Today I Learned.....

What pig honey looks like.
What the weeping ribs look like.
What the probe test does.
What great ribs really taste and feel like.

Thanks to some contributions on this forum, I smoked the best ribs I've ever done. I have failed many times to the point that I shy away from ribs. From undercooked to terrible tasting. I decided after some reading that the BGE deserved a shot at the ribs.

Settled it at 300 degrees and with indirect heat added the dry rubbed baby backs. Did not remove the sinew. After a couple of hours the color was a beautiful golden red and the surface was dry. After another hour I saw some of that famous pig honey weeping in small patches. Within another 20 minutes, they were oozing so I began to probe every 20 minutes. At around the third time probing with a toothpick--well, like a knife through butter. I closed all the vents and let them rest during 30 minutes of cool down. Jerked them out of the BGE and the rest is history. Can't wait to try it again.

Bigr314 said:

I read that method also. I must try it. Was it hard to determine when the oozing happens?

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Not at all. You can see the juices glazing the ribs. I used a dry rub and the ribs went from looking dry to a shiny-oiled look.

Offthehook said:

That ah ha moment. I need to try that, I'm a glutton for foil.

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I have always foiled until now. If I duplicate the results I will never foil my ribs again. I thought foil and some type of liquid was a must but that is not the case, however, I have read many success stories using the 3-2-1 method although I always had mixed results.

dadsr4 said:

By sinew do you mean the membrane? How did it come out? I've never had it become palatable.

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Yes, the membrane on the back side of the ribs. Although it wasn't unnoticeable, it was no problem eating it or simply eating everything around it. I may try removing it on the next cook, but I can't help think that it prevents a lot of the honey from escaping to the drip pan. I believe that the goal is for the juices to rise through the fibers of the meat and help tenderize it as it moves up. Of course, I'm sure there could be some science that proves or disproves my opinion.