Slow Cooked Ribs

Kyle

I am a recently new egger. My problem is that when I cook baby back ribs I find they are very crisp on the underside. I have kept the tempature at about 350 for 45 min. to 1 hr.[p]I have never tried cooking for hours at lower temperatures, as I have found it hard to regulate the temperature of the Egg. I also take the membrance off. [p]I was down in Florida a couple of weeks ago (I'm Canadian - escaping the cold) and had ribs at Tony Roma's. The meat was falling off the bone. That is the way I would like the ribs to be from the Egg.[p]I know that I'm doing something wrong. But what? [p]Any assistance would be greatly appeciated.[p]Also, any advice on rubs and spicing would be helpful. I can't seem to quite get that right either.

QBabe

Kyle,[p]45 minutes to an hour is way to fast for ribs. Mine usually take 4-6 hours at 225° to 250°. It takes time for them to get tender like you want. With practice, you should be able to maintain the lower temps easily. When shooting for the lower temps, don't get a roaring blaze going in the cooker. Start the coals in one or two small spots and as you approach the desired temp (within 75°), start closing down your lower vent and daisy top to keep from overshooting the target. In my cooker, a 225°-250° will have my daisy mostly closed with my lower vent only a credit card width opening.[p]Keep trying...
Tonia
:~)

CampCook

Kyle,
Trot yourself over to Tim's website and look at the 3-1-1 recipe for ribs. There are other variations floating around as well. I did this method with some spare ribs last week and they were the best I have ever had any where. Roma's do not hold a candle to these. They are falling off the bone yet moist and tender.
Good Luck, Dave

Unknown

Kyle, Slow down, you move too fast. And way too hot. I cook ribs at 225 for one hour - stacked in a V rack and then another hour on the other side. Then remarinade (no sugar based sauce) and wrap in foil. Cook for at least another hour. Then eat.

Unknown

CampCook,
The link you gave does not work. is it correct?[p] http://www.tm52.com/bge/Dave
I pasted it and nothing comes up

Wise One

QBabe, how about outlining your complete method for me. This sounds more like I would liek to do them. I've been doing them at 300 or so but feel they are cooking way too fast to be falling off the bone. I think a lower temperature for a longer time would be preferable. All the recipes we have on site call for 325-350.

QBabe

Bill,[p]Lately, I've been cooking spares rather than baby backs simply because I can get them for a better price. As far as prep, I usually try to marinate the ribs in pineapple juice overnight, but truth be told, I'd say that's been 50/50, i.e. sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. Next day, I drain the ribs and pat them dry. Then I sprinkle with rub, wrap in saran wrap and put them back into the fridge until I'm ready to put them on the cooker. [p]When I'm ready, I set up the cooker for an indirect cook with platesetter legs up, drip pan covered with aluminum foil (saves on cleanup), grid, then meat. I've been going back and forth on using a rib rack or lying them flat on the grid and haven't decided which I like better, so that's another thing I haven't narrowed down yet. Once I have the cooker stabilized at 225° - 250° then the ribs go on. I'm beginning to learn not to worry so much about holding an exact temp, but have started to get a feel for the fire and the meat and no longer worry about the variance in the temps so much. About every 45 minutes or so I mist them with a combination of worchestershire sauce, honey, white vinegar, ketchup, and tabasco. Then after 4-5 hours when they start bending a bit when I pick them up and start pulling away from the bone a bit, I take them off and slice them up. I don't like mine to fall apart when I pick them up off the grid, but prefer them to slice cleanly between the bones, but pull from the bone nicely when I'm eating them. [p]Here's a pic of the last ones cooking....[p][p]...and here they are served...[p][p]...and sliced...[p][p]Can't say I've got it "down" yet, but I'm learning....and having fun while I'm at it![p]Tonia
:~)[p]

WooDoggies

Kyle,[p]To add to QBabe's comments about temps..... Nature Boy put it simply when he said to use the bottom vent first to achieve your general temp and then the top vent to fine tune your temperature.
So, for 225-250 my cooker's vents would be open about credit card width for the bottom vent and the top vent daisy petals open about half.[p]Also take the time to let your cooker stabilize at your desired temp. I will let the cooker go for 20-30 minutes and sometimes longer before putting on the meat.
Taking the extra time will allow the ceramic to heat up, make temp easier to control and burn off the denser white and potentially bitter smoke from the lump and added wood chunks that you get right after startup.
The thinner blue smoke from a clean burning fire will give you a more mellow and balanced smoke flavor, like an added ingredient, rather than the dominant and sometimes pungent flavor the initial smoke will give the meat.[p]Also, you might want to try spares next time instead of baby backs. I find them easier to cook and a lot more flavorful....... and there's a heck of a lot more meat![p]Below is walk through on spares on the Dizzy Pig website. Being visually minded, photos tell me a lot more than words ever can........ good luck![p]John [p] [p][p]

[ul][li]BBQFan1 Rib Pictorial[/ul]