Who's smoking meat this weekend?

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Hickory sounds good for ribs. I usually use apple for pork, but man, it's all good. You'll just have to try all the wood you have and see what you like best.

It's true that it can be hard to get a thermometer to read right on ribs because they are full of bones. Between the bend test and looking to see how the meat has contracted you will get the feel for it.

Lately I have started taking the ribs off the BGE after a few hours in the smoke, then cutting them up and finishing them in the crock pot. You do miss the "1" in the 3-2-1 method that way but they are good 'n' easy.
 
kev211 said:
Gonna smoke my first ribs this weekend. Got 2 giant racks from costco (depending on how they fit I may have to cut them down). Was planning on doing a 3-2-1 cook on them. I may do more 3-1.5-1.5 to try and get more bark on them. Probably gonna put some HB hefe in the foil with them along with a touch of honey. Was thinking of doing 90% hickory with a pinch of mesquite unless anyone has better options? Currently I have apple, cherry, hickory and mesquite, but I can always run and grab different wood. Ive read that its hard to get thermo readings on ribs so I was probably just gonna go sans-thermo and go by the bend test. Since Im a newb and these are my first ribs, does this plan sound good? Im open to any and all suggestions
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You can also test with a toothpick. Should slide right through next to the bone. Are they babies or spares?
 
kev211 said:
Babies
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3-2-1 is more for spare ribs, but you can do 2-2-1. It's been a while since I've used this method but it does work, the last hour helps firm the meat back up. I have had the bones fall out before so be careful.
 
jammin said:
The bend test is legit - it will work great for you. Just be careful not to foil your ribs too long and turn them to mush. I quit using foil alltogether and I find the ribs to be much better
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So do you just put them in for 5 hours or so (baby backs) smoke for a few hours and start painting them with an hour or so left?
 
kev211 said:
So do you just put them in for 5 hours or so (baby backs) smoke for a few hours and start painting them with an hour or so left?
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I don't do baby backs very often anymore as they just aren't as juicy as spares.

I've found that you have to run your smoker hotter if you're not using foil. As where i used to cook them are 220-225, I run my pit up to about 270-275 for nearly the same time. I spritz with cider vinegar every 30 minutes to keep them moist and mop them with sauce with about 30-40 minutes left on the cook; all you want to do is thicken and caramelize the sauce. Any longer than that and it will probably burn since most sauce has a lot of sugar.

Let us know how they turn out - ribs are always fun
 
trav77 said:
Yeah I quit using it as well. It definitely tenderizes them faster but at the expense of texture/bark. I just go au natural now.
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I haven't done it for a long time either. I still aim for 225-250 and cook until done.
 
trav77 said:
Yeah I quit using it as well. It definitely tenderizes them faster but at the expense of texture/bark. I just go au natural now.
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Same here... i guess it just depends what you are after.

If you like tender-fall-off-the-bone ribs covered in lots of sauce, foiling is probably what you want.

But if you want the ribs to have a little bite to them (comes off clean but you have to pull with your teeth), and a great barky crust, then foil is going to work against you.

I do 5-6 hours at 225F. I usually keep the smoke going for the first 4 hours, then after that it's just whatever's left. I sauce my wife's ribs for the last hour because she likes it baked on. I leave mine to be dipped or sauced right before it goes in my mouth. So far my favorite wood blend is 45/45/10 apple/cherry/hickory.
 
schematix said:
Same here... i guess it just depends what you are after.



If you like tender-fall-off-the-bone ribs covered in lots of sauce, foiling is probably what you want.



But if you want the ribs to have a little bite to them (comes off clean but you have to pull with your teeth), and a great barky crust, then foil is going to work against you.



I do 5-6 hours at 225F. I usually keep the smoke going for the first 4 hours, then after that it's just whatever's left. I sauce my wife's ribs for the last hour because she likes it baked on. I leave mine to be dipped or sauced right before it goes in my mouth. So far my favorite wood blend is 45/45/10 apple/cherry/hickory.
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Competition style is bark, clean pull with teeth. Old lady style is fall of the bone so you don't have to chew as much. Your choice, personally I don't like the mush.

