Internal Rib Temp??

The sensuous unctuousness that compels us to lick our fingers when rib eating comes from a power deep within the ribs themselves. Gelatin.

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Why? Well, you have to remember, we're not just cooking this meat to doneness, okay, like you might a roast or a steak. We're cooking it to tenderness, and that is a very different thing, indeed. Let's say for a minute that these noodles are muscle strands inside our pork shoulder, and gelatin is the connective tissue that holds it together. Now if we just cook this to, say, 145 degrees the way you might a pork roast it would be done and edible technically. But see, this connective tissue would not have begun to dissolve. In other words, it would be tough. If, however, we were to slowly bring this whole mass up to 200 degrees and keep it there for a while, the collagen would dissolve.

At this stage of the game, the muscle fibers themselves are relatively dry because they're overcooked. But the eater isn't going to notice, because the strands are nicely lubricated with lip-smackin' gelatin. And since this process takes awhile, it's nice and smoky-tasting, too. How long are we talking about? Well, depending on the exact size and shape of your shoulder and the exact temperature inside your smoker, we're talking anywhere from 8 to 12 hours. Yeah, I said it was good eats, I didn't say it was fast eats.

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