Help BBQ Experts! Rib time :-)

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone.  I've got 2 racks of spare ribs  (found them at local grocery) and 1 rack of baby back because the bb was on sale and I couldn't resist.  I figure I'll use the 3-2-1 on the spare ribs and after an hour on there, i'll stick the bb ribs in for the 2-2-1 method.  Sound like a plan??? :-)
 
Greetings all ... I am new to the smoking world.  We recently purchased a Traeger Jr and think it will serve the 2 of us very well.  Have only cooked a tri-tip so far and are looking forward to doing more things with it.  Like this weekend we would like to cook some ribs.  I would like to cook the St. Louis cut but none of the meat markets carry that cut. So it will be either regular spare or baby backs.  For a first time which would be best?  

Next I need to ask about the 2-2-1 method.  Why in the world would you return the ribs to the smoker when its wrapped in foil?  You sure are not going to get any smoke benefit from it.   Can't you just throw them in a 200 degree oven and then return them to the smoker when you unwrap them?  

I have seen some other cooking methods of just putting the ribs in the smoker for 4 to 6 hours without the wrapping them at all.  So which method is better?  Sorry to be so lengthy but want to do it right the first time and enjoy the ribs that I cooked.
 
Greetings all ... I am new to the smoking world.  We recently purchased a Traeger Jr and think it will serve the 2 of us very well.  Have only cooked a tri-tip so far and are looking forward to doing more things with it.  Like this weekend we would like to cook some ribs.  I would like to cook the St. Louis cut but none of the meat markets carry that cut. So it will be either regular spare or baby backs.  For a first time which would be best?  

Next I need to ask about the 2-2-1 method.  Why in the world would you return the ribs to the smoker when its wrapped in foil?  You sure are not going to get any smoke benefit from it.   Can't you just throw them in a 200 degree oven and then return them to the smoker when you unwrap them?  

I have seen some other cooking methods of just putting the ribs in the smoker for 4 to 6 hours without the wrapping them at all.  So which method is better?  Sorry to be so lengthy but want to do it right the first time and enjoy the ribs that I cooked.
Welcome Jake,

You should go over to "Role Call" so everybody has a chance to welcome you.

You could do what you said, but many here are very much purists, and like to say, "What starts in the smoker, finishes in the smoker". There are many many discussions on here about the different ways to smoke things.

You'll love it here,

Bearcarver
 
I use the 3-2-1 method on spares, but hardly ever make it to the 1. I spritz them every 30 minutes with 1/2 apple juice and 1/2 Jack Daniels (Apple Jack). After 3 hours I put them in foil with more Apple Jack and go back on the smoker for 2 more hours. Then I pull them and unwrap to put them back on for another hour. This is usually the point where the family comes to see what smells so good. They usually just start picking them apart right there. With the Apple Jack on them, I wouldn't dream of putting a sauce on them. 
 
SMOKER or OVEN!!!!

I find that once foiled it does not matter.  As well as everyone here knows.  It is a matter of convenience.  I do them in the oven (during the foil stage) if I'm busy and don't want to monitor the temps.  Or if the smoker has other stuff in it.  The oven is stable and saves smoker space.  I'll put ABT's on and when they are finished the ribs go back on the drum.

ITs all about enjoying the smoke.  Relax, its food, and most mistakes still taste good.
 
The only thing i know for sure about smoked ribs is i love to eat em !!!   I m only on my 4th attempt at pork ribs on my recently purchased Cajun injector electric smoker.  I really like the consistency and ease of temp and smoke control with this smoker!!!  

thanks for all the great info!!

my question would be.... is a brine necessary and does it affect smoke times??

thanks 

Richie
 
SMOKER or OVEN!!!!

I find that once foiled it does not matter.  As well as everyone here knows.  It is a matter of convenience.  I do them in the oven (during the foil stage) if I'm busy and don't want to monitor the temps.  Or if the smoker has other stuff in it.  The oven is stable and saves smoker space.  I'll put ABT's on and when they are finished the ribs go back on the drum.