You could always toss on the grill for a little just to crisp it up too. Even better way to add sauce if you don't burn it.
 
kev211 said:
Gonna smoke my first ribs this weekend. Got 2 giant racks from costco (depending on how they fit I may have to cut them down). Was planning on doing a 3-2-1 cook on them. I may do more 3-1.5-1.5 to try and get more bark on them. Probably gonna put some HB hefe in the foil with them along with a touch of honey. Was thinking of doing 90% hickory with a pinch of mesquite unless anyone has better options? Currently I have apple, cherry, hickory and mesquite, but I can always run and grab different wood. Ive read that its hard to get thermo readings on ribs so I was probably just gonna go sans-thermo and go by the bend test. Since Im a newb and these are my first ribs, does this plan sound good? Im open to any and all suggestions
Click to expand...

I personally never boil anything, steve raichlen says it well, the 3 2 1 method is safe, and produces good ribs but there are better if you seek it. A while back i posted a 3-2-1 recipe from a Competition winner that is a recipe to make competition style amazing ribs. My cousin turned me onto it and it is a really awesome recipe. I think the recipe calls for rubbing the ribs and then wrapping them in foil with hot pepper jelly, bacon fat, honey and I think something spicy. And then they get unwrapped and rubbed again. The reason is in a competition the judge is only going to taste a little so they pack as much flavor in as they can. They sound pretty good to me.
 
Doing a pork butt and turkey breast tomorrow. Split the turkey breast and brining.
 
sunday was nice enough finally get some smoke rolling... stuffed loin with feta, spinach and diced bacon and bacon wrapped.

Was a really lean piece of loin it cooked WAY faster then I had intended, took 2.5 hours at 225 it hit a IT of 149. I almost thought maybe my Temp sensor was gone to **** so i double checked both meat temp and smoker temp and it all checked out.


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Sprinkled some pepper salt garlic on the inside then stuffed with spinach, feta, onion and some sliced bacon.

Then added some rub to the inside of the bacon. was good!
 
jammin said:
ribs from yesterday -

1g1AFeY.jpg



and pork butt from last night/today - it was nearly falling apart when taking it off of the smoker
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Ha! I love your golden in the background. He has this look like... Id be ok if you dropped some.

Also, thanks for the pointer on not using foil. I went straight no foil on my ribs this weekend and they turned out awesome. Did about 3 hours with hickory and mesquite smoke and then about 3 hours with just heat and I sprayed them down with a mixture of honey and HB hefeweizen which made for a terrific bark. So thanks again!
 
kev211 said:
Ha! I love your golden in the background. He has this look like... Id be ok if you dropped some.

Also, thanks for the pointer on not using foil. I went straight no foil on my ribs this weekend and they turned out awesome. Did about 3 hours with hickory and mesquite smoke and then about 3 hours with just heat and I sprayed them down with a mixture of honey and HB hefeweizen which made for a terrific bark. So thanks again!
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Great to hear man - way ahead of me when I started! And yeah, he's my best buddy; not much we don't do together
 
GrogNerd said:
Sad to say BubbaQ's reign of terror may be coming to an end as it claims its 21st and perhaps final victim, an innocent rack of spareribs

The smokebox is barely still attached, and even then it is only rust holding it together
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it is with deep regret I must announce the news of BubbaQ's passing

1 hour into a 6lb butt, the smokebox disintegrated into a pile of rust, ash and still-smoldering briquettes

must finish off the butt in the oven & dispose of the smoker's remains

RIP, BubbaQ, you will be missed

850.jpg
 
Goodbye bubbaq, oh how we will miss your smokey demeanor and hot spirit. Just a little rub on our butts and you were always there to make our meat hot and juicy. Why, why.....
 
Sorry to hear about your loss GrogNerd. Thats a bummer. Looks like he had a good smoke filled life though.


