There Has To Be A MIddle Ground


 
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jeff lowe

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Today I made some spares which were St. Louis Style. I used Stogie's method of 3 1/2 hours in the smoker, 2 hours in foil and the last 1/2 hour baste with sauce.

I marinated overnight in 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar.

Results?: Very tender so almost too tender and soft, nearly falling off the bone.

There must be some middle ground with maybe foiling only one hour to prevent the super softness texture of the meat yet retaining the juicyness by foiling.

I have made ribs with no foiling for 9-91/2 hours and they are very tender but not quite as juicy.

If there were a middle ground I think it may be the best of both worlds.
 
Yeah Jeff, I agree. I did same thing you did with the same results. Next time I'm going for 1 hour foiled. I'll post it to let you know. The foil, that long, is just a tad too much.
Larry
 
Hi, Jeff. The best middle ground I can think of is ~ 6 hours, for spares, with no foil. Smokey, tender, and jucy in 6 hours at 225?F.
 
It may be that the vinegar is breaking down the meat. You might want to lower the concentration of the marinade. I read about this, so this is second hand. But, vinegar breaks meat down quickly and gives it that sort of mushy consistency that we often think of when meat fall off the bone. You can also get less mushy meat that falls off the bone, but that comes from longer slower cook times.

I've only made smoked ribs 7 times now, so I'm hardly a pro.
 
Scott, you are right. Vinegar will break down the meat. Vinegar marinades should be used for cuts like london broil and other thick tough cuts. IMO
If you want to use the vinegar do so for just a couple of hours.
 
I agree with the vinegar comments. As for using foil, I think you will find that there are those that swear by it and those that swear at it - it's a continuing debate. While I don't care to use it, it's difficult to argue with success. On another forum, Tom posted a link to Texas Rib Ranger's Ribs, an interesting foiling/recipe technique. It sounds like they would be a bit sweet for my taste but I just may try it. To read the entire thread, click on the Tinfoil!!! link, at the top of the page.
 
Hi,

I had the vinegar experience for the first time last month.

I marinated some 1-1/4" cubes of top sirlion for kabobs in a store-bought teriyaki marinade containing vinegar. Didn't have my head screwed on straight and marinated overnight, then skewered the meat and cooked it. The meat looked fine before and after cooking, but had a weird, granular texture to it that bothered me. I believe the combination of small pieces of meat and long marination with vinegar was the cause.

Regards,
Chris
 
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