I'm on the "No Wrap" ribs bandwagon

[texomakid]

Was able to score several racks of St Louis style ribs for $1.99/lbs. I just gave them a quick rinse with cold water, pat excess water off with paper towel and as we've read from Al I didn't even pull the membrane off. So this was easy, open, rinse, rub (Honey Hog) & cook!

Set the Yoder on 230 with a mix of Hickory & Cherry pellets. Spritzed every 45 min for the 1'st 3 hours (4 times) with Apple Cider. Cooked another 2 hours straight (did not open the lid) took a peak and rotated them 180 deg - 1 more hour - 6 hours total.

That's almost a perfect rib - This works if you have 6 full hours to cook them. Nice bark & really tender with a really good bite (not fall of the bone) - We ate half a rack with no sauce.

Thanks for the shared tips & ideas guys (this works well) and thanks for looking.

 

[jokensmoken]

I'm with you...
I did a side by side comparison a couple weeks ago.
I did two racks "naked" and two using 3-2-1 .
I thought the "naked" ribs were absolutely just as good and far less hassle than wrapping.

 

[Hairm Hampton]

Perfect. I was planing on doing something very similar. Going to do half water half Apple cider vinegar and I made a salty sweet heat rub. I love cherry hickory mix. That smoke ring looks amazing with plenty to chew on still. Great job!

 

[schlotz]

Welcome to the natural smoke clan! Been a member of the no-wrap gang for many years.

 

[noboundaries]

I thought the "naked" ribs were absolutely just as good and far less hassle than wrapping.

Yep! And better bark.

Welcome to the no-wrap bandwagon, Texomakid!

 

[hoity toit]

No wrap here also, good job

HT

 

[sandyut]

Nice looking cook! LIKE

 

[retfr8flyr]

I stopped wrapping my ribs many years ago. I have a Big Joe and I even stopped spritzing my ribs. I just put plenty of rub on them and just let them cook at 225° until they pass the bend test, usually about 5 1/2-6 hrs. Sometimes I sauce them on the grill, at that point but most times I just put the sauce on the table.

 

[yankee2bbq]

No wrap, No wrap, No wrap...

USA, USA, USA...

 

[drdon]

Great job! Just the way we like em too. A slight tug off the bone and no mess with wrapping.

 

[mike243]

Looks great, not sure why folks use vinegar for spritzing, I like apple juice or some type of fruit juice. ymmv

 

[noboundaries]

I picked up two untrimmed racks of Hormel spares yesterday, $1.68/lb. They'll go on the WSM tomorrow or Tuesday. Light rub, 250F, no spritz or wrap, probably hickory chunks. I just couldn't leave them at the store after this thread.

 

[Fueling Around]

Wrap is boil in a bag. Never done it.

Going to change my tune this time. Smoked a couple racks with an infamous rub that absolutely sucked. Dry and burned bark.
I'm going to finish them with an apple juice boil in a bag wrap of foil. Screw the bark if they are dry and chewy. Hopefully I can recover the racks.

 

[jokensmoken]

Looks great, not sure why folks use vinegar for spritzing, I like apple juice or some type of fruit juice. ymmv

The acid in the ACV helps tenderize the meat.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

No sauce, no wrap for this Memphis native. Rendezvous dry ribs, and then go watch the March of the Ducks at the Peabody. Great ribs, great times! Thank goodness I can buy Rendezvous rub at my local grocery!

 

[LanceR]

I never spritz ribs and and only sptitzed butts or briskets a few times before deciding that, for me, it's a waste of time and only serves to cool the smoker and take longer to finish. I only wrapped ribs once or twice and again, for me at least, wrapping is no different than spritzing; I don't see the point in it. I control moisture content with temperature and air flow.

I use a dry rub my wife blends that is a modification of Emeril's Rustic Rub (with less salt and cayenne) and the temperature I run them at depends on my assessment of the time I have and how full the smoker is. I use an MES 40 most often as it sets on a caster mounted cabinet in the garage and is pretty painless to use as the garage passage door leads into the kitchen.

I usually run 210-230F, don't open the door unless I have to and am done in 4-5 hours. I run the vent(s) wide open for an hour or so and then close them about 1/2-2/3 of the way. I do open the door at around 2-1/2 to 3 hours to see how much, if any yet, of the bone is visible and my wife can't resist a peak sometimes but otherwise I avoid opening the door.

I often cook "heavy" rib slabs (whole untrimmed racks) and do check them a bit more often to be sure that the smaller end isn't overcooking. I've been know to trim them off before cooking and start them later or to just cut them off when they are done.

I generally don't offer sauce and have only very rarely had anyone ask for sauce. Like a lot of others I usually get the "Best I ever ate!", "You should open a restaurant!" and related comments.

As always, what works for me may not work for all others so your mileage may vary....

 

[solman]

I never spritz ribs and and only sptitzed butts or briskets a few times before deciding that, for me, it's a waste of time and only serves to cool the smoker and take longer to finish. I only wrapped ribs once or twice and again, for me at least, wrapping is no different than spritzing; I don't see the point in it. I control moisture content with temperature and air flow.

i used to think the same for years, but started spritzing my ribs recently and have become a fan of it. i do it to get more smoke to adhere to the meat surface, and it has nothing to do with adding more moisture in to the meat. once the meat surface dries out in the smoker, smoke has nothing to hold on to anymore. spritzing the surface helps get more smoke flavor onto the meat surface. i've done ribs every which way at the same time, wrap, no wrap, no spritz, and spritzing came out the best for my taste buds. everyone should try it as many different ways as possible, you may surprised at what you like or don't like.

 

[schlotz]

+1 on spritzing, for ribs I start at hour #2 and every 45 minutes until last one on the top of the 5th hour using straight apple juice. Then start testing for doneness.

 

[sandyut]

I spritzed my last batch of no wrap BBs. Rally liked them, the bark had a crunch I assume from the sugars caramelizing. next batch will try no spritz and compare.

 

[gmc2003]

Wrap, no wrap, it all depends on the mood I'm in when smoking ribs. I never spritz. Sauce or no sauce again depends on the mood, and if the wife is planning on eating the ribs(she likes BBQ sauce). When I wrap I use a disposable aluminum pan. It makes the operation a whole lot quicker and less of a mess. As they say "Variety is the spice of life" and I don't want to get pigeon holed into one style.

Chris