Baby Back Ribs Question

[HD Brown]

Fist smoker, first run and first post...core of a newbie!

I decided on a Camp Chef STX, got a hell of a deal on it and put 3 racks of baby back ribs on.
Cleaned, dried, rubbed and wrapped the last night.
Put them on this morning for a 6 hour smoke at 220.
To determine which method I liked the best, I just smoked one rack, the other two I spritzed with a apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire & rub mixture every hour, one rack I wrapped in foil during hours 4 & 5, and sauced all three racks for hour 6.
Pulled them off at 180 degree internal temp.
At this time, they all had a perfect color, meat pulled off the ends of the bones, had a nice bounce when picked up from the middle, had an amazing taste and everyone enjoyed them.
Me being very critical thought I over sauced them...often I tasted the sauce over the rub smoke and meat. - my bad - learning curve.
More critical thinking, they just weren't as tender as I was hoping. They weren't tough...just not what I thought was perfect.
I prefer my ribs to be a little firm on the bone (not falling off) but not too chewy.
I found having a little more than desired effort to get the meat off the bone.
When I pulled them off the smoker, I didn't get that crack that everyone talks about, but I thought that was simply because I had over sauced them.
My question from this long post is did I pull them off too soon?

Thanks in advance, and I look forward to many more smokes and posts.

 

[gmc2003]

My family likes FOTB ribs so I take them to somewhere around 205*. I think if you want a little bite then the temp should be around 190 to 195*.

Chris

 

[SmokinAl]

Yep! 195 is the magic number for the ribs your looking for!
This is how I do them.
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/perfect-ribs-every-time-this-really-works.240916/
Hope this helps!
Al

 

[HD Brown]

Thanks guys. That's what I was thinking.
Still, I was impressed for the first run, but needs a little improvement .
And great write up Al!!

 

[801driver]

Most of us start out thinking tough meat is because we cooked it too long, when just the reverse is usually the case. I know it was hard for me to get my mind around, but it is absolutely true.
Finding the sweet spot of how tender you want ribs or anything you smoke takes a little practice but over and over more (longer) cooking to a higher IT equals more tender. And resting time afterward is crucial.

For an extreme example of tender ribs, take a look at this 9 1/2 hour rib smoke from one of Jeff's newsletters here:

https://www.smoking-meat.com/may-4-2017-smoked-spare-ribs-that-literally-fall-apart

Just for fun, I tried it, took over 9 hours in the smoker, but worth it if you want totally tender ribs. If you think about it, turning down the temp while leaving them in the smoker was similar to an extended resting period in the cooler.

I carefully cut them apart like normal bone in ribs after smoking and put one of them on each of my guests plates with a spatula at the table. I had fun watching each person try to pick up the bone to take a bite. Bare bones in hand, meat still on the plate. Ha Ha I collected up everyone's bones and they ate with a fork. These would make a monster master rib sandwich. Very tasty.

Yes, they were a little too tender for me also but I am glad I experimented to find out what extreme over cooking would do. I cut the time back about an hour to suit me, but this might give you a perspective of what "Over Cooking" does. Good luck to you.

 

[HD Brown]

Most of us start out thinking tough meat is because we cooked it too long, when just the reverse is usually the case. I know it was hard for me to get my mind around, but it is absolutely true.
Finding the sweet spot of how tender you want ribs or anything you smoke takes a little practice but over and over more (longer) cooking to a higher IT equals more tender. And resting time afterward is crucial.

For an extreme example of tender ribs, take a look at this 9 1/2 hour rib smoke from one of Jeff's newsletters here:

https://www.smoking-meat.com/may-4-2017-smoked-spare-ribs-that-literally-fall-apart

Just for fun, I tried it, took over 9 hours in the smoker, but worth it if you want totally tender ribs. If you think about it, turning down the temp while leaving them in the smoker was similar to an extended resting period in the cooler.

I carefully cut them apart like normal bone in ribs after smoking and put one of them on each of my guests plates with a spatula at the table. I had fun watching each person try to pick up the bone to take a bite. Bare bones in hand, meat still on the plate. Ha Ha I collected up everyone's bones and they ate with a fork. These would make a monster master rib sandwich. Very tasty.

Yes, they were a little too tender for me also but I am glad I experimented to find out what extreme over cooking would do. I cut the time back about an hour to suit me, but this might give you a perspective of what "Over Cooking" does. Good luck to you.

Thanks for the info! I think 190IT may be my sweet spot, these were at 180 and just not quite there for me.
The taste, color, pullback, everything else was perfect though.
I'm very impressed in what these turned out like for my first ever smoke.