Back Rib Cooking Process - For My First Comp


 
J

James Harvey

TVWBB Pro
Hi All,

I have an amateur rib comp on Fathers Day, my first comp, and thought I'd run my process for criticisms and any tips.

Long and short of the comp/cook:

We load in at 9am (quite a hike to our assigned area). Bring all of our own gear except the ribs. The event staff provide us with 2 racks of backs just shy of noon (no idea what the meat looks like). Cooking commences at noon, turn in is 5pm, 9 X 9 container, 6 bones minimum, no garnish. My plan is this:

1) Light WSM around 10:30am (we have a judges meeting at 11am). Using K MM with a Stoker to 275F cook temp and 3 chunks hickory, 1 chunk cherry.
2) Prep the racks (remove fat and membrane and rub asap) once we get the ribs
3) Racks on around 12:30pm
4) After 2 1/2 hours, remove and foil meat side down with some liquid for 1 hour (3pm foil until 4pm)
5) Unfoil, sauce and back on the smoker for 30 minutes (4:30pm)
6) Remove, sit for 10 minutes and competition slice (cut for maximum meat, I figure 3 bones per rack) (4:45pm)
7) Place in container, re-sauce and add a very light dusting of rub (4:50pm)
8) Lightly spritz presentation container with AJ then clean for turn in (4:55pm)
9) Run as fast as we can to turn in.
10) Drink a beer and wait for judging at 6:30pm

I know I'm cutting the last few steps tight but I'm worried about sending in cold ribs. I'm sure this won't be the actual sequence but it's my plan so far.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated
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I don't see much fine tuning that could be done on the BBQ side. Fine tuning on the comp side might be found posting in the competition section.
 
Thanks Russell. I wasn't sure where to post this since I was hoping for more input on the cook side vs. the logistics.

I don't do backs much so I thought the above might stir up some tips. When I have done backs, the meaty top side tends to dry out on the big side but I expect to cut from the middle.
 
You probably don't want to mess with re-saucing once you've placed the ribs in the container; it risks a sloppy box or sloppy sauce or both.
 
Bob, that's my plan. I'm going to cut them with as much meat on either side of the bone that I can get.
This means I use 5 bones to get 3 presentation ribs per rack. The 2 middle bones should be pretty bare on the sides.
I do have a worry about getting 6 bones, side by side, in a 9" container with the max meat ribs. I may have to go top and bottom.

Dave, I just plan to add a light, controlled baste once in the box (like a single brush stroke). I'll wipe the box as needed. Hopefully, I can be neat enough.
 
Sorry from your first post I was thinking you were handing in 6x3 bone mini racks. You shouldn't have a problem getting 6 presentable bones from 2 racks of ribs as long as the racks are fairly consistent in size.

You might want to give yourself an extra 15 minutes to alleviate some stress. I've seen guys ruin turn ins of perfectly good ribs because they had to rush at the end.
Kind of wishing I was in TO this weekend. Where is the comp?
 
Thanks Bob. The amateur comp is at Woodbine Beach in Toronto. We have a Beer and Rib Fest happening there. The rib comp is 30 entrants, 5 cooking hours and 6 bones in a 9 X 9 plain box.

I used to live around there and a Sunday afternoon on the beach is hard to beat.

I agree that I need a time cushion. I'm hoping to pick this up early so I'm not sweating turn in.
 
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