First, I wanted to say thanks to all the provide useful information in these forums. I did a lot of reading prior to my 1st "Smoke", and the information here set me up with a solid game plan. I went into the "Smoke" with confidence, and knowing what to expect during the experience!
The Mission: 3 racks of St. Louis cut Spares, 1 pan of Dutch's Wicked Baked Beans (Great recipe Dutch! A thread for a recipe that has a duration of over 6 years, speak's for itself)
I seasoned my MES 40 based on information from here: 1 Burn Off session at 275 for 2 hours, a 2nd Burn Off session, inside panels with a PAM coating at 275 for 2 hours, and then dropped the temp to 230, and added Pecan chips 3 times over another 90 minute period.
Though many have contributed, a big "Shout Out" to DeltaDude for a detailed list of MES tips.
On to the smoke!
Lined Water Pan and Drip Pan with foil.
Exhaust open 100%
Pre-heated at 275 for an hour.
Decreased Temp to 230.
At 230 degrees, added boiling water to water pan.
Followed DeltaDude's instructions for initial, and succeeding chip dumps. (Did Not Soak Chips) I added chips for approx. 3.5 hrs of the smoke.
Ribs and Beans in the smoker. (Used Jeff's Rub Recipe for the Ribs)
As I was using Water in the pan, no spritzing, only opened smoker door, to remove skirt meat at 90 mins, and remove beans at 3 hrs, when they hit 165 degrees.
Ribs checked at 5.5 hrs and passed the bend test! Done!
The experience:
Following Chip Dump instructions from Delta Dude, I attained TBS almost immediately! I only had one chip dump where I started experiencing some white smoke. I was using a mix of Pecan/Oak about 80/20, and stopped using the smaller oak chips, which slowed down the chips igniting going through the rest of the smoke.
Had some medium windy conditions during the smoke, so I couldn't always see the TBS, but I could always smell that sweet smokey smell, so I knew things were good.
As I minimized the # of times opening the smoker, I didn't have to worry about temperature recovery much. But, I was amazed how quickly the MES got back up to 230 degrees. Dropped to 218 when I removed the skirts, and 211 when I removed the beans and added some hot water to top off the water pan.
And finally, the taste test! I used liberal amounts of Jeff's Rub, and it's evident from my photos. I've always said the best ribs, are the one's that don't need sauce. These passed the test. The Rub created a nice skin from the Brown Sugar in it, and the ribs were really, really tender and moist on the inside. Dutch's beans lived up to all the accolades, everyone said they were the best baked beans they had ever eaten.
Again, thanks to everyone here that shares information. Had I not found this site, and was blindly going into my first smoke, with just the instructions that came with the MES, there is no doubt the results would NOT have been as positive!
The ribs photo had some glare from the cook top hood light, sorry.
The Mission: 3 racks of St. Louis cut Spares, 1 pan of Dutch's Wicked Baked Beans (Great recipe Dutch! A thread for a recipe that has a duration of over 6 years, speak's for itself)
I seasoned my MES 40 based on information from here: 1 Burn Off session at 275 for 2 hours, a 2nd Burn Off session, inside panels with a PAM coating at 275 for 2 hours, and then dropped the temp to 230, and added Pecan chips 3 times over another 90 minute period.
Though many have contributed, a big "Shout Out" to DeltaDude for a detailed list of MES tips.
On to the smoke!
Lined Water Pan and Drip Pan with foil.
Exhaust open 100%
Pre-heated at 275 for an hour.
Decreased Temp to 230.
At 230 degrees, added boiling water to water pan.
Followed DeltaDude's instructions for initial, and succeeding chip dumps. (Did Not Soak Chips) I added chips for approx. 3.5 hrs of the smoke.
Ribs and Beans in the smoker. (Used Jeff's Rub Recipe for the Ribs)
As I was using Water in the pan, no spritzing, only opened smoker door, to remove skirt meat at 90 mins, and remove beans at 3 hrs, when they hit 165 degrees.
Ribs checked at 5.5 hrs and passed the bend test! Done!
The experience:
Following Chip Dump instructions from Delta Dude, I attained TBS almost immediately! I only had one chip dump where I started experiencing some white smoke. I was using a mix of Pecan/Oak about 80/20, and stopped using the smaller oak chips, which slowed down the chips igniting going through the rest of the smoke.
Had some medium windy conditions during the smoke, so I couldn't always see the TBS, but I could always smell that sweet smokey smell, so I knew things were good.
As I minimized the # of times opening the smoker, I didn't have to worry about temperature recovery much. But, I was amazed how quickly the MES got back up to 230 degrees. Dropped to 218 when I removed the skirts, and 211 when I removed the beans and added some hot water to top off the water pan.
And finally, the taste test! I used liberal amounts of Jeff's Rub, and it's evident from my photos. I've always said the best ribs, are the one's that don't need sauce. These passed the test. The Rub created a nice skin from the Brown Sugar in it, and the ribs were really, really tender and moist on the inside. Dutch's beans lived up to all the accolades, everyone said they were the best baked beans they had ever eaten.
Again, thanks to everyone here that shares information. Had I not found this site, and was blindly going into my first smoke, with just the instructions that came with the MES, there is no doubt the results would NOT have been as positive!
The ribs photo had some glare from the cook top hood light, sorry.
