anyone buy their ribs at Costco?

GreenWave36 · August 2015

Ribs seem to be the one thing I make on the Egg which take materially longer to cook than others suggest they should. I have tried both turbo and low and slow, and even after a couple of extra hours than what I have budgeted/people have suggested, they still are barely at 190 degrees.

I have bought both baby backs and spare ribs at Costco, and trim them as best I can before applying rub. Still, the ribs seem to be very meaty once I take them off, and I am wondering if this is causing them to take so long? If anyone else has similar experiences with ribs from Costco I would be curious.

The other potential issue I have though of is that I have been cooking them on the grate rather than a rib rack as I am generally cooking a single rack, though I don't know if this would make a difference?

Thanks for your thoughts...

TexanOfTheNorth · August 2015

I buy ribs at Costco and have had some great ones and some not so great.

Couple of thoughts...

I don't cook ribs to temp but until they pass the bend test. If you're not familiar with the bend test do a search and you can find posts and pics.

Cooking flat on the grate (which is how I do them) vs. a vertical rack should not have anything to do with how they turn out (all other things equal)

What method are you using to cook them... dry vs. wet, 3-2-1, etc. and what exactly do you mean by "meaty"? Are the not pulling off the bone the way you want, too chewy or something else?

How much time are your's taking to cook?

KiterTodd · August 2015

I buy most of mine at Coscto. They come out fine (and seem prohibitively expensive anywhere else I see them).

I also use the bend test, and found the following article an excellent guide to determining doneness. Sometimes I'll use a couple methods to help my indecisiveness...
How To Tell When Ribs Are Done

OT, but INTRIGUING - go to that link where the rib article is, after you read that, look at the picture in the upper right. (that article is good also) but at the bottom of the sign on the smoker that he took a picture of is this procedure, "Wrap the meat in plastic wrap and place properly the the smoker..."

PLASTIC WRAP?!?! I've never heard that mentioned here. I guess you are cooking at a temp below the melting point of the plastic, but still...ugh, there's been several studies (must be true, I said "study") showing that when heated plastics can leach chemicals into your food. Maybe this is a restaurant trick for keeping large quantities of food moist.

txhawkeye · August 2015

What temp are you cooking at?

A5firearms · August 2015

Oh that's for laminating your ribs! Haha

GreenWave36 · August 2015

I have tried the car wash mike method... even after 6.5 hours they didn't pass the bend test... and have also tried turbo at 325-350 for 2.5 hours, also didn't pass the bend test this way... Due to timing I generally have pulled them off 185-190 and they are a little tough for out liking.

By "meaty", I meant there is a lot of meat/fat on the top side of the rack, again, I try to trim as much of this off as I can, I didn't know if I wasn't being aggressive enough in trimming. How aggressively do you guys trim the top of the rack of ribs?

Everything else I have tried to cook I am generally in the ballpark of the expected time people have experienced on this forum. As ribs seem to be such an outlier, that is what prompted the question.

TexanOfTheNorth · August 2015

I (generally) don't have a need to trim anything except some "hanger" fat and meat. I also pull the membrane but, that should not have anything to do with the issue(s) you're having.

Frankly, I've never had too much meat on the top side of my ribs (purchased from Costco or anywhere else). Some ribs are fattier than others and too much fat can be hard to properly render out.

Obviously you've researched this and tried a couple of different methods so not sure what else to suggest. FWIW, here's a link to a recent post I did on ribs

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1183674/ribs-the-way-i-do-them-pic-heavy#latest

Hope you find the secret to rib success.

Smokinpig · August 2015

Have you calibrated your dome thermometer? I find Costco ribs sometimes do have some extra meat on top which includes extra fat. Like others I have had good batches and bad batches from Costco.

SmokeyPitt · August 2015

I know exactly what you mean by meaty ribs. I wonder if it might be a regional thing. In my area (GA), baby backs often have a lot of meat on the top side of the bone. I have found this to be true from a few different places. I actually look for the smallest (lowest weight) racks when picking out baby backs and I also try to pick out racks that look even. Sometimes it is hard to tell if they are packed 2-3 racks per package. If I get a rack that is not even I will trim some meat off to try to achieve an even thickness.

It sounds like you just need to cook them longer to get them to your liking. Either bump up the temp a little and plan for a 5-6 hour cook, or go turbo for longer. Another option is a foil stage. I would start with a 3-1-1 and see how you like the results.

jonnymack · August 2015

My problem seems to be the opposite, mine seem to get done too quickly. Wish I could be of more help. I generally have no issue with Costco ribs.

Smokehouse33 · August 2015

I've never had a problem with Costco ribs down here in South Florida. There St. Louis cuts are beautiful!

Skiddymarker · August 2015

Smokehouse33 said:

I've never had a problem with Costco ribs down here in South Florida. There St. Louis cuts are beautiful!

Great in PNW as well - opposite corners of the country! Canadian ribs are often less meaty and do cook a little faster, Like many here, the back ribs need very little trim and the membrane is removed, the St. Louis ribs are a favourite.

Ivanhoe · August 2015

The last two (3 packs) were from Costco and they didn't require any trimming
except to shorten the racks so they would fit on my large BGE. Membrane was already off. The last batch took 5.5 hrs on my Adjustable rig @ 250-275(no foil) - But I had to keep rotating the ribs as I was cooking 2 on the top grate and one on the bottom so I'm sure that affected cook time. Used both the bend test and the toothpick method.

anyone buy their ribs at Costco?

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