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Ribs and more ribs...

Jamieoro
Jamieoro Posts: 180
edited June 2013 in EggHead Forum
Cooked some baby backs over the weekend. Did half foiled and half not. The unfoiled ones came out pretty dry but may have overcooked... Made for some nice "McRib" sandwiches with leftovers, inspired by @griffin ! Threw on some mini meatloafs I had in the freezer and wrapped in bacon, of course.
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Comments

  • Eggdam
    Eggdam Posts: 223
    Did the ribs with no foil pass the bend test?  They may have actually been undercooked.  I have found it pretty hard to dry ribs out.  The only time I had dry ribs I pulled a rack to feed the kids early and they were dry.  An hour and twenty later and the other 3 racks were perfect.  Ribs look great thou.
  • shtgunal3
    shtgunal3 Posts: 5,629
    Looks good enough to eat!

    ___________________________________

     

     LBGE,SBGE, and a Mini makes three......Sweet home Alabama........ Stay thirsty my friends .

  • Jamieoro
    Jamieoro Posts: 180
    @eggdam what exactly is the bend test? The meat still pulled off of the none real easily but were just dry. Interesting thought though!
  • Eggdam
    Eggdam Posts: 223
    When you pick up a rack with tongs by the end they should be very limp.  The bark will crack the and ribs will bend right over.  Sometimes I have had them break right in half.  Typically as ribs cook there is a point where the meat drys out.  After that the connective tissues in the meat break down and re hydrate the meat.
  • Jamieoro
    Jamieoro Posts: 180
    Thanks @eggdam. I'll try the test next time
  • Griffin
    Griffin Posts: 8,200
    edited June 2013
    Nice looking ribs and McRib Sammich! Much better than anything that red headed clown could ever serve under the arches.

    Rowlett, Texas

    Griffin's Grub or you can find me on Facebook

    The Supreme Potentate, Sovereign Commander and Sultan of Wings

     

  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    edited June 2013
    If the unfoiled ribs were cooked as long as the foiled ones, they didn't cook as much as the foiled. The dry sensation probably was not because they had less moisture in the meat, but that the collagen had not converted completely to gel, and the fat hadn't melted enough.

    When meats are foiled, they can't "sweat," and stay cool. The meat heats up faster as the water in it turns to vapor, and is trapped in the pouch. Besides cooking faster, this usually assures the collagen breaks down into gel. But the down side is that the meat proteins may have "denatured" more completely. This leads to "mushy" meat.

    Out of foil cooking exposes the meat to smoke longer, and allows a crisper bark. They may look done, but until the collagen breaks down, the meat remains stiff. When bitten, there will be more fibrous feeling and less of the succulent quality produced by the gelatin. It seems dry.

    If you want really dry meat, here's an experiment. Put some meat, maybe a piece or two of sacrificial chicken, in a slow cooker, and submerge in water. Set it to low, and let it go for maybe 12 hours. At the end, the meat will fall apart, and be shreddable even w. fingers. But in the mouth, it will have a gummy, dry texture. The long period even at low heat with fluid has caused the muscle tissue to squeeze and ooze out most of the water in it. But it will be OK mixed w. mayo for chik salad.
  • SmokeyPitt
    SmokeyPitt Posts: 10,490
    edited June 2013
    I was about to say something similar as professor @gdenby, but not nearly as eloquently :)

    ...but yeah, foiled meat cooks faster so the unfoiled probably needed to go longer.  Personally with baby backs I still like to use a foil stage.  I have experimented and with a straight 6 hour cook and me and the fam prefer the softening affect you get with a foil stage. 

    The ribs and bacon wrapped loaf bites all look fantastic!  It has been a while since I tried the bone suckin sauce, but your pics make me want to pic up a jar. 


    Which came first the chicken or the egg?  I egged the chicken and then I ate his leg. 

  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    I was about to say something similar as professor @gdenby, but not nearly as eloquently :)

    Yeah, I spent a bit too much time reading thru Doctors Mhyrvold & Blonders discussions of what happens when meat is BBQ'd, They come at cooking as a branch of physical chemistry.