Cook #1 - Beef Ribs

[ExclusiveBBQ]

I uploaded a video of this cook (my first one) that you can view by clicking here - your feedback is much appreciated, especially as it's my first video and I plan on making many more!​

Morning all,

Thought I'd document my fisrt proper smoke on a kettle BBQ. I've smoked meat in the past, but only using a little smoker box on a propane grill and whilst it was easy to maintain a constant temperature, it didn't give the smokey 'punch' that i was after.

Some members were kind enough to recommend the 'snake' method for smoking and so I did my research, got my meat and rub ready and got to it. As I'm typing this, I'm about 1 hour 30 minutes into the cook and the temperature is maintaining really nicely - especially considering the typical British weather (rain)!

Unfortunately, the ribs I purchased were from a local butcher and came precut. I wasn't too bothered as it meant that I could rub them slightly differently so I rubbed half with a salt/pepper/organo/garlic powder/celery salt mix (got the recipe from a book) and the other half with a premade beef rub from a fantastic London butchers called Turner & George (They have a beautiful selection of meat and do some interesting cuts that you won't get from your standard market.)

After rubbing, I prepared the kettle BBQ and let it come up to around 230 (as good as it was going to get while it was raining) and popped the ribs on. I was unsure how I should arrange them for good heat distribution so any tips would be much appreciated!

About 1hr30m into the cook, this is what they look like - I was hoping for something darker but that may be the huge wood chunks I have that are burning inconsistently:

 

[Bearcarver]

Looking good!
90 minutes is pretty early in the smoke yet.
I believe they'll get a lot darker in a few more hours.
Be back to see.

Bear

 

[bacon_crazy510]

I agree with Bearcarver ... for only an hour and a half they look great! As a side note, you can always ask to pick up a full rack at a later time, and the butcher will be happy to accommodate you. But for now? GREAT START!!!!

 

[greatfx1959]

looks mighty fine to me so far...................

 

[chilerelleno]

Looking good so far.
I'm definitely watching this one.

I've always cooked beef ribs at 275°-300°.
But I have only cooked four bone racks, not cut ribs or Korean style.

 

[ExclusiveBBQ]

All right, so the rain pretty much poured down for most of the outside cook meaning that the ambient temperature never really got above 230. Despite that, they were looking pretty good at about 3hr30m in (about 160 internal temp) and so I brought them in to wrap:

I wrapped all 4, and added a watered down mustard-based BBQ sauce to 2 of them; this was really an experiment to see if it did anything to the texture, rather than add flavour and so I added a small amount to the foil and then brushed a layer on the outside of the rib after placing it meat down:

Following this, I didn't want to take any more risks with the weather but I put them back in the barbecue. The temperature of the barbecue started to drop to around 220 as it poured with rain and so I pre-heated the oven to 250 and brought them in after 30 minutes:

When they went into the oven, the internal temperature at this point was actually showing as 189 after 30 minutes in the barbecue (thanks to the tight wrapping, I think) and it only took about another 30 minutes in the oven to reach 200. I pulled them out at 200 and let them rest for a further 30 minutes.

Now, time for the final product...

I was really happy with the final product but I definitely learned a few things along the way:

1. The flavour was a bit too smokey and/or it was too salty. The oak I had came in massive chunks which didn't help and the salt-based seasoning I used was too salty (or I used too much). The other seasoning I used contained paprika and sugar and, despite having plenty of salt, was a lot easier on the tastebuds.
2. I should have bought a 'rack' instead of settling for pre-slices individual ribs. The meat on the ribs varied so much that half of them were soft and juicy and perfect for me and the other half were drying out in places.
3. I need to find a way of making the barbecue hotter on cold days. This may not be a problem if I upgrade to something more suited to smoking (like a WSM or PBC) but it wasn't that cold however the rain was bad today and it only really peaked at about 230. All vents were open and even leaving the lid off didn't do too much.
4. I prefer wrapping the ribs with sauce. This might be somewhat controversial for beef ribs (as it seems commonplace with pork) but the watered down mustard sauce gave a mild flavour but kept the ribs quite 'wet' - which doesn't sound too appealing, but was actually something that I preferred.

All things considered, I didn't make too many mistakes but that was only due to having read up on all the tips and tricks I could on these forums so I have to say "thank you" to everyone!

