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Lean spares?


 
D

Dave Russell

TVWBB Honor Circle
I did my first high heat st. louis rib cook with just one slab today for lunch. Funny thing is, they came out as dry as any I've ever smoked.

Bottom line: 300-325 for a 2.5 hr. cook of a 2.75 lb. slab....(foiled for 45 minutes). No time for pics, but except for one end, the rack looked good.... except for the dryness noticed when slicing.

I thought the high heat was supposed to make a cook more forgiving in terms of moisture. I didn't foil till mushy like I've done before, and the tenderness was there...but not really falling off the bone.

Any ideas?
 
Smaller slab, faster cook? If overdone, I'd expect something like jerky in texture. Maybe they're still under done (tough, but not jerky)?

My spares are usually in the 5+lbs before trimming to STL; never weighed the results STL trimmed. I also like to cook at 300-350F and usually go for about ~4 hrs. Did do a smaller set of spares ~4.5 lbs before STL trim, and they cooked in about 3-3.5 hrs.

I like HH because the fat renders better, leaving an almost "flakiness" to the meat. I don't look for FOTB, but a clean pull and bite.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Paul Lai:
Smaller slab, faster cook? If overdone, I'd expect something like jerky in texture. Maybe they're still under done (tough, but not jerky)?

My spares are usually in the 5+lbs before trimming to STL; never weighed the results STL trimmed. I also like to cook at 300-350F and usually go for about ~4 hrs. Did do a smaller set of spares ~4.5 lbs before STL trim, and they cooked in about 3-3.5 hrs.

I like HH because the fat renders better, leaving an almost "flakiness" to the meat. I don't look for FOTB, but a clean pull and bite. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Thanks, Paul. Yeah, it was a pretty thin rack, and it was plenty cooked, probably, "and then some." If it pulls from the bone clean, and no toothpicks needed, it's plenty done. Wouldn't you think? I can only figure it was a pretty lean rack that I didn't help by cooking a bit too long. I guess it cooked more in that foil than I thought at 300!
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Wouldn't you think? I can only figure it was a pretty lean rack that I didn't help by cooking a bit too long. I guess it cooked more in that foil than I thought at 300! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Yes, I would think. And no, didn't help if cooked too long.

HH works quite well in terms of moisture but I'm not sure I'd say 'forgiving'. The 'done' window is narrower when cooking HH - something to keep in mind.
 
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