During Cook-Ribs Look Dry And Are Not Tender


 
Michael F

Michael F

New member
This may have been covered here a number of times but I would like some extra help.

What do you do when your ribs begin to appear to be drying out towards the end of a cook, yet they are not tender enough to tear easily? I know you are supposed to cook until tender, but will further cooking dry out the meat more? Will they get moist again when more connective tissue breaks down? Or is it only the exterior of the meat that is drying out, forming the bark?

I recently cooked some previously frozen, st louis trimmed spare ribs at a lid temp of 225, rolled, and no foil. At the 6 to 7 hour mark they appeared to be drying out but weren't tender enough yet. I was hesitant to cook them much longer, thinking they would dry out more. I left them on another 45 minutes or so, a total of maybe 7 1/2 hours. They were decent, but not as tender or as moist as they should have been. I sprayed them with apple juice often during the cook. I smoked spare ribs only one other time using a similar method but they came out better. They were not previously frozen.

Can anyone see a problem with my method of cooking that may cause this? Thanks.
 
Originally posted by Michael F:
This may have been covered here a number of times but I would like some extra help.

What do you do when your ribs begin to appear to be drying out towards the end of a cook, yet they are not tender enough to tear easily? I know you are supposed to cook until tender, but will further cooking dry out the meat more? Will they get moist again when more connective tissue breaks down? Or is it only the exterior of the meat that is drying out, forming the bark?

I recently cooked some previously frozen, st louis trimmed spare ribs at a lid temp of 225, rolled, and no foil. At the 6 to 7 hour mark they appeared to be drying out but weren't tender enough yet. I was hesitant to cook them much longer, thinking they would dry out more. I left them on another 45 minutes or so, a total of maybe 7 1/2 hours. They were decent, but not as tender or as moist as they should have been. I sprayed them with apple juice often during the cook. I smoked spare ribs only one other time using a similar method but they came out better. They were not previously frozen.

Can anyone see a problem with my method of cooking that may cause this? Thanks.
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Your WSM temps are too low as you're cooking with a lid temp of 225º. Increase you temps to a range of 245º-260º or higher if you prefer. Spares in the temp range I suggested should be done and tender in roughly 6 hours, but should not take much longer.

You can also introduce foiling, which I do and recommend for 'consistent' ribs, both loinbacks and spares. I use a 4-1-1 method for spares, (4 hours in the smoke, 45min-1hr in foil, 45min-1 out of the foil back on the grill to firm up and sauce). If you prefer, you can add a little liquid (juice, broth) during the foil period.
 
I just "q'd" 2 slabs of spares and a slab of beef ribs. Larry's method works cause I did something similar to it, however we favor ribs that are not in the "fall off the bone" condition. I pulled them off the WSM when between 1/4 to 3/8" of the bone shows. I also cook at 220 deg or so as indicated on the thermometer on the lid.
But if I am cooking for others, I will cook till a bit more tender...

joe
 
As Larry pointed out, try foiling. 7.5 hours, even at lower temps, is too long for ribs IMO. They don't pack the moisture/fat content of a butt or other large pieces of meat. Spaying with apple or other liquids will add flavor but not moisture to the meat. While cooking, the juices are moving outward and what your were hoping for was absorption of moisture; just the opposite of what was happening. Dry meat is an indication of being over cooked. Try foiling and/or higher temps which will allow you to cook the meat in less time.

Paul
 
Michael, I have done the 4-1-1 method of which Larry refers to but with a little twist. I usually go 4-2-1, with the last hour being more like 30 minutes. After 4 hours I double wrap with foil adding about 1/4 cup of apple juice. After 2 hours, I carefully open ( the juice can get a wee bit hot) place back into the smoker for another thirty minutes, sometimes less, then I remove from smoker and place on gasser and finish with a BBQ sauce until firm ( usually about one minute per side), then I pick up all my beer cans and serve my guests before opening another can of beer. It just doesn't get any better than that my friend. Oh yeah Michael and I cook mine at 225* with no problems in terms of dryness.
 
Thanks everyone for your suggestions.

So because I cooked at a lower temp the ribs couldn't get tender before they dried out and over cooked? I realize I may have over cooked them but they never passed the tear test. Is it possible to over cook them and still have them be tough? Could they have been tender but were cooked past it?

I have cooked loin backs once before and I foiled them and they came out pretty good. I was trying to see if I could get them tender without foiling this time though. I went to the Best in the West rib cook off a month or so ago and naturally those guys don't use foil. I was inspired to try to cook like them but it turns out 3 rib cooks under my belt isn't enough experience yet.
 
Though 7.5 hours is a long time to cook without hitting done I feel your suspicion is correct: the ribs were undercooked.

A few points: If 225 lid is accurate and you were using water you were likely cooking at a lower temp than that at grate level. This prolongs the cook. Additionally, if you sprayed often during the cook you would have been further prolonging it. As noted upthread, spraying doesn't add moisture to the meat (though it can add a little flavor); it does cool the meat's surface and, if employed often enough, can significantly prolong cooking because of increased surface evaporation.

Some meats, especially ribs due to their structure, can read as dry in the mouth when undercooked. (They usually feel chewy- or tough-dry; overcooked tend toward stringy-dry.)

Without having seen or tasted them it's hard to say, but assuming for the moment they were undercooked the answer to your questions ('will further cooking dry out the meat?' and 'will they get moist again') is maybe. When cooking relatively loosely fibered meats (ribs, brisket, many chuck cuts) at fairly low temps, it's quite possible that the meat can lose too much moisture before rendering occurs. (Tenderness results from rendered fats and connective tissue, yes, but it is also from the moisture that these renderings trap.)

Ribs can hit tender then be cooked past it, but it is likely that even in this case they would tear just fine - but be dry. (Another reason why I lean toward undercooked.)

I don't know the Best of the West but I only know very few competitors that don't use foil. (I don't compete, only use foil about half the time (for a flavor layer), but cook 100? higher, or more, than you just did.) Most people I know do foil. Regardless, cooking in the range Larry suggests - or higher - can help significantly, foil or no.

If for whatever reason you really want to cook lower then I definitely would suggest foiling or, at least, forgoing spraying.

[It was a beautiful day in the Bay Area, no? I spent the night on Treasure Island last night, the day in the City.]
 
Thanks Kruger for the great post. That was really helpful. And thanks again to everyone else for your help. I will definitely try a higher temperature next time. As for the Best in the West, it's an annual week long rib competition/festival held in Sparks, NV . I really don't know much about competition barbecue, but looking at the competitors' huge smokers with several hundred racks or ribs inside, I didn't think they would bother foiling. I didn't see any foil anyways. And it has been nice in the Bay Area. I was just in the city today for class. I really enjoy the cooler weather were heading towards.
 
An oven themometer on your top grate wil tell you if your thermometer on the lid is accurate. Mine seems to seems to be quite accurate. I had that happen one time, but I think it was the ribs. I tried some Sam's Club spareribs, were much thicker and meatier then Publix's here in FL. A higher cooking temp at least 275F. will give you a nice crispy bark too.
 
Thanks Brian. I tested the lid thermometer in boiling water when I first got it. I also used an oven thermometer and I believe there was only a 5 to 10 degree difference between the top grate and the lid. I'll have to do it again though.
 
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