Ribs

[Darrell Hill]

Though I'm relatively new to Weber smoking, I'm making initial plans to enter a contest in the fall. This hair-brained scheme brings two questions to mind.
1. I have a chance to attend a Pitmasters cooking school locally. Since they are primarily for pit smokers and not water smokers, does anyone have an opinion on their value.
2. A little research has revealed several options on ribs. Do most contestants use baby backs, or St. Louis style trimed ribs. I think I have observed both at contest, but by the time awards are given out I'm usually unable to remember who used what. Could there be other "special cut" ribs used in contest?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Jim Minion]

Who is putting on the pitmaster school, normally they are on cooking more than teaching to cook on a type of pit.
We use spares and have done well other use BB and they do very well also. Pick one and get the technique down.
Jim

 

[Darrell Hill]

The course is presented by Chef Paul Kirk. It's being offered in Slidell La. in September. My reading of the initial mailing indicate that they mostly plan on using firebox style cookers. It also indicated that Mr. Kirk doesn't care very much for wraping the cooked meat in aluminum foil.

My initial post also addressed what meat to consider using, slab ribs, baby backs, or something else. Got any preference. Thanks

 

[Dave Lewis]

I took the Paul Kirk class last month and there were just as many WSMs as there were offset pits and kettles. Kirk doesn't really teach techniques for a particular pit, as much as he teaches techniques for preparing, cooking and presenting the various meats (brisket, butt, chicken, ribs, and sausage) He simply says that he cooks between 230-250 degrees. I learned a lot from the class (if you can tune out Kirk's huge ego) and would definitely recommend it to someone who wants to eventually compete. The class is set up like a mock competition with ribbons awarded.