Almost Nailed it............Ribs

[Dave Russell]

It got deep on this one, boys!

 

[Boshizzle]

It's all in the details!

Seriously, though, you will need to pay close attention to the ribs during the last 30 minutes of cooking. It will take some practice. If you are going to compete, I'd suggest that you learn to test tenderness using a toothpick inserted in the back of the ribs.

To speed up the practice process, cook several racks of ribs at once but put the racks on the cooker in 30 - 45 minute intervals. That allows you work to acheive the tenderness you want on the first rack and, if you fail, make adjustments for the next rack, etc., etc.

But, the attention you pay to the ribs during the last 30 minutes (before you glaze them) is where your target will be found.

 

[1FUNVET]

So that's what I forgot :doh:
The front of the WSM needs to face Kansas City. :evil:

Only on even numbered days. Need to face Memphis on odd numbered days :becky:

 

[cgarrit]

There are many things that can impact the texture of ribs. Are the briquettes you are cooking with the wrong size? Or, if you are using lump, was it made on a Tuesday or a Thursday? It looks like you are cooking them on a UDS or a WSM. If so, do you have the front of it facing Kansas City? How about the glaze? Were the ingredients ever stored in a windowless building? Is the spacing of the grates 3/8" or 1/2"? What about the material your smoker is resting on? Is it wood or some type of masonry? What newspaper did you use to start your chimney? That's an important consideration. What direction did the wind blow the smoke towards when the ribs were cooking? One other thing, was the smoke wood cut with an ax, a hatchet, a saw, or a combination? Does your cousin hang out around stumps?

I really want to help, but you have to give us the important information above. So, send over your complete recipe and process. I need to see the details of that flavor profile and glaze or, I'm afraid, there is no way that we can help you.

lol. That made my morning.

 

[Hub]

There can be significant variations in the tenderness of ribs by batch. I've even had two racks in the same batch come out differently on the same cook! Unlike a good steak where you can guage the fat and marbling by eye, tough ribs and tender ribs can look the same. If you haven't already done so, try sticking to one brand or source. I've had reasonable consistency with Smithfield babybacks (sometimes on sale for $2.98 per pound at my grocery) but lots of variation of quality in the spares and babybacks from Sam's.

Hub

 

[bottomsupbbq]

Only on even numbered days. Need to face Memphis on odd numbered days :becky:

I suppose on Holiday's it should face towards Lynchburg!:evil:

 

[BRBBQ]

looking great to me

 

[citrus]

Very, very nice!

 

[cardfan]

sure does look good :-D

 

[puddle jumper]

Sweet...Man thoses are a work of art...

:hail::hail::hail:
PJ

 

[Johnny_Crunch]

nice glaze, those look great to me!

 

[Vince B]

Funny thread indeed! Those ribs look really good in the photo for sure. However I have gone through the same thing with different slabs on multiple cooks. I started out using a 3-2-1 method cooking b-backs and have modified using a 3-1-sauce. This seems to work best for me cooking at 250*ish.

BTW with my wsm the only time I worry about which way my door is if it is windy! :becky:

 

[B-More BBQ Junkie]

Those ribs look absolutely perfect.
<--- drooling

 

[PhilB]

Those look fantastic to this newb. Obviously, cooking for the backyard and for competition are worlds apart. Wow.

Phil

 

[Kris Mainella]

damn is that a magazine photo? lol awesome