Rib help - little too dry...

Theo

I did some baby backs yesterday in the BGE - indirect with place setter on a raised grid - 250 degrees (sometimes went to 260 to 270 - but held around 250 for the most part). [p]I did the 3-1-1 method - 3 hrs indirect - 1 hr indirect in foil - and final hour indirect removed from foil (I wrote this in case I have it wrong).[p]After the 3rd to 4th hour - the meat had pulled back from the bone about 1/4 to 3/8 inch on some of the ribs & they looked done. One of the racks was falling apart as i was removing it from the foil to put back into the egg.[p]When I finally pulled them off after the 5th hour - the meat fell off the bone with no tugging - and they were a bit dry (but still yummy). [p]Any ideas ? Did I cook to high (maybe 225?) or too long ?[p]Thanks all for your help !!!

Darnoc

theo,
I find that if you put 1 cup of apple juice in the foil and seal it up it will keep the ribs very moist.

The Virginian

theo,
Sounds like you just cooked them too long. The 3-1-1 method is intended for spares, which cook longer. You can use the same method, but shorten the time. Without foil baby backs take about 4 to 4 1/2 hours, so I would think that with the foil you would want no more than 4 hours total, maybe less. [p]Brett

EddieMac

Sounds like you did everything right......But now....it's time for a little experimentation on your part.....I've used the 3-1-1 method two or three times.....And they turned out pretty well....But then I realzied that the stages were just a bit long....I shorted the 1-1 stages.....40 minutes in the foil (with apple juice).....and just 20 minutes of direct saucing and flipping.....And that gave me the results I was looking for.....[p]Also...did BabyBacks this past weekend....5 hours indirect in the rib rack....and I liked that procedure (that I picked up here on the BGE Forum) even better than 3-1-1....[p]Ed McLean.....eddiemac
Ft. Pierce, FL

Darnoc

theo,
I forgot to mention to put the ribs in a foil pan and cover it up with foil and have bone sides down when you put in the pan.

Unknown

theo,[p]I did baby backs the way Dizzy Pig's website mentioned. The toothpick to test for doneness worked very well. Also, I think pork seems to have that same plateou effect where it sits around 160 for a while and then starts to head towards 200. I took them off around 195 and they were perfect. I also used the apple juice and cider vinegar spritz to keep them moist.