Could John Willingham be RIGHT??

[jeff lowe]

For the first time I decided to smoke some backbacks WITHOUT removing the membrane and just scoring them in a crosshatch pattern. I rubbed them without mustard and they were a little over 1.5 lbs. Cooked for 4.5 hours at 225 deg. Spritzed with apple cider vinegar at the 2:15 mark then halfway until done.

Result was fantastic! I believe the membrane held in the flavor and moistness. The membrane was not tough at all and I actually liked the taste. Kind of like a crisp hot dog.

I wonder if it worked because my babybacks were so small. I wonder if it would work on spares too?

Anyone ever smoke with the membrane ON??

 

[Kevin Taylor]

Hey Jeff!

I smoked ribs(spares mainly) with the membrane on for about 5 years....I didn't know any better. Then when I was told about it, I couldn't get the damn things off! Now, they come off so easily, I remove them for every cook.

I did notice a difference. I personally do not care for it...I don't like ANY type of casings, especially on hot dogs. It tends to be chewy and rather tough and that is just not consistent with the product I am trying to serve.

Keep in mind, John smokes his ribs on hangers and many think keeping the membrane on helps to avoid them splitting and falling down.

As to the theory they hold in the moisture, that is impossible when they are scored and then hung, any fluid will find it's way "out". The same will hold true if they are scored and placed on a grill.....the moisture will find a way out.

Matter of fact, why score them at all? If leaving them on is so great, why score?

One other problem with the membrane is it will not allow the rubs to penetrate. Granted, you can just not rub the bone side, but I like to rub down both sides of the rack....better dispersement of the rub.

Having said all that, there are a few others that do not remove the membrane, most notably Danny Gaulden. However, Danny runs a high volume business and may not have the time to remove membranes from hundreds of racks every day.

Don't get me wrong, I have talked, at quite some length on 2 occasions at the MIM contests, with John and I follow his advice on keeping the temps steady around 220-225?, but I think leaving the membranes on has hurt his showings on the BBQ circuit. I cannot remember the last time he has won anything with his ribs. Again, NOT being critical, he puts out a GREAT tasting product...I just don't agree with him on this one aspect.

 

[Jim Minion]

Jeff
I will say I agree with Kevin, the only time I leave the membrane on is if I doing a very large quanity of ribs in a commercial situation and then I score them also.
For competition making a judge try to eat membrane is just not going to get the job done.
The nice thing about Q is you get to cook it like you want and Jeff if you like it, it's not wrong.
Jim

 

[Ken Nelson]

Good morning, Jeff.

If you, your family, and friends feel the membrane adds something beneficial to your ribs, then by all means leave them on. I’m guessing that the membrane on your b-backs was much thinner than it is on spares and that’s why you were able to easily bite through it.

But, I have to agree with Stogie that leaving the membrane on hurts a cook’s score in competition. I judge at KCBS events and it’s not often that we’re presented with samples with the membrane intact on b-backs or spares. In every instance that I can think of, I don’t recall any judge commenting that the membrane improved the taste and/or tenderness of the meat. Rather, its presence generally left a negative impression.

Granted, removing the membrane can be a tedious task. But, if I was competing and spent several hundred dollars on meat, supplies, entry fees, travel, and so on to attend a contest with prize money and bragging rights on the line, I’d consider that little extra effort to remove the membrane would be worth the trouble.

At your next smoke, do an experiment and throw on a slab of spares with its membrane on. Better yet, do a Pepsi Challenge and remove the membrane from a second slab. I’m willing to bet you’ll need both hands to tug the meat from the membrane when you take a bite from the first slab.

Have fun playing your food!


Ken

 

[Guest]

Good morning Jeff:
I'm not a BBQ competitor nor caterer but have smoked ribs both with and without membranes removed finding every time that by removing the membrane I deliver a superior tasting product to my family and guests. Additionally, I've read Willingham's recipe book many times over attempting to determine and follow his logic but have never been as successful as when I've followed the advice of the VWB members and other pro's like Paul Kirk. Nonetheless, his concepts are interesting and judging by the list of awards in his book, he has apparently done something right and that's much, much more than I'll accomplish in the BBQ world (except of course in by backyard)!!
John

 

[Guest]

LOL....You know what is real fun? Removing the membrane from Beef ribs.

 

[Jim Langford]

It seems I read somewhere that if you put ribs in the freezer for a while and get them really cold first it's a lot easier to remove the membrane. Have any of you tried that?

Mr S.

 

[Guest]

Hi Jeff,
This issue, like so many others comes down to whatever suits your tastes best. I have never competed, but I have studied Willingham's book like it was a Bible. Personally, I have gotten my best results by removing the membrane. My family and friends prefer St. Louis cut spares over baby backs or any other cut, so I go with what works for me.
I'll also say that advice from Jim Minion, Stogie, Chris, and all of the other veterans on this board carries as much weight as Mr. Willingham's. When I look at where I was a year ago, I was turning out a good batch of ribs with a Charbroil water smoker. The thermometer read cold, ideal, and hot; I had to drill holes in the charcoal pan as well as raise the coals up to get my fire to stay lit, and I would only try ribs and chicken. Now I have a WSM with the Brinkman water pan, polder probe, am using the Minion method, and am cranking out excellent ribs, chicken, pulled pork, brisket, etc. and am seriously thinking about competing next year. Ultimately when I want to try a new recipe that looks good, I go with one from Willingham's book. It is always good. But I always use some technique taught to me by this board. It's basically a perfect marriage.
Good barbeque recipes are actually pretty common, and that's what makes being a WSM owner great. Once you get the simple operations down, you have the ability to explore an awful lot of options. This is, IMHO, the fun part of barbeque. Happy Qing to you!

Derek