storing ribs


 
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Dan Lindsey

New member
I'm not really new to the WSM, but this is such a basic question, I thought I'd post it here. This fall, I want to smoke some spare ribs for a football game tailgate, but the problem is that the game's in the morning, and I don't want to bother smoking that same morning. Instead I'm hoping to smoke the ribs 2 days prior, then reheat the ribs for the tailgate. What's the best method to do this? Pull the ribs when they're done, foil them, let them cool, pack in a cooler with ice and store for 2 days, then heat them and sauce them on a grill just prior to eating?

Thanks for the suggestions!
 
Dan--Since I have an 18.5 WSM I have to cut my rib slabs/racks in half. When they are done and have cooled, I vacuum pack them in Foodsaver bags, freeze them until I'm ready to use them. I then drop them in a pot of hot water to heat them up. The half slabs enable me to use a smaller pot to heat them. Prepared two days in advance, you could probably just leave them in the refrigerator until time to pack your ice chest. They will taste like they just came off the WSM.
 
Dan, ribs do hold well in food saver bags. The method to reheating probably depends on what cooking equipment you will have at the game. If you can take a burner unit then the hot water idea is great. You could initially cook till almost done, quick cool in ice then vacuum seal. you probably don't need to freeze just watch the cooling temps and get the meat out of the danger zone within as short a time as possible. When you get to the game fire up the grill and finish cooking. Sounds good. I'm gettin' hungry.Mark
 
Thanks for the input, guys. When you refer to vacuum sealing, does that require a special piece of equipment to completely remove the air? Or will it suffice to just wrap them tightly in saran wrap while they're in the fridge?
 
Vacuum sealing usually requires a device that will suck all the air out and then make a hot seal in the plastic ie. food saver. Before I had a food save I used a zip lock type bag. closed it as much as possible to allow a straw to be inserted in the opening. Suck all the air out and quickly close the bag after removing the straw. My opinion, get a food saver. They save food from spoiling for a long time, easy to use and bags can be found relatively cheap, check amazon.

Mark
 
Vacuum sealers are great, but for 2 days you will be fine wrapping tightly and storing in the fridge.

Re-heating on a grill makes for a better presentation. Hot water will do a fine job as well. Either way don't overheat - just to serving temp.
 
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