Can we close all three lower vents?


 
I too cook bbs at 275 for about 2hrs and like Rick I only foil for 30 to 45min. I don't want the fall off the bone ribs, I want a little tug when I bite through that rib. When foiling ribs 10 to 15min ether way can be the difference between great texture and fall off the bone. Also keep in mind that BB cook faster than Spares. The best of luck and great smoking.
 
Rick Body said:
Definitely think your time in foil was the problem. I do my bb's at 275, but I have timed my foiling on them down to 30-45 minutes just to tenderize the a little. Any more than that and they get soft easy.

Lately I have been using no foil and just cooking straight through and they come out great to, so experiment some on your next cook.

At least they tasted good!

Oh, and I did some beef ribs last Tuesday and put them on around 260 and let them cook without foil. They came out great so both ways works
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Thanks Rick. I will try a shorter time into the foil next time!
 
V_Rocco said:
Careful how many coals you light initially. Minion is your friend. :) I bet they still tasted good?
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Had the charcoal bowl about 2/3 rd filled with unlit and added 20 lit coals. Seemed to do a good job, I just have to try to stop the heat earlier when it's rising I think.
 
I have found the number of coals I light to be key in determining what temp my 22 runs at. I pretty much always use the Minion Method. If I am going for around 300 or so, 15-20 lit coals should do the trick. I may go down to as few as 10-12 to run between 230-250. As someone said earlier, much easier to bring the temp up once & settle in then to bring it up & try to bring it back down again.
 
Frank Mahovlich said:
I have found the number of coals I light to be key in determining what temp my 22 runs at. I pretty much always use the Minion Method. If I am going for around 300 or so, 15-20 lit coals should do the trick. I may go down to as few as 10-12 to run between 230-250. As someone said earlier, much easier to bring the temp up once & settle in then to bring it up & try to bring it back down again.
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Thanks Frank. I will try about 12-15 coals instead of 20 next time. Plus the fact it's 100 degrees here makes it more difficult keeping the temp lower rather than higher... I am shooting for 250..
 
Generally I use the top vent if I get that hot. Small adjustments there can make a huge difference. Just cut it back to something like 75% open with 2 bottom vents closed and the other at maybe 20% and the temp will usually settle down That's what usually works for me.
 
Dustin Dorsey said:
Generally I use the top vent if I get that hot. Small adjustments there can make a huge difference. Just cut it back to something like 75% open with 2 bottom vents closed and the other at maybe 20% and the temp will usually settle down That's what usually works for me.
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Thanks Dustin... I will try using the top vent this weekend to control the temp better..
 
you can absolutely close all three bottom vents.....your heat will not go out....and once you get down to desired temp 220 for example then you can start opening slightly and managing going forward. Don't worry about closing all three bottom ones there is lots of time to manage it if you start going below your desired temp....enjoy
 
Several good things mentioned in this post:

1. Pick a target temp, but don't get stuck on it. My WSM loves to run around 275*. Anywhere +/- 25* of that and I am happy. If it is running lower than my target, I expect it to take a little longer. Higher, a little faster.
2. Start with less coals. Easier to increase temp than it is to decrease it.
3. Catch the temp on it's way up. When I hit 250*, I usually close two bottom vents, give it 15 mins and see where it's at.
4. Weather can be a factor. Make sure your open vent doesn't face the wind. On hot days (100*), it might want to run a little hotter.

Blackened food can also be caused by putting the food on too quick and not waiting to get Thin Blue Smoke (TBS). You should barely see any smoke coming out of the top when you throw the meat on. Takes my WSM about 20 or 30 mins to get to that point. White, billowy smoke is not good eats.

It takes me less then 4 hours to make spares at around 275*. I usually do 2 hours nekkid, 30 - 45 mins foiled, and then the rest of the time nekkid again. When I take it out of foil, I pick up a rack from the end with a pair of tongs. They are done if they bend to nearly 90*.

Good luck. It took me several times and a lot of reading to get it right...
 
THoey said:
Several good things mentioned in this post:

1. Pick a target temp, but don't get stuck on it. My WSM loves to run around 275*. Anywhere +/- 25* of that and I am happy. If it is running lower than my target, I expect it to take a little longer. Higher, a little faster.
2. Start with less coals. Easier to increase temp than it is to decrease it.
3. Catch the temp on it's way up. When I hit 250*, I usually close two bottom vents, give it 15 mins and see where it's at.
4. Weather can be a factor. Make sure your open vent doesn't face the wind. On hot days (100*), it might want to run a little hotter.

Blackened food can also be caused by putting the food on too quick and not waiting to get Thin Blue Smoke (TBS). You should barely see any smoke coming out of the top when you throw the meat on. Takes my WSM about 20 or 30 mins to get to that point. White, billowy smoke is not good eats.

It takes me less then 4 hours to make spares at around 275*. I usually do 2 hours nekkid, 30 - 45 mins foiled, and then the rest of the time nekkid again. When I take it out of foil, I pick up a rack from the end with a pair of tongs. They are done if they bend to nearly 90*.

Good luck. It took me several times and a lot of reading to get it right...
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Thanks. It sounds like I need to foil it for less time and less time overall. I was shooting for 250, but it sounds like many cook ribs at 275. Have you seen a difference with cooking at 250 vs. 275? maybe I'll just shoot for 275. Also, since it bent at 90 degrees after the foil, how much longer do you keep it on after taking it out of the foil? Thanks.
 
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