OK, didn't get any more updates done last night as I was busy and pretty beat. The rain lasted about an hour and then the heat and humidity came back with a vengeance.
I was also typing on my phone, and that's a bit of a challenge for those of the fat fingered variety.
I'll give a little more back info: The rub was a bit of a hail Mary pass, as once we got home from the store I realized we were out of brown sugar and chili powder. So, in a nutshell, I used white sugar and the seasoning packet from a box of Carroll Shelby's Texas chili mix. I grated 2 TB of fresh ginger and added to a cup and a half of white sugar in the processor. Let that run until it was all incorporated, then added the chili seasoning, onion, garlic, oregano, salt, nutmeg, cayenne, etc... This isn't an actual recipe as like I said it was a Hail Mary, and I didn't really note all the ingredients and proportions. Rub seemed pretty good.
the ribs were 2 cryo-wrapped racks of spares. I trimmed them to KC style and applied a light coat of rub. Then let them hang out a while, maybe an hour in the fridge and a half hour out to get to room temp.
Made ABT's with turkey bacon and turkey kielbasa. (gotta give the ticker a break wherever possible) Stuffing was cream cheese mixed with rub and some Bleu cheese crumbles.
Also tried to smoke a couple Vidalia onions, but that's a work in progress. Suffice to say, the result wasn't Q-view worthy, but I'll try again.
Fired up the ECB with Cowboy lump. It was all they had at the store, so that's what I ended up with. Used the minion method with 4 or 5 chunks of Hickory.
Put the Ribs and trimmings on a little after 3. Smoker was at 260˚ before the meat went on, then settled in at 234˚. It seemed to stay in the 230˚-240˚ range throughout the duration of the smoke. Temp probe was in the supplied bracket hanging under, and parallel to the top rack. The more I use my little orphaned Brinkmann, the more I like it's inherent simplicity and consistency. The only "mod" I've done is to add a charcoal grate in the bottom of the coal pan.
For the first 2 hours, I spritzed occasionally with a mixture of cranberry juice and vinegar. I should add here that the ginger in the rub and the cranberry juice spritz were both done in an attempt to add a brighter note to the flavor. It worked somewhat.
At 5:30 I foiled the ribs. I liberally spritzed them, and added about an ounce f the vinegar/juice mixture to the foil packs. At that time I also put the ABT's and the onions on. I had planned to foil for only one hour, but with the abt's and onions, there wasn't room to spread everything out til they came off, so they ended up in the foil for an hour and a half.
After foiling they went back on without sauce for 45 minutes.
Umm, yeah. they were the best I've ever made. They weren't perfect, but getting dangerously close. The consistency was a wee bit too tender, but not mushy. Next time one hour in foil should do the trick. I was going for very light seasoning this time, but I think next time I'll add another dose of rub before foiling, and a VERY light but flavorful glaze after foiling. The flavor of these ribs was all about the meat and the smoke, which is awesome, but a little extra kick will bring them to the next level. I said a LITTLE extra kick, I still want the meat and smoke flavors to be the stars of the show. I really do think the brighter notes of the ginger and cranberry juice helped in a somewhat clandestine way. The ribs tasted lighter, without that fatty, heavy flavor. Though the ginger and cran juice didn't stand out, I do think they counteracted the other, heavier elements.
All in all, I'm super pleased with the results and I have everyone here to thank for it. Once again, without what I've learned here, I'd still be stumbling around in the dark.
Here they are about an hour and a half in
The trimmings on the top rack, also about an hour and a half.
2 hours in, just going into the foil.
The rest of the gang. Onions, well....we'll get 'em next time.
Right when I pulled them off. Scorched part was right at the edge of the smoker where the heat comes up the sides. The rest was cooked to my liking.
And we can't forget the Bear view. Pretty decent smoke ring and good consistency. A little more pull back and tenderness than I was going for, but still my best effort yet.
