Clue me in!!!

Dr. Chicken · January 2000

Spin, Tim M., C~W, EW, Mike O., Kenny G. and any others;
Clue me in folks! I went to skin the membrane off some ribs we had frozen in the freezer (after thawing) and it was impossible. We bought another slab (fresh) and it was just as bad. What am I doing wrong, or how should I proceed to make it work. I never knew this was a must, but even my brother does the same thing as youse guys & gals. (and he uses me for pointers and ideas!! Heaven help him!) Am I leavin' something out? I'd sure appreciate your input and comments!
BTW... The ribs were good, but I should have wrapped them in foil the last 2 hrs when I cranked up the temp to 320 - 350. I burnt them a little! Oh well, just like hunting... If you were guaranteed success each time, it would be called "killing" instead of hunting! Cooking is more than jest putting them in and forgettin' them![p]Thanks a bunch![p]Dr. Chicken

Tim M · January 2000

<p />Dr. Chicken,[p]If you come to Eggfest2000 I will personally remove the membrane for your ribs that you will cook for us. How's that for an offer. OK, so it ain't a very good one but I will do it for you if you come.[p]We haven't had a good membrane thread in awhile. The trick is to get a piece lifted up. I start at the small end and cut a piece of membrane from the back side of a bone. Grab the membrane with a paper towel (thats the trick) and pull. Sometimes it comes off like this.[p]Tim
[ul][li]Cookin with Tim M[/ul]

Cat · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,[p]Work the membrane free at one corner, with your fingers or a blunt knife tip. Grasp the freed membrane with a paper towel and it should be easy to pull off.[p]Cathy

Cat · January 2000

Tim M,[p]We have to stop meeting like this. ;-}[p]Cathy

Tim M · January 2000

Cat,[p]Here we are on a beautiful Sunday morning posting on the forum. We should be cooking or something.[p]Tim -- we think alike though

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Cat,
Agreed, that is the best method.[p]Coincidentally, the membrane from the current rack of ribs came off in three long strips instead of one piece by the paper towel. I do not know why, it just did.[p]RhumAndJerk

Cat · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,[p]That's happened to me to. All pigs are equal, but I guess some are more equal than others. [p]Cathy

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Tim M,
Oh go clean your egg. (Ha)
Misery loves company or is it a labor of love.[p]Now I just need to make a run to the store for some Goop Off and I will be all set for the pending gasket replacement.[p]RhumAndJerk[p]

Cat · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,[p]A putty knife is useful too; easier to scrape off the stuff than wipe it.[p]I think I'll go find something to Egg...[p]Catht

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Cat,
I you have a boneless pork loin, try my Garlic Rosemary Pork Roast.[p]Just a suggestion,
RhumAndJerk

[ul][li]Pork Roast with Garlic and Rosemary [/ul]

Cat · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,[p]I've noticed that recipe before; sounds delicious.[p]Tonight I'm leaning towards meat loaf, which I've never tried on the Egg.[p]Good luck with the gasket -[p]Cathy

Dr. Chicken · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,
You , Tim & Cat all seem to express that it should come off easily! That was not the case at all. I worked on both of them and it came off in "itty, bitty" pieces. A royal pain in the butt!! The one we had in the freezer was worse than the fresh one. Does that make a difference? I finally gave up in disgust! I was afraid the one we had froze, was gona be old, so we bought another one, like I said "fresh"! When I cooked them both, they both had good taste (especially if I hadn't burnt them)(I hope I'm not letting something out on the forum that's not suppose to be mentioned! The shame of it all!)but I did notice the membrane. Tim M, if I can arrange it I would love to be at Eggfest 2000. If nothin' more, to meet a bunch of "Coco's" like me! [p]Thanks,
Dr. Chicken

Gfw · January 2000

Dr. Chicken, if all else fails - and I have had some ribs where the membrane faught not to move - I use a knife and score the membrane in both directions - not as good, but it works!

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Cat,
Meatloaf does sound good. Try a gravy that based with Porter or Stout.[p]Good luck,
RhumAndJerk

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,
I have never been happy with the quality of frozen ribs, the way that the membrane comes off or the way that they cook. Stick to Fresh Ribs.[p]RhumAndJerk[p]

YB · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,
I have had a couple of slabs that were hard to get the membrane off,on those i used catfish skinning pliers,they work good,but most of the time i do just like Tim and Cat,i use the paper towels,it really works.
YB