If you want some video content, keep an eye on the links in my signature - I uploaded plenty of content to Instagram and will compile all of the above into a video as I also recorded quite a lot of the process.

 

[Bearcarver]

Looks Great from the Den, Christopher!!
Nice Job!
Like.

You will find that you should use less rub on Thin Things, like Ribs than You will want to use on Thick Hunks of meat, because the sides are so close together, which makes the ratio between the surfaces & the inside much different.
Hope that makes sense putting it like that.

Bear

 

[chilerelleno]

The last three pics are beautiful, wonderful looking beef.
Those earn a Like!

Too smokey/salty... Well live and learn.
Better luck next time.

Beef does really well with just coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper, the classic Dalmatian rub.

Chunk too big split it, small hatchet works great, but in a bind anything to get the job done, e.g. thick butcher knife and a mallet, claw hammer or any type of saw.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

Looks like it turned out very good from what I can see. Keep experimenting with the "snake" method and you'll figure it out. Also, try a different smoke wood like apple, hickory, or cherry if you can find it.

 

[ExclusiveBBQ]

Looks Great from the Den, Christopher!!
Nice Job!
Like.

You will find that you should use less rub on Thin Things, like Ribs than You will want to use on Thick Hunks of meat, because the sides are so close together, which makes the ratio between the surfaces & the inside much different.
Hope that makes sense putting it like that.

Bear

Absolutely. I thought that because the ribs were so fatty, I'd need a lot of seasoning to offset it. What I didn't anticipate is how well the ribs would get smoked - ended up with a taste overload!

The last three pics are beautiful, wonderful looking beef.
Those earn a Like!

Too smokey/salty... Well live and learn.
Better luck next time.

Beef does really well with just coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper, the classic Dalmatian rub.

Chunk too big split it, small hatchet works great, but in a bind anything to get the job done, e.g. thick butcher knife and a mallet, claw hammer or any type of saw.

Thank you very much, it means a lot. I think more pepper and less salt will do it, but I am a fan of the garlic powder/oregano/celery salt/salt/pepper combo - the celery salt adds something magical that I can't explain!

I'll have to invest in an axe to break down the smaller pieces for sure - I work in IT (for now) so perhaps need to give my tool box a much needed axe. :)

 

[ExclusiveBBQ]

Looks like it turned out very good from what I can see. Keep experimenting with the "snake" method and you'll figure it out. Also, try a different smoke wood like apple, hickory, or cherry if you can find it.

That's certainly the idea, but I was very surprised at how effective the snake method was at giving consistent heat. It would be nice to try something more subtle but I think I'll aim for smaller chunks (maybe even chips) and see how that goes next time.

 

[Bearcarver]

Absolutely. I thought that because the ribs were so fatty, I'd need a lot of seasoning to offset it. What I didn't anticipate is how well the ribs would get smoked - ended up with a taste overload!

Yup--The first time I smoked a rack of Ribs, I got the Evil Eye!!!
I was used to putting the rub on heavy on Boston Butts, and I didn't think of the difference in thickness, so I put it on heavy, on the Ribs too.
Mrs Bear gave me the Evil Eye, and retorted, "This is Too Spicy!!!"
Oh Well, I got to eat ALL the Leftovers by myself!!
LOL---Only happened once---9 years ago!!

Bear

 

[tallbm]

Morning all,

Thought I'd document my fisrt proper smoke on a kettle BBQ. I've smoked meat in the past, but only using a little smoker box on a propane grill and whilst it was easy to maintain a constant temperature, it didn't give the smokey 'punch' that i was after.

Some members were kind enough to recommend the 'snake' method for smoking and so I did my research, got my meat and rub ready and got to it. As I'm typing this, I'm about 1 hour 30 minutes into the cook and the temperature is maintaining really nicely - especially considering the typical British weather (rain)!

Unfortunately, the ribs I purchased were from a local butcher and came precut. I wasn't too bothered as it meant that I could rub them slightly differently so I rubbed half with a salt/pepper/organo/garlic powder/celery salt mix (got the recipe from a book) and the other half with a premade beef rub from a fantastic London butchers called Turner & George (They have a beautiful selection of meat and do some interesting cuts that you won't get from your standard market.)

After rubbing, I prepared the kettle BBQ and let it come up to around 230 (as good as it was going to get while it was raining) and popped the ribs on. I was unsure how I should arrange them for good heat distribution so any tips would be much appreciated!

