Does anyone cook baby backs in KCBS events?

[mattriggs78]

I am trying to get ready to cook in my first competition later this year or next spring. After watching shows like Pit Masters I am lead to believe that you need to cook spare ribs. So my question is does anyone win cooking baby backs?

 

[Pappy Q]

Yes but spares are more widely used.

 

[Alexa RnQ]

Cook whichever gives you a better result. We've won with both.

 

[mattriggs78]

That is good to hear...we like Baby Backs a lot better.


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[Rookie'48]

Around here (Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas) we see more spares come across the judging table but a lot of that is because most of the back ribs don't have much meat on them. A nice, meaty back rib can take the top prize any day while a perfectly cooked skinny, no meat bone won't score worth a darn.

 

[porkingINpublic]

In Arkansas I've seen more baby backs

 

[Boshizzle]

In VA, we see many more spare ribs than baby backs. The last baby backs that I remember judging had twigs and fragments of leaves on them. They looked like they had been dropped, picked up, wiped off, and put in the box. Not appetizing at all. That being said, I think spare ribs is the way to go in a KCBS comp. YMMV in NC, but not by much.

 

[BackPorch]

Use what you cook the best. Consistency is what you're after.

 

[BC Squared]

Use what you cook the best. Consistency is what you're after.

Unless you're consistently bad!

 

[mattriggs78]

Sounds like I should work on spare ribs...

 

[lcbateman3]

Just remember, it's not always what you like, it's what the judges like.

I cook spares, to me they are more forgiving than baby backs. But like other people said, if you nail them, they will score high.

 

[mattriggs78]

Thanks

 

[brownkw]

In the Carolinas, I tend to see 95% spare ribs. Every now and then an entry will be turned in using loin back or baby back ribs. But the majority of the entries in this area tend to be spares.

But like others have said, go with what gets you the better scores.

 

[Jeff Hughes]

Spares are more forgiving, loinbacks score great when cooked right, and are used by some of the top ranked rib cooks in the country...

 

[OregonBoy]

Unless you're consistently bad!

Haha

 

[Q-Dat]

In VA, we see many more spare ribs than baby backs. The last baby backs that I remember judging had twigs and fragments of leaves on them. They looked like they had been dropped, picked up, wiped off, and put in the box. Not appetizing at all. That being said, I think spare ribs is the way to go in a KCBS comp. YMMV in NC, but not by much.

Not that I think it would be a good idea, but I wonder if maybe they used some kind of seasoning that had ground up bay leaves. I have seen seasonings that did have them.