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Advice Please!

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357.luis

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I am going to attempt to cook 9 full racks of Baby Backs on the WSM 22.5in. My plan was to put 5 in a rib rack on the top, 4 in a rib rack on the bottom using the 3-2-1 method. When foiled, I was going to put the four that were on the bottom on the top rack to promote “even cooking”. Then switch them again for the last hour. Target temp would be 250-275.

Any advice? The retirement party is at 1pm. Should I plan for another hour of cook time due to the amount of meat in the pit? I can’t mess this up. I have never cooked this much food at once. I’m nervous A.F. I’m cooking at sea level.
 
I definitely like the idea of switching racks to even out cooking, I actually wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't go by the 3-2-1 solely, I would cut back on the times in general because I have had BB ribs cook faster than St. Louis. Because of the amount of meat, it may actually take that long, but I would make it a point to check them after the first two hours and adjust the time from there. You can always cook longer, I just haven't found a way to reverse it yet. Good luck with the cook.
 
@ronbrad62

Thanks for taking the time to respond, and your input. I'm still relatively new to BBQ and appreciate your advice. I will definitely check the ribs at two hours.

Do you think to start the cook at 5 am and giving myself 8-hour total time is enough? I figured with pulling the ribs off to wrap/unwrap for 9 racks would take some time.
 
Once you get to the foiled step, you could put those in the oven. Heat is heat for that part of the cook, and it will free up some room in the WSM.

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Thanks for taking the time to respond, and your input. I'm still relatively new to BBQ and appreciate your advice. I will definitely check the ribs at two hours.

Do you think to start the cook at 5 am and giving myself 8-hour total time is enough? I figured with pulling the ribs off to wrap/unwrap for 9 racks would take some time.
 
Dang. I wish I could chime in on this specific to using a WSM but I have an offset. In theory, your idea of rotating the ribs makes sense. I'll do that in my pit (moving the ones that were closest to the firebox to the far end and vice versa) to ensure even cooking. The only thing I'll say is that I kinda switched away from the 3-2-1 method to a 3-1-2 because I found that two hours foiled was overcooking my ribs. 3-2-1 might work perfectly for you though, but I would maybe suggest checking one of the racks after an hour in foil just to make sure it really needs another hour in there. Your target temp sounds ideal.

Best of luck with that cook, I know how nerve-wracking it can be cooking for others, especially a large crowd.
 
I think your plan is sound. 3-2-1 is a good approach too. You’ll do fine. Just take your time and let the WSM do its thing. [emoji4]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
3-2-1 is for Full Spares at 225* Baby Backs at 250-275* more like 2-.75 -.5-1......
But then you may have trouble running 275* with that much meat in there..... ?

I’ve never had a WSM but Not too much different from a UDS. I’d give myself 5 hours and run them Nekid till their Done (3.5-4-4.5 hrs) and switch top to bottom at 2-2.5 hrs.
 
Last edited:
SmittyJonz said:
3-2-1 is for Full Spares at 225* Baby Backs at 250-275* more like 2-.75 -.5-1......
But then you may have trouble running 275* with that much meat in there..... ?

I’ve never had a WSM but Not too much different from a UDS. I’d give myself 5 hours and run them Nekid till their Done (3.5-4-4.5 hrs) and switch top to bottom at 2-2.5 hrs.
Click to expand...




This sounds right to me...
 
8 hours total should be more than sufficient. As long as you rotate the ribs, you should be able to depend on them getting done at the same time. You will have a rest period built in if you time for 8 hours. Just be sure to sauce near the end of the cook so that the sauce won't burn on them.
 
I cook my spares at 275 and they take 4 1/2 to 5 hours. But the meat is pretty well spread out. When cooking baby backs, I figure about an hour less but check about every 30 minutes for tenderness after three hours. I usually don't wrap but go heavy on misting and mopping. I don't use a smokey mountain, but heat is heat. For that much meat, i'd plan for an extra hour.