Anyone have any tips on smoking brisket? Specifically... I have an MES so the inside isnt big enough to fit a whole packer brisket (I dont think). Should I use the flat then? The point? Forget about it and do a butt? Also, what type of wood is best for brisket. Ive read a number of things online, so figured Id get your opinion. Thanks!
 
flats are usually available in supermarkets and will cook nicely. I figured out brisket by cooking flats in the oven. General consensus is that brisket stands up to bigger smokes like hickory, but IMO will be great with other woods.

Salt and pepper is all you need. You can get crazy and add garlic and onion powder. secret ingredient : Worcestershire powder


Don't worry if you take it too far and it's falls apart. Part of the learning curve is experience over and under cooked so you will recognize when it's done. If you go too far, make chile out of it, you'll love it.
 
kev211 said:
…..


Anyone have any tips on smoking brisket? …..
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Google up Bludawg's Brisket Method, works great.

You can fit a packer or butt on a 18" Weber, how small is MEC not to be able to fit them?
 
bfish said:
Google up Bludawg's Brisket Method, works great.

You can fit a packer or butt on a 18" Weber, how small is MEC not to be able to fit them?
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Ill check it out. So the grate dimension is 19 3/4"x12 1/4" so it sounds like it could fit one after all
 
kev211 said:
Sorry to hear about your loss GrogNerd. Thats a bummer. Looks like he had a good smoke filled life though.


Anyone have any tips on smoking brisket? Specifically... I have an MES so the inside isnt big enough to fit a whole packer brisket (I dont think). Should I use the flat then? The point? Forget about it and do a butt? Also, what type of wood is best for brisket. Ive read a number of things online, so figured Id get your opinion. Thanks!
Click to expand...

I fit a packer brisket from Costco on my MES 30, but I might have separated the flat and the point. It was awhile ago when I last did a full packer. You could always hang it with hooks if it won't fit on the shelf.

The best tip I have is to give it a good rest after cooking. Seems like it really gets the juices back in there and keeps it from being tough. I've followed the recipe on amazingribs .com and had good results.
 
@kev211 I trust salt and pepper only. I have same smoker as you and just cut the big dude in half. A ROUNDED cut. Infact every cut should be rounded and aerodynamic. Thus, we are on to trimming it. There are some sweet videos by that guy named Aaron, I can't remember his last name right now, that you should watch about trimming. Trimming it is something that brings me real joy. They will cook quick in two smaller pieces, I recommend 195 as a finish temp, cooked with hickory and cherry. Cut across the grain and best of luck. I need to step up and buy them more often.
 
applescrap said:
There are some sweet videos by that guy named Aaron, I can't remember his last name right now, that you should watch about trimming.
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BBQ with Franklin .. legendary stuff!

[ame=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmTzdMHu5KU][youtube]VmTzdMHu5KU[/youtube][/ame]

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.
.

.
.

quick example of how legendary and badass he is... He gives out free burnt ends to people waiting in line to get into his restaurant. he also told kanye west to kick rocks when he tried to cut in line
 
My tip is to pickout a brisket that is flexible and bends easily. Makes for a very tender piece of meat. If it's stiff, it's tough.
 
bigtex52 said:
My tip is to pickout a brisket that is flexible and bends easily. Makes for a very tender piece of meat. If it's stiff, it's tough.
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I could see this, the better marbling perhaps makes it feel more flexible?!

@jammin yep thats him. Thats an awesome video. Here is another one, he is giving a college type lecture.

https://youtu.be/yaMgt1Altys
 
Wow! Thanks for the suggestions guys! Definitely a huge help. Looking forward to it. My wife and I are doing a rare beer night with our friends this weekend (gonna be breaking out a 2015 & 16 kbs and my 15&16 Xmas beers) and one of the guys coming keeps ruining his briskets so I really wanna show him up haha. Will have some tri-tip standing by for grilling in case things go south
 
kev211 said:
Ill check it out. So the grate dimension is 19 3/4"x12 1/4" so it sounds like it could fit one after all
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You might want to try supporting the center so it is "draped" over something at the beginning of the cook.

Essentially similar to what is suggested here.

During cooking, the brisket will shrink considerably, so after a couple hours, you can remove the middle support.
 

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