2nd Smoke in my MES, Babybacks! w/Qview

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smokeybud

Newbie
Original poster
Sep 6, 2010
9
10
SE PA
I hope this isnt to long but here goes nothin!

OK so I just got my MES this past saturday.  First cook was a 4lb boneless butt that I pulled for some great sandwitches.  The main reason for getting a smoker was ribs (although Im already hooked and will be smoking everything I can get my hands on).  After reading a ton of great info here I decided to go with the 3-2-1 method.  My main reason for going with this method was I wanted some fall off the bone super tender ribs.  In my days prior to being elightened by the smoke I could never get them the way I wanted on either my gasser, oven, or weber kettle.  So sunday night around 11 or so I made up some of my rub I like to make, pretty basic bbq stuff, wrapped them in plastic and to the fridge they went.



 The next morning ready to get smokin!  A little extra rub dusted on top for good measure. :)



During my smoke I sprayed with apple\captian morgan (who ever had that idea, congrats/thanks to you.)  I used Stubbs chip mix, if I remember correctly its hickory, apple and mesquite blended.  Im no expert but it sure seems to work well and have a good balanced flavor.  Water pan was setup with half apple juice and half water.  I soaked the chips a little at a time and added as needed to keep the thin blue coming from the vent (more great info I found here).

Here they are coming out of the smoke and about to get wrapped up.  I put some extra apple juice/captain mix in the foil along with some drip pan liquid.



2 hours in the foil and I got them out to start firming up.  Sorry no pics fresh out of the foil, I was too excited and forgot.  (was 7-8 beers deep as well but hey it was labor day).  I went with some store bought suace for a glaze at the end.  It was honey BBQ budwiser sauce that I really like, I also added the juice that was in the foil to the sauce to add flavor and thin it out a little.  I let them go unwrapped for about 30-45 then glazed them up with the sauce.  During this time I also added just a few chips just for a little extra smoke.  So long story short, here they are ready to be gobbled up!



We had a friend and his wife over for dinner and they raved about the ribs so I know it wasnt just my brain telling me they were good because I waited all day for them.  I also had some pulled pork left over from my first smoke on saturday that I heated up(tastes even better after chillin in the fridge for a day).  Being that we already had plenty of meat going I said why not add to it!  I had a monster porter house in the freezer so I pulled that out to thaw and threw it on the webber with some blazin hot coals, what a tasty side dish! lol.  All in all it was a great dinner and a holiday.  We finished off the night with what else but dessert!



One final note, I think next time Ill change the times a little but stick with the same receipe.  Im thinking maybe 2-3 hours depending on the pull back from the bone, then 1.5-2 in the foil followed by maybe a half hour at most back out of the foil.  If im crazy or you have tried something like it and it was no good, let me know.  Im open to any and all suggestions.  Also if you would like me to never post something again tell me that too, lol!!! 

Happy Smokin!!!!
 
No post is to long! lol  Great smoke and glad everything turned out great.  Now that you have somewhat of a baseline of what you like, it is just a matter of tweaking it a little at a time to find that sweet spot you are looking for.  Smokin' seems to be more of a personal preference in finding what satisfies your taste buds so adjust your times a little at a time to see what works best for you and your smoker and remember to keep that Qview coming!  
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EDIT - Sorry, I just noticed you stated baby back ribs...and that you used the 3-2-1.  For the baby backs, the general rule is 2-2-1 so won't have any issues cutting your initial time down from 3 to 2 hours, then foil for 2 (I prefer 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 in foil myself) and back on until done.  
 
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Thanks for the tip!  I guess in all my reading I got confused.  Does the 2-2-1 method result in a little bit more juice in the end?  I think they were just a hair on the dry side.
 
Yes the 3 hr  cook is alil long for baby backs and could dry out the ribs a bit i do them 2 -1.5 - 45min to one hour
 
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I usually have my smoker running at about 230°-250° and use the 2-2-1 on the baby backs. Smaller and less area to heat makes it a shorter smoke.
 
I run 225 - 230 on all meat except chicken.
 
OK So I wasnt to far off, good to know.  I have to go away this weekend butg next weekend Ill be giving it a go again, cant wait!
 
Dang that looks great.for BB ribs I do 2-1.5-.75
 
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