How about some pictures once you get it loaded?
 
Good question.I agree with thirdeye,get some smoke on them for a few hours and then finish them any way you can.Rotating is a GREAT idea.My lower rack I The 22 WSM cooks wayyy slower than my top rack and I do not use anything but a dry pan.You might try the""pinwheel" method.
 
I just did some baby backs on the Yoder last weekend. I went 2-2-1 at 225. They were spot on. 3-2-1 for babies are a bit much for the cook.
 
I personally like naked ribs. If you wrap them, make sure they are separated, otherwise hot air will not be able to get between the racks and it will cook as if its is one giant piece of meat, subsequently, you have to cook longer. When its time to wrap, the oven is a great idea.
 
Slow-Cal-BBQ said:
I personally like naked ribs. If you wrap them, make sure they are separated, otherwise hot air will not be able to get between the racks and it will cook as if its is one giant piece of meat, subsequently, you have to cook longer. When its time to wrap, the oven is a great idea.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input. That isn’t something I thought about. I figured it wouldn’t matter, so one shelf would be three down and one on top and the other the same with two on top.
 
You should definitely rotate the ribs. I've checked the temp on the second rack in a WSM and it is significantly colder than the top. 25-50 degrees cooler in my experience.
 
Final Update:

Final Update: So the cook went good...but.

I started at 3:45 am. I was done seasoning the ribs at 4:11 and allowed the ribs to sweat in the fridge until 4:15 am. I had the ribs on the grill at 5:30 using standard Weber rib racks. 5 on top and four on the bottom. I had to skewer the rib ends to keep them straight and to keep them from touching. I foiled the water pan and ran it empty with Jealous Devil lump. I maintained a temp of 260 probing through the rubber grommet on the side of the WSM. I spritzed the ribs every 45 minutes and rotated from top to bottom after two hours. The bark was set 3 1/2 hours into the cook. I wrapped the ribs at that time and continued cooking for an additional hour. Some ribs were done and I began checking and pulling the racks as they were finished every 30 min. I placed the ribs back on with sauce on 15 minutes prior to serving.

***Some racks ended up overdone because when I pulled them I immediately placed them in a dry cooler to hold. I believed they continued to cook when doing this. Note to self.... next time burb the ribs for 10-15 minutes before placing them in the dry cooler to hold.

In the end, everyone loved the ribs including the ones that were falling off the bone. I learned a lot and my buddy was extremely grateful. Thank you, everyone, for your help and advice with this cook. I really appreciate all that took the time to respond. God Bless.
 
357.luis said:
Final Update: So the cook went good...but.

I started at 3:45 am. I was done seasoning the ribs at 4:11 and allowed the ribs to sweat in the fridge until 4:15 am. I had the ribs on the grill at 5:30 using standard Weber rib racks. 5 on top and four on the bottom. I had to skewer the rib ends to keep them straight and to keep them from touching. I foiled the water pan and ran it empty with Jealous Devil lump. I maintained a temp of 260 probing through the rubber grommet on the side of the WSM. I spritzed the ribs every 45 minutes and rotated from top to bottom after two hours. The bark was set 3 1/2 hours into the cook. I wrapped the ribs at that time and continued cooking for an additional hour. Some ribs were done and I began checking and pulling the racks as they were finished every 30 min. I placed the ribs back on with sauce on 15 minutes prior to serving.

***Some racks ended up overdone because when I pulled them I immediately placed them in a dry cooler to hold. I believed they continued to cook when doing this. Note to self.... next time burb the ribs for 10-15 minutes before placing them in the dry cooler to hold.

In the end, everyone loved the ribs including the ones that were falling off the bone. I learned a lot and my buddy was extremely grateful. Thank you, everyone, for your help and advice with this cook. I really appreciate all that took the time to respond. God Bless.
Click to expand...


No photos? Sounds like went well. Timing lot of meat can be changing.
 
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