rib question


 
P

Paul Brown

New member
Hello:
A few months ago I did my first smoke on my new WSM 22.5". I had some problems and posted on this forum for advice. I received many helpful suggestions and have since had several success smokes. Thanks to all who helped me. However, I do have another question. I do my ribs at about 250 - 260 for about 4.5 hours. they are tender and tasty but not "fall off the bone". Should I lower the temp and/or smoke them longer to get that "fall off the bone" quality?
Thanks,
Paul
 
Hi ! Personally i try to do my ribs at 225-240F

First, i smoke the ribs and let them cook for like 3-4 hours but here is my tricks. I then foil all the ribs individually and i put a mix of beer and apple juice (50/50 and maybe 70ml) in it. You have to foil them real good. I then put them back in the WSM for another 1h - 1h30.

after that, you unfoil all the ribs and put them back in the WSM for another 30 minutes to dry them a little.

u put ur favorite sauce on them and ur done ! have fun
 
you can also use ur bbq to caramelize the sauce ( i like to do it once or twice on each side of the ribs, adding sauce each time)
 
I got similar results when I tried a modified BRITU method for ribs a couple of weeks ago (thought they were done and pulled them at about 4 hours). From additional reading, it sounds like a lot of folks shoot for around 6 hours, whether they foil or not. Here is a link to the method that I think I will try next time (which also goes for about 6 hours):
http://tvwbb.com/eve/forums/a/...&cdra=Y&m=8680069725
 
Paul, Louis makes good suggestions. I also am a fan of foiling ribs.

Cooking slower will keep the outside "bark" a little softer, as will foiling for part of the cook, but if you cook long enough, with enough heat, any slab of ribs should eventually reach "fall off the bone" tenderness. However, you'll find that you don't want that. The ribs will be dry and less flavorful. You want ribs that pull clean from the bone with a little tug, not a slab that's cooked so long that any bones fall out and get left on the grate...and if you remove the membrane on the bone side like most of us do, that's exactly what will happen if you cook to "falling off the bone" tenderness.
icon_redface.gif


You can get a softer texture by foiling as Louis mentioned. Just don't overcook and add VERY LITTLE AJ to the foil. Don't cook in foil too long, especially if the ribs are meat down, so they don't end up mushy and have the flavor cooked out. I'm a fan of cooking in foil til tender, but I'm not gonna hit the ribs with a lot of heat for very long to set a glaze after removing from the foil. They can go from tender to "falling off the bone" pretty quick.
 
Also, baby back and spare times are going to differ. Spares usually take longer. I have noticed baby backs might only take 3 1/2 - 4 hours or so if you foil for one of the hours at around 225-250 temp. Spares could take 5-6 hours
 
We did 12 racks of ribs for the 4th of July party... I took them off at about 4 1/2 hours and foiled them up and placed them into a 210 degree oven as we were not eating until about 2 hours later. The ones served first were very good but the last rack that stayed in the oven for about 4 hours were incredibly tender without being dry. When I put them into the foil, I basted them with the Number 5 sauce which I tweaked with a little Cayenne pepper and mango puree.
 
Three hours on for spare ribs, take them off and double wrap in foil (ALWAYS MEAT SIDE UP), and add some DR. Pepper, apple juice, or whatever, wrap them tight and put them back on for an hour or so and I've always gotten great ribs. You can cook ribs a bit higher at about, say 245 or so, and get great tender juicy ribs.

WOrks for me on my 18 /12 WMS with a DigiQ Meat temp controller.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by John Seacrest:
When I put them into the foil, I basted them with the Number 5 sauce which I tweaked with a little Cayenne pepper and mango puree. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Shhh....saucing when you wrap is supposed to be a SECRET!!!
icon_wink.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top