ITs all about enjoying the smoke.  Relax, its food, and most mistakes still taste good.
While it's ASSUMED, it's important to remember to preheat the oven at least 30 mins beforehand.

 
The only thing i know for sure about smoked ribs is i love to eat em !!!   I m only on my 4th attempt at pork ribs on my recently purchased Cajun injector electric smoker.  I really like the consistency and ease of temp and smoke control with this smoker!!!  

thanks for all the great info!!

my question would be.... is a brine necessary and does it affect smoke times??

thanks 

Richie
A lot of the supermarket ribs you get are already injected and thus brining does little more then increase your water bill by a penny.  Marinading in apple juice or cider will add a little bit a flavor while adding a little bit of moisture in non-injected ribs.  My secret is using an Italian dressing marinade with my supermarket ribs and I've had the most success.
 
Well my first attempt at ribs came out with mixed results.  The wife found some St. Louis style ribs at Stater Bros. market.  But next time I will trim off the excess meat from the back and possibly the tips for a cleaner look and overall thickness (the way Johnny Trigg does it).  I did the straight cook method for about 4 hrs.  I did spritz every hour.  They were tasty, tender, had a good smoke ring but could have been a little more moist.  I think I could have taken them off about a half hour sooner.

I do thank all of you who replied to my questions.  It is deeply appreciated. 
 
Well my first attempt at ribs came out with mixed results.  The wife found some St. Louis style ribs at Stater Bros. market.  But next time I will trim off the excess meat from the back and possibly the tips for a cleaner look and overall thickness (the way Johnny Trigg does it).  I did the straight cook method for about 4 hrs.  I did spritz every hour.  They were tasty, tender, had a good smoke ring but could have been a little more moist.  I think I could have taken them off about a half hour sooner.

I do thank all of you who replied to my questions.  It is deeply appreciated. 
Four hours seems kinda fast, what temp. was your smoke chamber at? They may have been dry due to temps being to high.
 
 
Depending on your smoking, with your heat loss from spritzing, it's probably more like 3.5 hours of cooking with not spritzing.  Spritzing does little more than slow down the cooking process.  Most pros sprtiz apple juice/cider on at the very end or after they're off the smoker.  Spritzing it after it's cooked adds a lot more flavor as it won't evaporate.  I strongly recommend 1-2 hours in foil via the 3-1-1 or 3-2-1 method.  I've converted from foil to sealed oven bags which makes a huge difference.
 
YOu got some pretty good info going but make sure you trim the flap of the back of spares and remove the membrane on the bone side.  This way your rub penatrates from both sides and the membrane can be a pain when eating making the eater think the ribs are tough.

Use the trimmed flap if there seperately and slow cook the we out of it till it is falling appart and use in beans or burnt ends.
 
So there is a noticeable difference in supermarket meat compaired to butchershop meat??  Are they preserved different, besides probably being less fresh?
 
@JIRodriguez ,,,, I was trying to hold the temp between 225-250.  

@Bacardi  .... Thanks for the info.  I may try the foil method next time.  Now that I know where we can buy St. Louis style ribs.

@ShooterRick  ..... Great suggestions.  The wife has a great bean recipe which requires some meat.  Will give your comment a try.

Now to venture on to another meat.  I want to try brisket next.
 
So there is a noticeable difference in supermarket meat compaired to butchershop meat??  Are they preserved different, besides probably being less fresh?
Only way to be sure is to try a test taste.  If you have 9 buddies over, 5 notice a difference and you and 4 don't, is that considered a noticeable difference?  Another factor is how much flavor you throw at them.  Strong marinade, strong rub, lots of smoke and heavy on the sauce greatly would decrease the noticeable difference.  The difference is usually the supermarket ribs are injected with a salt solution while the butcher, but that's not always the case.  They're are also lower quality butchers and higher quality supermarkets, hence, I'll go back to my original point of the taste test...Smoke one supermarket rack and one butcher rack side by side. :)
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Clicky