Ribs are tough

BGECPD

Hi guys, first post on the forum. I've made ribs twice now on the Large BGE following CWM's method. Tonight I cooked them at 250 for 5.5 hours, saucing them for the final 45 mins and they were still tough. I don't expect them to fall apart, but we had to use a knife as you couldn't even pull them apart without making a mess. Flavor was good but they were just too tough and chewy. Btw, my thermometer has been calibrated so that is at least one variable which can be eliminated. Any suggestions?

Little Steven

BGECPD,

Side ribs?

BGECPD

No, baby backs from Sam's.

Fidel

Cook them longer. Until the meat draws back frm the bone 1/2 - 3/4" or so.

And make sure they are not labeled as "enhanced" or "up to xx% solution added" or something similar.

BGECPD

Well, that is one of the things that I was looking for. They hadn't drawn back off the bone that much, but 5.5 hours seems like a long time. I've done pork butts before for 10-14 hours so I'll cook as long as it takes. The ribs are just frustrating me though. So you think it is as simple as cooking until more of the rib is exposed? I think I'll only be permitted a few more tries by the family until they vote against ribs for dinner!

fishlessman

my best ribs always come from costcos, i dont trust sams. ribs go from tough, to done , to fall apart, to dried out and burnt. would lose the watch

Photo Egg

As Fidel said make sure they are not enhanced.
Also check your temp and make sure it's on the money.
My last batch I cooked 275 dome for a little over 3 hours, foiled for just under an hour and then cooked till they wanted to break when turning. They came out very good. Easy tender, bite off the bone.
They were from Sam's club, baby backs.

BGECPD

I'm new to Sam's as I just moved too far away from our old Costco. I do think that Costco's meat dept was better, but I've got what I've got. So are you also suggesting cooking longer?

Thanks for all of the replies so far!

fishlessman

common rule is to cook them until you think they are done, then cook them another hour seems to work until you know what to look for, meat pulling back, rack gets floppy when you go to move it. time is tough with ribs because each rack is different, meaty, size etc.. i lost my costco connection so now im thinking about looking at bj's warehouse, i dont trust sams or walmarts and i know my local supermarket is repackaging hormel under their own label

Pjoe

Foil is our friend. About an hour or so at the end and they will melt.

ShedFarm

This may sound like a stupid question, and I apologize if I offend you, but did you remove the membrane from the back side of the ribs? The first time I cooked ribs, I didn't know to do this, which made the whole rack tough as heck.

I also agree with with the suggestion to foil. Makes 'em incredibly tender.

SmokeyPitt

You might consider a foil stage.

Posted this once already today...but check out url=https://player.vimeo.com/video/928412 video[/url] uncle phil did that has worked well for me.

In my opinion, just because you have to cut them with a knife that doesn't make them bad . I prefer to slice the ribs individually for serving. The bark that forms makes it difficult to pull them apart. I find you just end up pulling the bones out. That's the difference between real Q and ribs made in the oven or a crock pot

"Sparky"

I agree with Fidel,they prolly need more time.The meat should pull back from the bone like this.....



http://s264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/eggdoug/?action=view&current=DSC_0047-2.jpg

Little Steven

Now that is just cruel! Jerkwater! :laugh:

"Sparky"

:laugh: Yer just mad because you can't figure out your TV old man :silly: :silly:

Little Steven

Nice ribs my brother!

"Sparky"

Thanks Steve,they did get Carwash Mike's approval :(

WessB

I agree with all the other posts..ribs are done...when the ribs are done..be that 4 hours on the watch or 6 hours....cooking ribs is NOT baking...look for the meat to draw back but more importantly you want to be able to pick up the rack about half way down the length with some tongs and see them bend big time, 90° without breaking is ideal but not mandatory..keep at it and you'll find the way you like best..

kmellecker

My first three attempts at ribs were an absolute disaster to the point I threw one batch in the trash. Keep at it and you will be rewarded. My last several cooks have been what you would expect from your Egg, in fact just finished an excellent meal of ribs that are still producing raves from the family. I cook them at 250 dome, indirect, using both the grid on the inverted plate setter and a raised grid turning and moving the ribs (baby backs or spare ribs) every hour. My time works out to about 5 hours and they are perfect. For smoke, I use apple wood chunks which gives a more mild flavor than hickory. I almost gave up on ribs but glad I worked through it. Keep at it, you wont be sorry. Welcome to the wonderful world of Eggdom and the very informative Forum.

Gator Bait

 
First, Welcome to the forum.

I started on a mission to learn to egg good ribs early last summer. I am convinced that ribs are funny in that we all have to find a way that suites us. There are many ways to cook them but they don't always work for everybody. I started with the CWM method and was having mixed results with it. I then switched to thirdeyes EZBB Ribs and started getting results I liked better. My most recent ribs have been very good. My self and a couple others here have used this method since my last post with very good results so it seams like a reliable and consistent way to cook them.

Oh ya, I get my ribs at Sam's and find nothing wrong with them. They are packaged by Smithfield, three full racks to a cryovac package. I look for the meatiest and most uniformly shaped ribs (the same length from one end to the other or as close as I can find so they cook evenly) and with an even distribution of fat. I look at every package in the case trying to get the most ideal ribs I can.

Don't give up, you will find the way that works best for you, that is just the nature of the cook I think.

Blair


 

Joe Willie

I'll kick in my 2 cents. First few times I tried baby backs on the BGE, I was in the same boat you find yourself in. I went to the 3:1:1 (or 3:2:1, or 3:1.5:1....whatever works for your taste) method and modified it a little. If toughness is the problem you are having, foil and time will generally solve it. I check for pullback after 30-40 minutes in the foil and let them go until Im happy. Sometimes thats a half hour, sometimes its an hour and a half. Just depends on the conditions and the meat that particular day. I have veered from that base, but anytime I hit a run of less than ideal cooks, I go back to that and work forward from there. Yes, I have found that you will lose a little of the flavor with foiling, but its been fairly bulletproof as far as getting them tender, which appears to be your primary concern.

Just from a troubleshooting standpoint, are you using direct or indirect heat? Some people swear by direct, but for me its a platesetter everytime.

[Deleted User]

I'm just going to pipe up and say7 what everyone else is saying. Cook 'em longer. I always assume 6 hrs for rib cooks. I frequently use foil and still will go over 5 hrs. allow 6 hrs for BBs, longer for spares.

When you first start cookimng this stuff, it seems like if you leave it on too long, they will dry out, but actually, as conterintuitive as it may seem, the shorter you cook them the tougher they will be.

The floppy test that wess mentioned is a good way to tell.