ribs over a bath

citychicken

cooked some bb ribs yesterday with a homemade rub; no spritzing and no mopping. it was my first cook with the ss grid from tjv. cool grid. thanks tom! i cooked them indirect (inverted plate setter, drip pan with water and cran-apple juice) @ dome 235 for 5 hours. then indirect (same setup) 45 minutes @ dome 350. meat side up the entire cook. [p]result: ribs were very moist. they never developed a crisp outer bark though. didn't notice any flavor imparted by the cran-apple juice. the ribs probably could have gone another hour cause they weren't as tender as i would like.[p]has anyone cooked ribs like this? is there any advantage to the underneath bath? seems like the ribs were mostly steamed. maybe finishing direct would have been better for the ribs. [p]any thoughts? [p]thanks
mark

gdenby

markkal123,[p]As you wrote:[p]>seems like the ribs were mostly steamed.[p]Yeah, I did several batches of ribs with liquid beneath. It was sort of a hold over from the old water smoker practice. Its good, because the ribs don't burn, and have a good flavor. It bad, because the ribs don't crisp up. Now, if I'm cooking indirect, I only put in enough liquid in the pan, usually toward the end half of the cook, to keep the drippings from toasting and smoking. And then go direct at the end. Or I just go direct, and spray/mop toward the end. [p]gdenby

Unknown

markkal123,[p]I have found that sticking to the board recommendation of 3 hours indirect followed by 1 hour in foil, 45 minutes indirect, 45 minutes direct works best. Basically you cook/ steam/ and then crisp up. Apply BBQ sauce for last 15 to 20. Works great. I believe that the Naked Whiz rec. this as well as Celtic Wolf.,[p]Egger

Sigmore

Egger, I will third that recommendation, but sometimes it's still fun to experiment.