Ribs Question

mike91mr

Newbie

Original poster

Sep 26, 2009

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #1

This probably applies to anything thrown on the smoker...

Any reason I wouldn't want to throw my ribs on the smoker setup like this:


They are on a wire tray inside that pan, so they wouldn't be sitting in their own juice. I have a CG with SFB, and I have the smokestack extended down to the grill surface. The main pro is just that it's easier: I can set this up in my kitchen, carry it down, foil it once over the top instead of wrapping each piece individually, and then remove the whole thing from the grill and carry it back in to the house. The pan will also protect the meat from temperature spikes, as well as the really hot spot immediately leaving the firebox (I don't have a permanent diffuser in there yet), which means less checking the meat and rearranging if necessary.

Will this block the smoke in any way? With the smokestack extended down, smoke should still come to rest in the pan, and the airflow around the pan should keep it circulating, but that is just a guess. Any experts want to offer their opinion?

 

mballi3011

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Mar 12, 2009

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #2

You can smoke the ribs any way you want to. I personally put them right on the grates for the most smoke flavor penitration I can get. You and some peole here have smoked them in trays but I just don't myself.

 

meat hunter

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Feb 3, 2009

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #3

I'm sure they will take on a nice smoke, but how much I don't know. I too set them right on the grates, that way the smoke goes right around them. I would not worry too much about your setup, they will come out great. On thing on yours thought, when it comes time to foil, if you so choose to do it, you can just lat the foil on top of that pan and crimp the edges all around. That should work nice.

 

bbq engineer

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DeSoto, KS

• Oct 25, 2009

• #4

If you want to try out a different method and see how it works, that is what this is all about. I see smoking as a continual experiment to see what works and what doesn't, and then refining from there. I think that the smoke penetration might be somewhat limited, but I don't have evidence to say that with absolute certainty.

I say go for it, and then be sure to post your after smoke report so the rest of us can learn from it and store the information in our own bag of tricks.

Good luck.

 

mr mac

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Oct 19, 2009

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #5

I don't think the smoke will wrap around the ribs like you might want it too, but, you never know until you try. Can't you just leave the ribs on the rack, set it in the smoker on the smoker rack and then just airlift the whole thing back into the pan for foiling later?

 

raceyb

Smoking Fanatic

Jul 15, 2007

781

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #6

I think you'll be fine. The smoke will penetrate anywhere that there is air. As long as the ribs are above the foil surface and breathing, I say go for it!

I just wish my smoker could take that large foil pan.

 

mike91mr

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Original poster

Thread starter

Sep 26, 2009

24

10

• Oct 25, 2009

• #7

All right, maybe I'll give it a try next time. For the record, I've always done my ribs straight on the rack as well, but I'm an engineer - by nature and by trade - and that means I'm always trying to find an easier way to do things. The setup in the picture was "posed", and that rig isn't going in the smoker today.

 

bmudd14474

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #8

You might want to poke some holes in the foil pan on the side to help the smoke get in there better. I think you will be fine either way.

 

scarbelly

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Jul 26, 2009

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• Oct 25, 2009

• #9

The pan might work better if you were able to get the ribs vertical so the smoke could curl around more

 

heliboydoesbbq

Meat Mopper

May 22, 2009

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Palmer Alaska

• Oct 25, 2009

• #10

I like Mr Mac's idea to take the wire rack out of the pan and let the ribs "breath" till there ready for the foil and then "airlift " them back in to the pan for the easy of sealin them on ..

as far as reducing the hotspots.. and temp fluctations.. that is going to always be an issue unless you rotate the product or do the mods.. I still rotate even after modding my SS.... so ..

somewhere in the middle there is a happy medium!

CHEERS EARS!!

HBdBBQ

 

the dude abides

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Des Moines, Iowa

• Oct 26, 2009

• #11

Ditto.

But the foiling step is for braising the meat. So if you're not keeping the moisture right up against the surface of the meat you're just steaming it. I don't know this to be true, but I'd guess this would be ok too. But I'd also take a guess that it might take a little longer. Braising is like stewing the meat in it's own juices + another liquid like juice.

Many people cook ribs without foiling at all. So if you've done it both ways, I'm sure we'd all love to know what you think of the braising vs steaming step.