Ribs... the way I do them (pic heavy)

TexanOfTheNorth

There have been a lot of questions regarding rib methods lately. As I was doing ribs yesterday, I thought I would document the process with pictures. I am certainly not the only one that does ribs this way and, I'm not even suggesting this is the best or preferred way to do them. It just happens to be the method that I like and use.

I'll start by saying that I like my ribs with dry rub only (i.e., no sauce) and, while I like them to be nice and tender, I do not want them to "fall off the bone". Nothing wrong with sauce or picking up a rib by the bone and having the meat stay on the plate; it's just not the way I like them. Also, I have no particular preference for back vs. side ribs. I'll usually get whatever ones cost less. I find that this method works equally well for either type of rib (just a difference in the total cook time).

The ribs I cooked happen to be baby backs that I bought a few weeks ago at Restaurant Depot in Buffalo. They came two racks to a pack. I cut each rack down into 3 pieces as it is easier for me to freeze them that way.

To prepare these ribs for the egg I pulled the membrane off of the bottom side of the rack. I then applied Bad Byron's Butt Rub to both sides of the rib. Some people will apply a thin layer of prepared mustard before adding rub; that's fine. These were rubbed earlier in the morning, covered with plastic wrap and sat in the fridge until about an hour before I planned to put them on the egg.

I start by making sure that I have an adequate supply of lump. At least to the top of the fire box but, you can go higher than that if you want to. You can't see it but, there is a fist-sized chunk of peach wood in the middle of that pile. I'll add more peach wood later. The type of wood you use is up to you, and like almost everything else, is a matter of personal preference.



I like to cook my ribs around 225*. It won't hurt to cook them higher, 250-260, if you want to. In order to maintain a low temp I light the lump in just one place; the middle. Some light in the front and others in the back. Not sure it really matters. I use one piece of paper towel with a little vegetable oil. At this point the bottom vent is wide open.



It took about 10 minutes for the lump to start burning to a point where I could close the lid on the egg. I also adjusted the bottom vent to about 1/2 closed




Keep an eye on the temp as it does not take long to reach 225* and you really don't want to overshoot it. It only took about 20 minutes for me to get there. As I do not use a top cap/cover the lower vent is barely open.



My temp was approaching 250* here but, as I was about to add the plate setter, drip pan and grid, I knew it would come back down.



I use copper pipe fittings to provide some space between the plate setter and my drip pan. Some people use balls of foil. There are some that do not even use a drip pan. I recommend, that if you do use a drip pan, you provide some space to keep the drippings from burning. You can't see it in the picture but, I added two more pieces of peach wood, on top of the lump, before putting the plate setter in.





Once the plate setter, drip pan and grid were added, the temp dropped down just below 200*. At this point you'll want to wait for the temp to come back up (I don't make any adjustments to the bottom vent) and stabilize. During this time the VOC's will continue to burn off. I waited about 40 minutes for all of that to happen and put the ribs on. I also added two potatoes as we were having twice baked taters with the ribs.



Once I put the ribs on, I close the lid and walk away (just checking the dome temp every hour or so). About an hour into this cook, Mrs. TOTN and I decided to go on a 10K walk so I made a slight adjustment to my bottom vent; opening it just slightly from the picture above. As I knew we'd be out for an hour and a half or more I wanted to make sure that the temp did not drop. It did, in fact, go up to 250*; which doesn't hurt anything, just shortens the cook. Finally, opened the lid around 5:30, about 4 1/2 hrs. in and they were ready to pull. As I had three shorter "racks" the bend test was not the best way to check them so I used a toothpick to check for doneness.



These ribs had a nice bark, were tender, moist and flavorful. I picked up the wrong knife and did not do the best job slicing them for this last shot but here's how they looked.

platypusrex

Nice detail, thanks! I'd eat that...

QingEsq

Really well done explanation and the results look awesome.  Do you apply a second coat of rub toward the end?  I only have one quibble with this.  For me, a baked potato wrapped in foil is too moist and just doesn't taste right, and when done on the grill they lose out on the smokey goodness.  

TexanOfTheNorth

QingEsq said:

Really well done explanation and the results look awesome.  Do you apply a second coat of rub toward the end?  I only have one quibble with this.  For me, a baked potato wrapped in foil is too moist and just doesn't taste right, and when done on the grill they lose out on the smokey goodness.  

No second coat of rub was applied.

As for the potatoes... they were going to be twice baked so I did not want the skin to dry out. Otherwise, I agree with you. Once I pulled the ribs I let egg get up to about 400*, while I prepared the potatoes. They went back out for about 20 minutes and turned out really well!

txhawkeye

Thank you for documenting your process. One question I have is the process you light your lump, when I light mine I get dome temps in the 400 range to burn off all of the VOC'S. The lump is mostly white when I add the wood for smoke and I let that burn about 10 mins to let the smoke clear a bit. It seems maybe I am overdoing it I have been concered the lump would put a strong bad flavor on the meat. I am always able to get my temps back down to 225, but your process seems easier if I am reading it right.

JohnnyTarheel

Thanks for sharing... Looks great

QingEsq

That makes sense.  And that twice baked look great.  

Sameday

I might have to try this for dinner. Looks good. 

johnmitchell

@TexanOfTheNorth... Sunday morning just sitting here minding my own business, I click on your post....Next thing I have frozen ribs defrosting, egg lit....We are having ribs later.. Thanks for the inspiration..Your ribs look awesome..

Eggingaround

Nice write up. Ribs looks really good. Twice baked taters are the best.

bweekes

Very well documented, John. I can see this post being bookmarked and referenced many many times on this forum. Next time someone has a rib question, I know what thread I'll be linking to! 

Fred19Flintstone

Great write up John!  Now I'm craving ribs!

Phatchris

Doing ribs as we speak the same way, only apple and cherry chunks

YukonRon

Keeping this on file!!!!!!! Excellent job!

Canugghead

Great cook and write up John, thanks for sharing.

jonnymack

Excellent step by step. Thanks!

SGH

Brother of the North, what a excellent, detailed write up. The grub looks great too. Hope that y'all had a great 4th my friend.  I can see that at a minimum y'all are very well!!!!

AlbertaEgger

Nice! I do then pretty much the same. And we are doing two rack today for dinner. Love it. 

TexanOfTheNorth

Eggingaround said:

Nice write up. Ribs looks really good. Twice baked taters are the best.

Agreed; I really don't do them enough

SoCalTim

@TexanOfTheNorth  ... Fantastic tutorial! I'm bookmarking this for future reference to anyone asking the question 'How do I do ribs'. Excellent my friend!