Ribs


 
M

Mike WSM

TVWBB Member
What temp do u cook your ribs at? How long? Foil or no? Do u use a wsm? Water or no water in pan? Thanks for stoping by.
 
I pretty much stay around 225 to 250 depending on many ribs are in the smoker. The more ribs the higher temperature as they take longer to get going. I personally don't believe in foil. You can achieve juicy tender ribs with out foil. I wish I knew how to add a picture here as I would show you some of my ribs that were smoked directly over smoldering coals without foil and without a water pan. my email is FamousDave@mac.com ...if you send me your email I will send you a picture of a rib without sauce that has not been foiled or used a water bath. However with all this being said... most people do not have a smoker that has a high enough space between ribs and the heat source. You need a pit that has about a 2-1/2 feet to 3 feet space between coals and ribs. And then most people don't have the time to sit there and baby the pit so that no dripping fat will cause a fire. So I often tell people to go ahead and use foil if they must and that is one good way to tenderize your meat if you weren't able to do it on the pit. And I guess that one of the reason's why I like the weber smokey mountain smoker as this works pretty good this way. However, I happen to have an old aquarium style smoker that was built decades ago in chicago. Or another that I like for larger groups woud be the Meadow Creek but for most backyard barbecues the Weber Smokey Mountain is your best best! Now I do recommend water baths if you have the right smoker... you shouldn't use a water bath in a very enclosed chamber because then you are basically creating liquid smoke which I think totally changes the flavor of a dry smoke that swirls around and around the meat! Hope this helps...Blessings "Famous Dave"
 
...you shouldn't use a water bath in a very enclosed chamber because then you are basically creating liquid smoke which I think totally changes the flavor of a dry smoke that swirls around and around the meat!
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Hi Dave,

Total newbie here (just bought and assembled my 22.5 WSM on Sunday; haven't used it yet), so I just wanted to be sure I'm interpreting your answer correctly. Are you recommending no water in the pan for ribs on a WSM (which I'm guessing you'd define as a very enclosed chamber)?

Thanks!
Rich
 
Rich Hirth said:
Hi Dave,

Total newbie here (just bought and assembled my 22.5 WSM on Sunday; haven't used it yet), so I just wanted to be sure I'm interpreting your answer correctly. Are you recommending no water in the pan for ribs on a WSM (which I'm guessing you'd define as a very enclosed chamber)?

Thanks!
Rich
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I'm also wondering if he's recommending doing ribs without the water pan installed at all?
If it's there, you're not going to get the fat drippings hitting the coals.
 
Here is a reply from Famous Dave containing the photos mentioned above:

RIBS2_zpsf5dbf91f.jpg


RIB_zpsf368335d.jpg


"Famous Dave" Anderson said:
These ribs were cooked directly over smoldering hardwood coals at about 2-1/2 feet but preferably I would recommend 3 feet. A Weber Smokey Mountain is your best bet to getting a rib like this. I do not use a water bath. These ribs have not been foiled but see how tender juicy these are. I guarantee you that if you could taste these you would die and go to Hog Heaven. You don't need brown sugar, honey, and foil to get ribs this tasty… these are NOT candy ribs… these ribs are smokey, juicy, and a little salty but you can taste the natural sweetness of the pork. Quite honestly most pit masters these days have never tasted a "real pit" smoked ribs. You cannot achieve a rib like this with an offset smoker. These ribs were done the old fashioned way that deep south pit masters used to smoke their ribs! It took me a long time to learn how to make these ribs without putting all that sugar on them. Notice all the particulates that come from the meat juices dripping on the smoldering coals and then exploding back up into the smokiness when then land back down on the rib. It's this smokey greasy stuff on the ribs that really makes them tasty. Unfortunately I cannot do these in my restaurants… at least not in any quantity. When you make smokey ribs like these… you have to stay by your pit. You have to move ribs around and you have to be constantly aware of pit fires burning up your ribs. The only thing on these ribs are a little brown sugar, salt, and fresh ground black pepper. If you have ever driven through the country on a cold day and you see smoke wafting across the road from someone's fireplace and you can smell that fresh deep aroma of smoke… that's what these ribs taste like. They don't taste like BBQ sauce. They taste like smokey juicy ribs. It don't get any better than this!!! These real pit ribs are the real deal! … "Famous Dave"
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Chris Sherman said:
I'm also wondering if he's recommending doing ribs without the water pan installed at all?
If it's there, you're not going to get the fat drippings hitting the coals.
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Chris - I think that is how Dave smokes his Famous Ribs - no water pan and top rack only.

I tried no water pan for ribs many years ago and ended up with burnt ribs. I think I had ribs on lower rack, too.

I'd like to read anyone's results who tries Famous Dave's method. I might try it and add my Stacker to put even more distance between the ribs and coals.

Jim
 
Maybe someone needs to manufacture an 18" extender ring to go between the lower and middle section that will create a 3 foot distance to the racks. :)
 
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