Ribs for Memorial Day

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Three racks of St. Louis cut spares on the Masterbuilt. Rubbed with modified version of Jeff's Rub, cherry and apple chunks for the smoke. Probably going to foil at about the 3 hour mark.
I had the same idea yesterday and if I'd thought about it, I could have made the identical post: I too used my MES30, Jeff's Rub, and three racks of St. Louis ribs from Costco. I used the AMNPS with "Pitmaster Blend," but supplemented that with Apple wood chips that I put into the chip tray.

However, unlike you, I did not foil. The reason is that, after doing my first rib smoke a few months ago using the "3-2-1" method I thought I'd try it without any foiling to see if I liked the texture better.

Well, everyone has their own tastes and preferences, so I am not going to say which would be better for you, but I will say this: not foiling produces a completely different result.

The ribs I produced yesterday, without any foiling, were chewy, a little dry, but with lots of bark, and a lot more smoke flavor. For me, I prefer the chew, bark, and smokier flavor. While I can totally understand how many people might prefer the "fall off the bone" tenderness of the foiled ribs, having now done it both ways, I think I'll once again skip the foiling the next time I do ribs. Not only do I prefer the results, but by not foiling, and also not setting up the remote thermometer (putting the probe inside 1/2" of meat produces totally meaningless readings), the setup and cooking is the easiest of any smoke I've done so far.

So, I think your ribs are going to be absolutely great, but if you prefer more bark and chew, consider trying the same recipe next time, but without the foiling step.

Oh yes, details of my smoke: I applied EVO followed by Jeff's rub, and left the ribs in the fridge for 24 hours. I then smoked at 235 degrees for four hours. At the end of that time, I put BBQ sauce on one side for 1/2 and hour, followed by flipping and then saucing the other side for another 1/2 hour, for a total of five hours.
 
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I don't like falling off the bone either, better with a little bite to it. I did foil for about 1 1/2 hours then finished on my grill because I started having issues keeping the burner on the smoker going. It kept going out like the propane was out but it was a new tank. Maybe my regulator???
Time to foil.

Finished!
 
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Awesome job with those ribs!  
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Mike
 
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