable BBQ to the public. After paying a ridiculous price for 2 pulled pork sandwiches, which I thought were okay at best, I asked her what she thought and she said: "I think it tastes as good as yours". All I could do was hang my head and wonder about the palate of a child. I still wouldn't trade her for anything in this world.
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i probably could have got them done sooner if i offset the lid to get 325 or so, but along with the ribs i got 12 land sharks and was more worried about those than trying to get the temp any higher
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Rob Ruth:
and she said: "I think it tastes as good as yours". </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

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They can be brutally honest sometimes.

But i wouldent take it to serious coming from a kid that thinks sugar is the top reason to live on this planet.

My kids hardly touch my bbq the old one (4yearsold) love the PP but hates the rest

Bless
 
Like I have said befor I have plenty a time being retired and my ribs have been coming out so good I would never change a thing low and slow for me and no foil !

I agree when you find a way that works for you stick to it good Q is special so do it the way you like it . were it be HH low and slow or foiled whatever works . there is NO right or wrong way .

If I was still working I would be all over HH methods iam sure .
 
My target smoker temp for ribs is no longer in the low to mid 200s anymore after my most recent cook.

I started with the Minion method and left it alone for a little too long, and the temp shot up to 300*F. I put a rack of extra meaty back ribs on to smoke for two hours, wrapped in foil with abundant juice for another two hours, then allowed it to firm up just a tad for about 20 minutes.

Result: quicker cook time; fall-off-the-bone, tender, moist ribs - just the way I like them

Conclusion: going forward when making ribs, aim for 300*F and use ample juice in foil
 
I worked very hard over the last few months to improve my ribs. I tried temps from 225 F to 325 F.

I found that I got the best results at around 275 F. Lower temps were good too, but many times the outside meat was tough and dry. With temps over 275 F I found that my ribs, especially spares, retained too much fat.

I can cook ribs at 275 F without foiling them and they come out very tender and moist without being greasy.

Foiling them does speed up the cooking process but it can also dillute the flavor and make the ribs mushy. To combat those two draw backs, I found that foiling for about 45 minutes to an hour is long enough. Then, I let them cook unfoiled to render a little more fat and concentrate flavor.

I have tried everything in the foil from water to broth to honey to juice. Right now, I'm liking a little butter and about 1/2 cup of Blues Hog TN Red. It gives the ribs a nice color and adds a little flavor at the same time.

I am still experimenting so I may change any or all of that at any time.
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Great thread and posts, guys!

All I have to add is that even though some of my last cook's spares were darker than I would have liked 'em, I did some untrimmed spares on the bottom rack at about 275, and they turned out fantastic.

I usually run my wsm full and don't want to mess with foiling, so I think I either have to use less chili powder and only turbinado sugar if I don't want 'em to get too dark. On the other hand, maybe if I am more careful about keeping the ends away from the outside of the grate I can use the same rub if I'm just more careful not to overcook. They definately were more juicy cooking at 275 than 250. I wonder how Mike Mills won Memphis in May with his sub-225-cooked bbs.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">only turbinado sugar if I don't want 'em to get too dark </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I go with less chile (sometimes much less) and either all or mostly white sugar in the mix. (I don't make sugar-heavy rubs, regardless.)

Maybe Mills foiled.
 
Personaly I don't care how dark they get since Iam not cooken for show ! But dark and burned are 2 diffrent things never burned any yet ! But give me time I have burned plenty a stuf on other smokers . I always say there just golden brown thats what my mom use to tell us as kids when she burned somthing
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Besides I like brown sugar in my rubs hate vinegar sauces ! EXCEPT my wifes slaw .. But being born and raised in Michigan we like our ribs with sweeet sauce mostly ! Thou this weekend my PP was so good we didn't put any sauce near it or the brisket .

I gotta bomb on a brisket sooner or later. The last 3 been perfect stupid juicy and I know there easy to screw up. I been lucky because Iam sure not that great a cook
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