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Rib Question

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gte1
gte1 Posts: 379
edited February 2012 in EggHead Forum



I did some ribs over the
weekend. 4 racks of b-backs stacked on an adjustable rig. I had two problems. I
tried to smoke at 250. For some crazy reason the temp would not stay steady
throughout pretty much the whole cook. I was constantly fluctuating between ~240
to 265 and I had to make adjustments the whole time. Very strange as I have
never had this problem before. The only thing I did differently was that
instead of using the oval stone with the AR and then putting a drip pan on top
(I have a custom made SS drip pan the same shape as the stone) I omitted the
stone. I did this for space reasons.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />



The other issue that I had
is the ribs came out a bit dry. I did about 3 1/2 then about 40min foiled then
about another 30 unfoiled with a light coating of Bone Suckin Sauce. About
4.5-5 hrs total time.



Any ideas on why I had
either the dry ribs, or such constant temp fluctuations??



George



George
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Comments

  • boatbum
    boatbum Posts: 1,273
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    Regarding the temp fluctuations - Personally I wouldnt worry about it too much.   Sometimes the Egg will just sit there and not move 5 degrees.   The other night was cooking chicken - it was bouncing up and down +/- 20 degrees.    I think factors that can cause that -  wind blowing - increasing air flow into the vent - probably some charcoal density???

    When you say you "omitted the stone" - does that mean you were cooking direct instead of indirect?   Drip pan will not do the same thing as a stone will - as far as redirecting heat.   that might be a factor in the dry ribs.   I have cooked ribs much longer - without foil - and they didnt dry out ( indirect).

    Just my thoughts - for what they are worth...

     

    Cookin in Texas
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  • GreenhawK
    GreenhawK Posts: 398
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    Normally if ribs seem dry they are under cooked.  When you mean that you had them stacked, do you mean that the ribs were laying on top of each other?  They could be why they were undercooked.

    Large BGE Decatur, AL
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  • IrishDevl
    IrishDevl Posts: 1,390
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    Your temp fluctuations aren't really an issue.  If I smoke something, then a temp between 225-280 is fine, so don't fret on that.  The Egg will shift a bit as it cooks, but study the spots where it hold steady.  I can tell you this, when I cook a low/slow sometimes it jumps 2 degrees avery so often.  Over time this adds up, but if I adjust the air vent down below, I can stabilize the temp well and have no issue.  It takes a bit of time to get the bottom and top adjusted so all is good, but keep trying.
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  • gte1
    gte1 Posts: 379
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    Ribs were not stacked on top of each other they were on seperate racks.  As far as omitting the stone the drip pan is the same size and shape as the stone and made of very thick stainless.  Does it really matter what material the deflector is made of??

    Maybe under cooked was the key, only one rack really "broke" when I picked them up with tongs.

    George
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  • Flamethrower
    Flamethrower Posts: 493
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    I dont use tongs to test as others will atest. I use my Hot gloves. The same 1s I use to pull any of my meat. I think the tongs are to sharp of a point to determine my ribs

     

    LET'S EAT
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  • Flamethrower
    Flamethrower Posts: 493
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    That didnt come out right,But you know what I mean

     

    LET'S EAT
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  • gte1
    gte1 Posts: 379
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    So you grab the rack in the middle using the gloves?
    George
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  • Flamethrower
    Flamethrower Posts: 493
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    There abouts.The opposite end of the rack should point to the floor. The rubber heat gloves are one of the components that is really not talkedabout. I swear by mine

     

    LET'S EAT
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  • gte1
    gte1 Posts: 379
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    I actually have a pair and use them a lot also. Part of the stuff I got along with the adjustable rig.
    George
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  • Chubbs
    Chubbs Posts: 6,929
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    There abouts.The opposite end of the rack should point to the floor. The rubber heat gloves are one of the components that is really not talkedabout. I swear by mine

     

    Me too. They are great and i get a lot of use out of mine.
    Columbia, SC --- LBGE 2011 -- MINI BGE 2013
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