first time smoker in Georgia

[atlsmoker69]

Hi all...my name is Mark....I live in an Atlanta suburb called Decatur...Just set up a cheap Oklahoma Joes Highland and did a a few mods with gasket tape to make more efficient....tried it yesterday on some baby backs dry rubbed at 250 for 5 hours...they tasted great but werent as tender as I hoped..so i am here to learn all I can

 

[noboundaries]

Mark, welcome to SMF!  Glad you are here with the new OKJ and putting it to work.  Use the search feature to find your BB answers.  Lots of BB lovers here.

Enjoy the forum!

Ray

 

[submariner]

Welcome to the Forum and you will find lots of good ideas here to help get those ribs more tender!!

 

[SmokinAl]

Welcome to the group!

If they weren't tender enough, then you probably didn't cook them long enough.

What temp gauge are you using to determine your pit temp, because 5 hours at 250 should have been enough time.

I do my ribs by temp not time. 195 IT is perfect for us. If you want fall off the bone, then 200-205 will get that for you.

Al

 

[joe black]

Al has been around for a long time and I usually agree with his advice. However, this time I'm going to step out of line. If your temp gauge checks out, I think 5 hours at 250* for baby backs is a little long and could result in them being tough. I usually cook baby backs naked at 250-275* for about 3 to 3-1/2 hours. At this time I normally have a pretty good bend. Then I sauce/glaze them twice for about 15 minutes each time. They turn out moist, very tender and with a slight tug.

Give this a try and let me know how they turned out. Baby backs are probably my favorite cook.

Sorry about that, Al. I still love 'ya brother, Joe. :yahoo: