BRITU Rib Recipe is For Real!


 
Ron G.

Ron G.

TVWBB Wizard
Last weekend, took a swing at the BRITU recipe.

Followed it as closely as I could, with the following exceptions:

-Used Lump instead of Briqs (I think it calls for Briqs?)

-Used Apple (Don't have Oak or Cherry)

-Used quite a bit of smoke wood, since I think that the Grove lump I use does not impart a lot of "smokiness" on its own, plus Apple is pretty mild.

It was a bit windy and from the SE, which seemed to work in my favor. It made holding the low temps for the first 3 hours easy. Did the initial burn-off before putting on the ribs, and she held rock-steady at 210-220, until I cracked the vents for the final hour.

I over-cooked some of mine - just a bit (when I flip 'em next time - I'm moving inner racks to the outside, and outside racks to the middle). Still ended up with just the right balance of tenderness with a nice bark & carmelization on the outside.

Like Chris's instructions state - USE THE SAUCE. Even if you're not a believer in sauce. You just need a single "varnishing" of the ribs with sauce. It mingles perfectly with the dusting of rub.

If you like baby back ribs, and you have not tried this method - give it a whirl. It will not disappoint!
 
It had been a long time since I'd done BRITU so I dusted off the recipe and did it a few weeks ago and I agree, I forgot how good it was. I tweaked mine a bit with some (if memory serves me correctly) cardamom and all spice with excellent results, glad I revisited it.

BTW, where are your pictures?
 
I did BRITU this weekend for the first time in years. All my friends and co-workers raved about the ribs. I thought they were way too salty (the MSG?), probably done on purpose because this is a competition recipe.

Great for a few bones, but I couldn't eat a full rack.
 
The second time I tried the BRITU, I noticed that the BB racks (Hormel) were "enhanced". That will definately pump up the salt.
Next time I will alter the rub to compensate.
BUT the ribs always come out great.
 
I did the BRITU for the first time today. I had problems using their method on the WSM for lighting all of the charcoal and as a result, I could not keep or get the temp high enough. Anyone have similar problems, or did you just use the Minion Method anyway?
 
Sheldon -

Note that the "recipe" for BRITU consists both of the recipe and the method.

It calls for you to add the charcoal and smoke wood, then do a "standard start"

http://www.virtualweberbullet....ireup1.html#standard

Then, I have a hunch that you may have skipped / shortened the next step:

If you have the vents wide-open, a "Standard Start" will often produce a high-temperature "spike" - where you'll normally have to bring it down, rather than worrying about running it too low.

The process calls for you to get the charcoal fully lit, and run for about an hour before putting the meat on. (during which I tweaked the vents - to achieve the approximate desired temperature) This seems to do three key things:

(1) It lets some of the smoke wood burn-off
(2) It pre-heats and stabilizes the smoker
(3) It allows you to bring the smoker into the "low-zone" before adding the meat.

I think that #3 is the key factor

Be sure to follow this step next time. It almost seemed to me that they were cooking too low for the first three hours, but after the final hour at higher heat, they turned-out great! (esp. for a first attempt)
 
Ron, I did follow the directions for starting the charcoal and had the vents closed. This is the step I am questioning as I did get it up to temp but then it kept falling and I never got it over 220. Even at the end when all vents were wide open.
 
Wow!

That's strange
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If you're having trouble maintaining temperature, I would check the following:

-Get the fire breathing:
Top vent open 100% at all times
Lower vents open most of the way, until it gets going
Make sure nothing internal is impeding air-flow
charcoal grates not plugged-up with small stuff
meat not (nearly) completely blocking air flow

Do you get a lot of direct wind exposure to your WSM? If so, maybe try to find a new spot for it, where something acts as a wind-break.

Was you charcoal damp? I've had damp charcoal that was hard to keep lit. When I store it in the garage, I keep it off the floor.

In normal weather, I find that by adjusting vents, i can pretty well regulate my WSM anywhere between around 200 to about 350.

These are just some ideas - hope they help
 
Thanks Ron. I always keep the top vent open 100%. I followed the instructions closely as far as how much charcoal and so on, but I think I am going to go back to the Minion Method as I can get those temps easily. I think I can make the wood burn like they mention, but this is ALWAYS an experiment
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