St. Louis Ribs

chuckl

I've been using the 2-2-2 method and have lost my grip on making good ribs.  They are tending to be sticking to the bone and dried out.  After 2 hours in the foil with apple juice the racks have to be handled gently or they will fall apart.  Does that mean they are done?  Are the next two hours of cooking just drying them out and ruining them?  If they are done after being wrapped for 2 hours, what would my next steps be?

SoCalTim

Hi sir, your overcooking them. IMO, your overthinking your rib cook. When I first started making ribs, I did the same exact thing your doing.

I was overthinking. Now, all these years later ... I keep it as simple as possible. I do my ribs naked, no foil, no apple juice, no nothing - just run them straight thru.

If your using Babybacks, I start checking them @ the 3 hr mark - they should be all but done at the 4 hrs mark (when @ 275 degrees) use the bend test or a toothpick to check for tenderness.

This is a fun cook, enjoy it ... try again and get back to us.

pgprescott

I would go 2-1-.5

@250-275

the egg cooks all things faster than other cookers due to reduced airflow and moist environment in the ceramic vessel. 

saluki2007

Agree with Tim.  Really no need to foil.  Use a toothpick to insert in between the bones.  Once you can slide it in and out with little resistance, they are done.

pgprescott

I generally don't foil either, but if you do, you must drastically reduce the foil time from previous non-kamado cookers

YukonRon

I just go 5 hours for BBR, 6 hours for SLR. Sauce at the end if you want. I just use rub and peach smoke.

Ladeback69

I have done ribs both with foil and naked.  Both came out good,  but people seem to like it when I do 2-1-1 on the ribs.

chuckl, if you want to use foil; smoke the ribs for hours from 225 to 275.  Then double wrap in heavy duty foil by placing them meat side down and add what you want for flavoring.  I like to add squeeze butter, honey brown sugar and a little apple juice.  Do the same on the bone side of the ribs.  Now close up the foil on the long side and roll up the ends.  Put them back on for an hour.  After an hour, take them out of the foil and put them back on the rill.  After 30 minutes use you favorite sauce to glaze them and let them go for 30 more minutes.  Pull them let rest a few minutes, slice and enjoy.

If you want fall of the bone, you could do 2-1.5, pull, rest and eat.  That is the way my wife likes them.  The foil speeds up the cooking process and and going 2 hours in foil and 2 more on the grill is over cooking them.  If they bend almost in half when moving them they should be done.  You  can use a toothpick to check to see if they are done.  It should go in easy.

If you want to go with no foil, get the Egg between 225 and 275 and let them go for 3 to 4 hours.  If going with 275 I would check them after two hours to see how they are doing by using the test above.  I like going 275 when not using foil.  

Good Luck on you next run of ribs.

dmourati

I think the time in foil should be no longer than one hour.

chuckl

Thanks for the comments.  I will only foil the ribs for 60 minutes, hope to do some this weekend.  

fishlessman

i just cook them raised grid direct now but used to do the foil thing. its problematic at best

first thing, foil stage with some liquid is meat side down only so the meat braises, its falling apart sometime after an hour, mostly before 2 hours, check every 15 minutes after the first hour

second, the last stage is to firm them back up only, theres no guaranteed time for this, its done when its done, 15 minutes...a half hour....

third, i only do this for company that expects falling apart ribs, never for family