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Pork Ribs [pics]

Unknown
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
*cliffs notes* There are pics at the bottom. I rubbed them and smoked them and ate them. :lol:

Lots of cold beer was involved w/ this, so cut me some slack on the photo quality. :lol: And I posted this on another forum, so excuse me for mentioning the bad-assedness of the egg in this thread. lol

Pork ribs is what I use, mostly spare ribs, but you can use the same method w/ baby backs. Most people do them in the oven (baby backs, that is, not spare ribs), but they're great smoked.

Method:

Make sure the membranes are removed from the back. That's the clear paper thin skin on the back of them. I got lucky and they already had these removed for me.

I coated them lightly with mustard so the rub will stick. Oil will work, but mustard seems to work well and I wanted to try something new. You can use any rub you want. Sometimes I make my own which is just basically pepper, red pepper, garlic, onion powder, cumin, and then oregano, a little salt, and whatever else you want. This time I used a brand called, "Butt Rubb." You can order it online and it's great w/ pork and chicken.

So, after the mustard I coated them heavily with the rub and rubbed it in. Then I covered it and put it in the fridge for about an hour. You can go longer, or less, it's not going to make that big of a difference on ribs.

For smoke I used a little mesquite and maple, and then just lump charcoal. They were in there for about 8 hours at 200. If you can go at 180 for longer, they're better, but I wanted them done before midnight. :lol: Put them on at 4:30.. w/ about 30 minutes left I cranked it up to maybe 300. Then for about 10 minutes I pulled them off and put them meat side down straight on the grill to kind of crust them over a little bit more.

I had a couple buddies over that are big ol' boys and bbq fiends and no BS, said they were the best they've ever had. Other people have had the same reaction. We had 3 full racks between 4 of us.. that's a lot. And what's scary is I really don't have that much practice doing ribs on the egg, this is maybe my 5th batch ever.

You could be off by an hour or two if you're trying to calculate when they're "done." It's bbq, they're done when they're done. :lol: Meaning, when the meat starts pulling back off the bone pretty good.

The egg is so easy to use for smoking or steaks or whatever that it's scary. It's an inch thick, at least, ceramic. So really the "secret" is you can let them smoke, but it's so solid that all the juices stay in it and they're ridiculously moist. No boiling, no bullsh*t, no wrapping in foil or any of that to get them tender. They turn out perfect ever time, just don't mess w/ them and let it do its job.

With the rub before going in the fridge:
ribsprecook.jpg

Here's where I was skeptical and anyone else is the first time they smoke ribs on the egg. It doesn't look traditional, but it works. I have a pizza stone on the bottom, and then a plate setter. It only gets indirect heat this way, and nothing but smoke swirling around the ribs. You just have to trust it, that's all I can say.

ribssmoke.jpg

They're done and ready to cut up, this is half of them:
ribsdone.jpg

After who knows how many beers and watching UFC, this is the best I could do on pics. :lol: Hopefully you can see the bark on these, the smoke ring, and how juicy they are.

ribsdone2.jpg

And no, no bbq sauce. I love me some bbq sauce, don't get me wrong. And usually when people say, "It doesn't need it," they're wrong, IMO. It's hard to get a lot of flavor w/out it. These didn't need any sauce what-so-ever.

As far as how "done" to make them, it's personal preference. "Championship" ribs like "Championship" chili can tend to be different than "eating" ribs and chili. Contest ribs you don't ever want to fall off the bone, so to speak. You want to chew them off the bone. And w/ comp chili, there's no beans or anything else in there. . whole pieces of peppers, onions, etc.

That's for judging purposes only, though. There are a lot of ways to hide flaws, etc, if you're allowed to make them fall off the bone, or add extras in chili.

Point is, experiment and make everything how *you* like it. It takes lots of trial and error and honest criticism, that's all.

Comments

  • ILL--EGGER
    ILL--EGGER Posts: 478
    Nice job on the post. I was curious as to why you layed the ribs over the V-rack and not turn it over and stand them up? To big for all to fit across I'm assuming? Looks fantastic and thanks for shareing!
  • usc1321
    usc1321 Posts: 627
    Very nice...Good looking cook B)
  • mojopin
    mojopin Posts: 200
    They look really good! So no spritzing or juice in a drip pan? Just super low and slow? I usually do the 3-1-1 and love em, but if I have the time I'm going to try this.

    Great job!

    -Jill
  • I've tried it both ways, I just didn't want them getting direct heat.
  • thirdeye
    thirdeye Posts: 7,428
    Belly ribs are my favorite too. You did a nice job on them. If you keep cookin' like that, it looks like a rib rack is in your future, :laugh: You can flip that V rack over and use it, but it works better for loin ribs.

    106802cd.jpg

    You know, by inverting the plate setter (feet up) the grate will sit on them and your rack can go on top of the grate. Then if you want a drip pan, there is room on the plate setter.
    Happy Trails
    ~thirdeye~

    Barbecue is not rocket surgery
  • Usually I've sprited w/ vinegar. I did realize at the last minute that I didn't have a drip pan in there, so I threw one on after I took that pic. lol

    This time I wanted to see how they'd do on their own just letting them cook w/out any spritz and I don't think they could have been any more tender or cooked perfectly.

    But yeah, give them at least 8 hours or so around 200 and they seem to come out perfectly everytime. I used one chunk of mesquite an then almost a handful of maple chips, so they smoked maybe 30 minutes at the beginning.
  • I will definitely try that, and I need a rib rack like you have. When I've left them whole and flipped them over it seems that the ones on the end cook way too fast b/c of direct heat, so that's why I tried this.
  • thirdeye
    thirdeye Posts: 7,428
    I prefer cooking them flat because I use a Eastern NC vinegar mop also. But the racks are great for quantity.

    c5cf24a6.jpg

    One trick I do for both flat and racked ribs is to position one leg of the plate setter at 12:00 directly in back by the hinge, as my LGE has a hot spot there. I also leave extra foil in my drip pan to make sort of a heat shield back there too. Then a few times during the cook, I just rotate the whole grate to balance out the doneness and color. After they shrink up a bit, the plate setter shields them fine.
    Happy Trails
    ~thirdeye~

    Barbecue is not rocket surgery
  • I can't quite tell, how do you have it set up w/ that pic.. do you have a grill extender/extra grate? I'm not sure what they're called.
  • thirdeye
    thirdeye Posts: 7,428
    This shows it a little better, as well as the BGE grate extender too.

    Plate setter is sitting on the fire ring (where the grate normally would), legs up. The grate is sitting on the legs of the plate setter. The clip on extender is clipped to the grate.

    DSC02688a.jpg

    In your case, you would not use the extender and just set the rib rack on the grate. Because of the height of the legs on the plate setter, there is room for a drip pan to sit on it (below the grate).
    Happy Trails
    ~thirdeye~

    Barbecue is not rocket surgery
  • Jeffersonian
    Jeffersonian Posts: 4,244
    Speaking as another big ol' boy, those are nice looking ribs, Doc, a perfect color.