About 1hr30m into the cook, this is what they look like - I was hoping for something darker but that may be the huge wood chunks I have that are burning inconsistently:

Hi there and welcome!
That looks pretty good for a first attempt.
I think going salt AND celery salt is what got you. Only do one or the other and you will likely be ok.
Also, always check your rubs/seasoning mixes and if there is salt already in them then you can usually avoid extra salt.
Another tip, pork ribs are notorious for being easy to oversalt. They are best done by seaosning with everything BUT salt first and then doing salt alone at the end. Heck many things can benefit from this approach since you have greater control.

I didn't see it mentioned so I just wanted to point out that beef ribs are a but of meat that is done when they are tender not at any specific temp. Let the temperature tell you to start checking for tenderness.
Check for tenderness by stabbing all over with a tooth pic or a kebab skewer and when it goes in with no resistance then they are tender and ready.

Beef ribs, Brisket, Chuck roast, Pork butt/shoulder, and Pork ribs are all cuts that are done when they are tender :)

I look forward to more posts about your future cooks and I hope this info helps! :)

 

[Winterrider]

I think going salt AND celery salt is what got you. Only do one or the other and you will likely be ok.

Otherwise it does look darn good.

 

[ExclusiveBBQ]

Hi there and welcome!
That looks pretty good for a first attempt.
I think going salt AND celery salt is what got you. Only do one or the other and you will likely be ok.
Also, always check your rubs/seasoning mixes and if there is salt already in them then you can usually avoid extra salt.
Another tip, pork ribs are notorious for being easy to oversalt. They are best done by seaosning with everything BUT salt first and then doing salt alone at the end. Heck many things can benefit from this approach since you have greater control.

I didn't see it mentioned so I just wanted to point out that beef ribs are a but of meat that is done when they are tender not at any specific temp. Let the temperature tell you to start checking for tenderness.
Check for tenderness by stabbing all over with a tooth pic or a kebab skewer and when it goes in with no resistance then they are tender and ready.

Beef ribs, Brisket, Chuck roast, Pork butt/shoulder, and Pork ribs are all cuts that are done when they are tender :)

I look forward to more posts about your future cooks and I hope this info helps! :)

Thank you for the tips.

At the very least, I'll do a 50/50 mix of salt and celery salt instead and reduce the total amount by half.

I'm going to have to learn to check for tenderness and what that feels like for sure - I was hoping to sort of avoid that part by having a thermometer but it does seem like this is the 'pro' way for bigger cuts of meat and ribs. I guess good barbecue is less science and more skill, but I think I already knew that!

 

[tallbm]

Thank you for the tips.

At the very least, I'll do a 50/50 mix of salt and celery salt instead and reduce the total amount by half.

I'm going to have to learn to check for tenderness and what that feels like for sure - I was hoping to sort of avoid that part by having a thermometer but it does seem like this is the 'pro' way for bigger cuts of meat and ribs. I guess good barbecue is less science and more skill, but I think I already knew that!

I think that should work for you on the salt.
Another approach would be to use ground celery seed and salt separately so you have 100% control over each BUT go with whatever you prefer, this is your creation after all :)

Yeah BBQ is "mostly" cooked to temp rather than to time.
In cases like beef ribs and other "tenderness" cuts of meat, you use the temp to indicate that it is time to start checking for tenderness and those cuts are then done when tender.
If you do something like a ribeye roast, chicken/turkey, etc. then temperature is the thing that tells you that you are done.

A middle ground option that may be desirable for you is to use an instant read thermometer. It would give you temp and would also double up as the tenderness tool that you stab all over :)

Here is a list of the top sellers for Amazon US and a picture to give you an idea. I have a Thermopro instant read that isn't very fast (like 7 seconds) but I only use it for grilling vs when I do smoked food. Mine gets the job done bit if it was my only temp tool I would definitely upgrade to one that reads much uch much faster. Getting a face full of smoke for 7 seconds waiting on the reading is not enjoyable :)
https://www.amazon.com/Best-Sellers...-Read-Thermometers-Timers/zgbs/kitchen/289809

 

[disco]

Not only do the ribs look great, I love the step by step post with discussion. Big like!

 

[ExclusiveBBQ]

Not only do the ribs look great, I love the step by step post with discussion. Big like!

Thank you - Cook #2 incoming!