How to cut St Louis Style Spares (Tutorial)

[stglide]

Great post! will reference I'm sure!

[jimbloomfield]

Great!

[R2Egg2Q]

Very nicely done Mister Bob! Assuming that's you doing the trimming, nice work by the photographer as well!

[Mister Bob]

Originally Posted by R2Egg2Q

Very nicely done Mister Bob! Assuming that's you doing the trimming, nice work by the photographer as well!

Thanks, R2Egg2Q!
Yes, that's me doing the trimming and my son handling the camera.

[Soapm]

Great tutorial but I find removing the rib tips first makes the skirt and membrane easier to remove...

And as for what to do with the trimmings, I cook them. They are great as they are or always make good smoked boiling meat...

[Soapm]

Originally Posted by Mister Bob

I don't rinse raw meat with tap water unless I'm going to cook it fairly soon. I personally believe I would be adding more germs than I would be removing, especially if it just came out of a cryovac. I'm no expert in the field, but it just seems to make sense to me. Maybe a Brethren more informed on the subject would like to weigh in?

I rinse meat to make sure there are no bone fragments left by the saw.

[TomB]

Thanks for sharing this!

[Mister Bob]

Originally Posted by Soapm

Great tutorial but I find removing the rib tips first makes the skirt and membrane easier to remove...

And as for what to do with the trimmings, I cook them. They are great as they are or always make good smoked boiling meat...

As I've often said, "There's more than one way to skin a cat."

I've been trimming ribs for many, many years and find it much easier to remove the flap first. It allows you to see all the bones and make that long straight cut to even up the rack. Once the flap is removed, it makes no difference whether you remove the tips or membrane first.

As for rinsing, I've done a little research since posting this yesterday. Here's what the USDA has to say about rinsing raw meat:

"Washing raw poultry, beef, pork, lamb, or veal before cooking it is not recommended. Some consumers think they are removing bacteria from the meat and making it safe. For safety, use a food thermometer to be sure the food has reached a safe minimum internal temperature."

and

"Washing raw poultry, beef, pork, lamb, or veal before cooking it is not recommended. Bacteria in raw meat and poultry juices can be spread to other foods, utensils, and surfaces. We call this cross-contamination."

Here's the link to that page on their web site http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/...fety/index.asp

I'll go with the USDA on this one and use my eyes and fingers to find bone fragments. But again, to each his own!

[Warthog]

Bob, Great tutorial. Thanks to you and your son.
Ed

[sfbbqguy]

Yes, thanks for sharing. Nice refresher.

St. Louis trimmed ribs fit better into the pot I use to boil them with !

[big brother smoke]

Love it, I never thought about grounding the flap and such. I may have to get me a grinder now.

Anyone have recommendations on a grinder?

[Homebrewed Q]

Very cool indeed, thanks for the "how to" with pics!

[sfbbqguy]

Originally Posted by big brother smoke

Love it, I never thought about grounding the flap and such. I may have to get me a grinder now.

Anyone have recommendations on a grinder?

I use the same one Mister Bob uses and it works pretty good for the small amounts I use it for. My gut feeling is that if you have any plans on grinding larger quantities then maybe something specifically designed for grinding may be better.

[AMoore]

Good job-I am happy to say that I was taught the same way. I was just wondering if you ever tried to season them prior to shrink wrapping? Would that make them tough to sit in the seasoning?

[Mister Bob]

Originally Posted by sfbbqguy

I use the same one Mister Bob uses and it works pretty good for the small amounts I use it for. My gut feeling is that if you have any plans on grinding larger quantities then maybe something specifically designed for grinding may be better.

I agree. The KitchenAid is OK for the occasional small job like grinding trimmings, but if you plan on doing any real volume of meat grinding, you'll definitely need a better option.