King-O-Coals · January 2000

Dr. Chicken, I swear, you Yankees! God put that skin on there so that "Really Good Cooks", like me, could handle our tender juicy ribs without the meat falling off the bone after cooking them for 6 hours at 150 like I said before. You can seperate my ribs by hand, no knife needed. They serve my ribs at the nursing home to the old guys with no teeth. Now, if you guys can't seem to spare the extra few hours to do this right, you may want to go ahead and remove that skin. But I wouldn't keep talking about it in public..
" "
{@ @}
>
~~~/[p]

Tim M · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,
Why are you replacing a gasket. Did the old one give up the job? I need to order one to have around in case mine goes. I had it stick once and I cut it apart with a thin knife. I thought I was going to have to replace it then but I have had no problems since then. I try to keep food and grease off of it - I think that is what sticks it together. Kinda glues it shut.
I have never done one but I was told no to use fluids as the ceramic will soak it up. Cat's putty knife is the tool of choice - or so I have read.[p]Tim

Tim M · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,[p]Don't get us wrong - the membrane does not always come off easily or in one piece. The picture I posted was one when I did 6 racks at one time. Out of them all, only that one came off whole - so I took a picture of it. [p]Someone posted once that putting a room temp rack of ribs in the freezer for a short time would make memrane removal easier. Might try it sometime.[p]I strongly recommend membrane removal. I have done them both ways and its better off. You can get the rub, smoke and/or sauce on the meat from both sides. If you cook it long enough the membrane does "melt" away but it takes a long time to do and you lose the smoke and sauce from entering until it does. Its kinda like the little bones in some fish - you cook them away.[p]Tim

Tim M · January 2000

RhumAndJerk,
Good point. I always take the 3 ribs from a cryo pack and pull the rib membranes before I freeze them. Easier now than later like so say - after they are frozen. [p]Tim

Dr. Chicken · January 2000

King-O-Coals,
DANG! I'll have to try harder the next time! If a "Southerner" on an island can do it, a midwest woose ought to be able to do it twice as easy! No waves rockin' the boat![p]Thanks, Dr. Chicken

Gfw · January 2000

King-O-Coals, the baby-backs that I usually do take exactly 6 hours according to George T's 3/2/1 rib method - they fall off the bone and they aren't mushy - just good!

[ul][li]3/2/1 Ribs[/ul]

King-O-Coals · January 2000

Dr. Chicken, That's the reason we lost the war. Too many troops hanging around the Egg.
/
{@ @}
>
~~~
-[p]

Nature Boy · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,
I haven't read all of the follow-up posts, so forgive me if I repeat what you already heard. Membranes are easy if you start at the thin ends of the bones. Pry a corner up with a knife, grab it with a paper towel, and slowly but steadily peel that baby off.[p]I don't think you need to wrap those ribs, just give them plenty of time. Don't crank temps to finish, and don't peak too much. Direct at 220. Can go to 375 indirect with some mass and dri pan, but if you are doing them direct, low and slow all the way through. Allow 4 hours in case they go long.[p]Cheers! Happy Qing.
NB

King-O-Coals · January 2000

Gfw, I learned something today. Great recipe. I have never used indirect heat, but usually have to watch for hot spots. I never used apple juice either but it sounds great. I'm going to incorporate those two into my next batch. I used beer once and didn't like the results when compaired to my normal methods. I rub them the day before with Prudhommes, let them sit in fridg all day, then put them in a ziploc with balsamic vinegar in the fridge that night. People who don't even like ribs pig-out on these babys. And I leave the skin on. Yall must have tough-skinned hogs up there.

Dr. Chicken · January 2000

Nature Boy,
I did them 4hrs @ 220 with a drip pan between the firebox and fire ring. I've got an old weber grate that fits perfecto! The deflector or drip pan is a pizza pan with a double bottom my wife never liked. Then I cranked the temp up to 320 - 350 for 2hrs. Too crisp and too long! But, if that's my worst failure with the Eggs after 11 1/2 months, I don't have much to complain about! At 4 hrs, they weren't done. But, the extra 2 hrs at the higher temp was overkill! If everything came easy, everyone would be using the Eggs, and they'd be twice as high! A matter of fine tuning I'd say![p]Thanks, Dr. Chicken

Nature Boy · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,
At 220, direct would have fixed you up. With a drip pan, it would have been better to cook hotter, and not kick it up at the end. At those low temps (220), direct works great. Have you tried it that way yet?? Good stuff.[p]See ya. NB

RhumAndJerk · January 2000

Tim M,
A gasket only seems to last me about 6-8 months. When grilling at 700 plus, the fire eats through the gasket on my Small BGE. Actually, once the heat gets a little opening in the gasket, that opening seems to grow in time. A lot of it has to do with my dome not always sitting flush to the base. I really wish that they could make and auto lock band for the small, but BGE said that the hinge was just too big for the small.[p]I tried some Simple Green to clean the old adhesive, but it did not seem to do a darn thing. I also noticed for the first time some cracks in my firebox.[p]Gasketed, Rolled and Smoking,
RhumAndJerk[p]

Dr. Chicken · January 2000

Nature Boy,
No, I haven't! My original recipe calls for marinating 24 to 48 hrs and then over direct heat at low temps 180 to 220 for 6 hrs. I've done that, but this time I wanted something different. I blew it! Plain & simple! This was my first experience with a rub on the ribs, and I tried to adapt too many different ideas at once. Oh well! Back to da Egg![p]Dr. Chicken

Tim M · January 2000

Gfw,
I think you will find that the addition of ceramic into the Egg for indirect heat will open up a whole new range of cooking times and temps. You can do ribs at 300 deg and cut some cooking time off - good for firefighters in a rush. The link below has many pictures using firebricks or a plate setter - either will work equally well.[p]Tim
[ul][li]Tim's BGE Cookbook[/ul]

DaveW · January 2000

Dr. Chicken,
I use a flat blade screwdriver to separate the membrane from one of the bones on the small end. Just run the flat blade across the bone to loosen it. Then I use a paper towel to grab the membrane and pull it away from the rest of the ribs. It usually comes right off.[p]Hope this helps,
Dave

Clue me in!!!

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