First time smoking ribs

J

jsn1511

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Anyone know of a good recipe for a rub/mop/sauce i can use? Any techniques i should be aware of?
 
oh sorry, i have a Bandera. Also i have both mesquite and hickory chunks. which are better for ribs?
 
Either wood will work.

Basic mop (I spray it) is cider vinegar or apple juice. You can add to this as you see fit: cup of vinegar, couple tablespoons brown sugar, some salt, some pepper, a touch of pepper sauce (I use Crystal but any will work depending on your taste). Simmer a bit to get the sugar disolved and spray or mop away.

Just don't rush the ribs 220-250 will do it -- look for the meat to start pulling away from the end of the bone and they're getting close.

Good luck
 
Sir, you can start a snot storm with a question like that.

I like hickory, some of our Texas brothers will say mesquite only. Soo whatever your preference.

Try hickory. Next weekend, try mesquite. But both times, post your results and what you learned.

You'll read about the 3-2-1 technique. 3 hours in the smoke chamber (running 230ish) till the meat starts pulling back from the bone, spraying with apple juice if you don't mop (by the way, check recipe section for mops and such), then wrap in foil for 2 hours, then back in smoke unwrapped for an hour and some mopping. Bones will fall off (if thats how you like them, if not, don't wrap.

This is for spares. BBacks will be shorter, maybe 2-2-1 method.

But experimenting is half the fun.

Good luck, and again, post your results!
 
Haha the last thing i want to do is start a snot storm, i will be more careful in asking questions like that in the future :)
If i were to mop the ribs would it be necessary to wrap them in foil?
How often do i apply the mop?
 
oh i forgot, which ribs are better pork or beef? I imagine this might be controversial as well but i am poor and can't buy a whole lot of ribs this weekend.
 
Pork and mop every hour. I always wrap then again I don't get many snot storms either.
 
JSN,
Never hesitate to ask.

Snot storms are a good thing.

Pork is a personal favorite for me.

Try and pound them when you see a sale. Hell, I got 4 pork butts couple weeks ago when they hit $.79/lb. 4 butts for me is like a 3 month supply, in the winter at least.
 
Let me add .02 worth here that I learned the hard way.

when you buy your ribs, make sure you check to see if they are packaged with 10% solution. These are generally vacuum sealed or cyropacked. The reason why I bring this up is all of a sudden my ribs were coming out too salty to eat. I thought I had made a big mistake in my rub, miscalculated the amount of salt that I put in it. As it turns out, there was salt already added in the 10% solution in the packaging of the ribs which was causing the ribs to be too salty when I rubbed as usual. Last ones I did I added no salt and they turned out really well.

I'm not a mesquite fan, so i would say use the hickory. Since I'm out of fruit wood, I've been buying 3 apples and 3 pears, cutting them in slices and putting in my water pan. I heat the water on the stove first, then but in the 'dera, then add the fruit. Seems to be working OK, at least no complaints.

Godd luck and keep us posted on the results.
 
What's with all these Georgia people all of a sudden? :D
Best place to buy ribs is Costco. Get the vacuum sealed 3 packs, you can't go wrong.
I just tried the 3-2-1 method on babybacks for the superbowl, and they came out great. As long as your temps aren't too high, I don't think 6 hours is too long for babybacks, since the foil will keep them from getting too black. My ribs were just tender enough, didn't seem overcooked at all.
 
Costco is OK but I get cheaper, and I think better, ribs from Sam's Club.
 
Guys, I got news for ya! The ribs at Costco and Sam's and your local store (other than the high priced Hormels or Smithfields) are probably the same. Most come from IBP and are either blue or green labeled (Excel or some other "brand") so just fight the price war -- it's the same pork. Same rule for beef -- nearly all of it will be from IBP.
 
thanks guys you have been very helpful. I don't know where i can get different flavored woods yet. I'll have to ask around and see if there is any place local.
 
Nice job. Your ribs look better than my first trial smoking. Keep on keeping on. I would try the 3/2/1 method or 2/2/1 depending on which cut, it really works.
 
The "1" in that method is if your gonna mop or add sauce.

We like to use different "dipping" sauces at the table, or just plain, since they taste so good.

So if your gonna do this, don't unwrap.

Becomes the 3-3 method or the 2-3 method.

Just a variation on a theme, but try it.
 
jsn1511 said:
thanks guys you have been very helpful. I don't know where i can get different flavored woods yet. I'll have to ask around and see if there is any place local.

I live in Kennesaw, Georgia. I have about a half a chord of cherry wood seasoning under my deck. It will probably be ready in a couple of more months. If you just want some chunks for smoking, feel free to grab a log from me whenever you want. If you want more, we can work out a trade for hickory or something. Just lemme know.
 
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