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Fall off the bone ribs on the egg

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Powak
Powak Posts: 1,391
in EggHead Forum
I'm planning on smoking some ribs this afternoon on the Egg. This will be the second time I've done ribs with the Egg. First time was I kept the temp at 250 and pull the ribs about 4.5-5 hours. They were 4 full racks of St. Louis'.
The ribs never seemed to be "fall off the bone" like they've turned out on my WSM. Is there a trick to this with the Egg? Should I throw water in my drip pan? I know on the WSM they cooked at 235 for 6 hours, had tons of bark, were fall off the bone and juicy.

Another thing I've never done is pulled the membrane off the back of the ribs. Would that help with fall off the bone-ness?
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  • dirty_denim86
    dirty_denim86 Posts: 138
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    Pull the membrane and try to foil them 2 hours into the cook for 2 hours.
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  • blind99
    blind99 Posts: 4,971
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    you need to cook them longer at that temp, or move to a higher temp.  ribs are just like pork butt, or brisket - a tough cut that needs a long enough time/temp to relax all the collagen.  typically if you hit an internal temp of somewhere in the 190-200 range it'll happen, but ribs are a little tough to judge with all that bone. so a lot of people just go by feel - pick up a rack at one end and see how it flops over and what happens.  if it's too stiff, cook longer. 


    250 at the dome could be 200 near the grid for a few hours.  I'd bump up the temp to 275-285 and work from there.  (FWIW I mostly cook them turbo, and finish them in 1.5-2 hours. I like them to pull cleanly off the bone and be tender but still a bit of chew to them.)

    Chicago, IL - Large and Small BGE - Weber Gasser and Kettle
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  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 32,341
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    Best finish-line rib indicator for me is the tooth-pick test.  Insert into the thick rib meat-no resistance and you are there.  
    And to ensure fall-off-the-bone then go with the foil braise step as mentioned above.  FWIW-
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood. # 38 for the win.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period.
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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,391
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    dirty_denim86 said:
    Pull the membrane and try to foil them 2 hours into the cook for 2 hours.
    At 250° for dome right?
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  • gmac
    gmac Posts: 1,814
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    The foil is the key. I don't think the temp is as critical as long as it's 250+ (Within reason). It's the steaming that does it and the foil holds the moisture in. 
    Mt Elgin Ontario - just a Large.
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  • SmokeyPitt
    SmokeyPitt Posts: 10,490
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    I agree you just need to cook them more.  Cook a little hotter or a little longer until they pass the bend or toothpick test.  As mentioned you can also use a foil stage but if you were happy with the ribs off the WSM you should be able to reproduce these on the egg without foil.  There is nothing wrong with foiling and it will get them done faster, but you can get there sans foil. 

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

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  • paqman
    paqman Posts: 4,670
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    gmac said:
    The foil is the key. I don't think the temp is as critical as long as it's 250+ (Within reason). It's the steaming that does it and the foil holds the moisture in. 
    Agreed... Foil is the key.  I usually foil them for less than an hour. ~45 minutes is good.

    ____________________
    Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage. •Niccolo Machiavelli
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  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
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    Those are the big boys

    I go 6-8 hours sometimes on those at 250

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  • dirty_denim86
    dirty_denim86 Posts: 138
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    Powak said:
    dirty_denim86 said:
    Pull the membrane and try to foil them 2 hours into the cook for 2 hours.
    At 250° for dome right?
    I recently did 4 racks over the weekend tried cooking them a bit longer. I like when they pull off the bone but don't fall off when cutting them up.

    I went with a 3-1.5-1 method it seemed to work pretty good for me at this point I'm just trying something until I like the end results. These were a bit more tender than the 2-2-1 method I've used in the past.

    As for the 250 dome temperature I use the partyQ and set it to 250 so that is 250 on the grate.
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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
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    Powak said:

    The ribs never seemed to be "fall off the bone" like they've turned out on my WSM. Is there a trick to this with the Egg? Should I throw water in my drip pan? I know on the WSM they cooked at 235 for 6 hours, had tons of bark, were fall off the bone and juicy.

    Another thing I've never done is pulled the membrane off the back of the ribs. Would that help with fall off the bone-ness?
    Why are you pulling them sooner from the Egg than the WSM? Heat is heat. The Egg's big advantage is that moisture isn't drawn out of the food as aggressively as in a metal cooker. But getting the meat tender and succulent is still a matter of the amount of heat and time needed to break down the connective tissue.

    you can guess the time to when they will be perfect. But, as above, if they don't pass the toothpick test, or the bend test, cook them more.
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  • shtgunal3
    shtgunal3 Posts: 5,647
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    I have 3 racks on now and I too am shooting for "fall off the bone". Here is what I'm trying.....


    http://blog2.thermoworks.com/2016/05/key-temps-bbq-spare-ribs/?utm_source=Nl-2016May14&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Feature&utm_content=inbox&utm_campaign=May2016-BBQ-Spare-Ribs-cs

    ___________________________________

     

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

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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,391
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    gdenby said:
    Powak said:

    The ribs never seemed to be "fall off the bone" like they've turned out on my WSM. Is there a trick to this with the Egg? Should I throw water in my drip pan? I know on the WSM they cooked at 235 for 6 hours, had tons of bark, were fall off the bone and juicy.

    Another thing I've never done is pulled the membrane off the back of the ribs. Would that help with fall off the bone-ness?
    Why are you pulling them sooner from the Egg than the WSM?

    you can guess the time to when they will be perfect. But, as above, if they don't pass the toothpick test, or the bend test, cook them more.
    I've pulled them sooner from the Egg because the egg seems to run 250 dome and no lower without going out. The WSM runs 235 average with water in the pan.
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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,391
    edited May 2016
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    Tonight I'm trying the 2 hours in the rib rack, 2 hours foiled method with 3 large racks of baby backs. Although I'd like to nail the smoking till done without foiling method that probably won't be tonight due to dinner at 6.
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  • Buckdodger
    Buckdodger Posts: 957
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    Did a rack of BB's last weekend Turbo. 350 dome indirect, after about 1hr and 45 mins. I did the bend test...picked the rack up at one end and they almost came apart. Put them back on the egg with BBQ sauce for about another 20 mins. Tender as butter but not fall off of the bone. Spread apple chips throughout the lump.  They were yummy...SWMBO said the best ribs she has had off of the egg. My 2 cents.

    Opelika, Alabama
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  • 4Runner
    4Runner Posts: 2,948
    edited May 2016
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    Some prefer tender but not fall of the bone.  I'm in this camp.  For FOB, I go with the 3-1-1 method and the middle 1 is flexible given the size of ribs.  Enjoy.  
    Joe - I'm a reformed gasser-holic aka 4Runner Columbia, SC Wonderful BGE Resource Site: http://www.nakedwhiz.com/ceramicfaq.htm and http://www.nibblemethis.com/  and http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com/2006/02/recipes.html
    What am I drinking now?   Woodford....neat
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  • nhk19
    nhk19 Posts: 151
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    Here's my favorite recipe & I love their rub. 

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=e5A2JcUB3jM
    XLBGE
    Lewisburg, PA
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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,391
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    Ribs came out AMAZING! 250 for 2 hours uncovered. It jumped down to 200 early in the cook so for the last two hours while foiled I finished em at 300. 
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