Pork ribs not coming up to 190-200 internal temp?

[John Goostree]

I've cooked several pork ribs on my Masterbuilt electric smoker. I have been doing the ribs at 230 degrees for about 4 hours and 15 minutes and they have come out nicely as they looked to me. Last night I decided to check the internal temp as I have read when they are 190-200 they are done. After cooking at 225 for about 4 hours 15 minutes the ribs were about 172 and doing the lift test (Lifting in the middle) the ribs didn't really want to break apart so I figured they are not done. I put them back in the smoker for another hour at about 245 degrees and the internal temp still not coming about 175. I sliced and ate them then and while the fattest ribs were nicely cooked most of the medium to smaller ribs were a bit dry to me. They did have a really nice pull and weren't falling off the bone but they were kind of dry.

So my questions are why isn't the internal temp of the ribs coming about 175? Am I not cooking long enough? Also, why are most of the ribs on the dry side if they aren't coming up to the 190-200 that is supposed to be the finished internal temp of ribs? Should I wrap my ribs after a few hours to keep the meat from going dry but cook longer to get the internal temp up? (Wasn't just the internal temp, the ribs also weren't passing the lift test where you pick them up in the middle and it starts to break apart)

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

Do you know what the actual temp is inside your smoker at grate level?

 

[John Goostree]

Do you know what the actual temp is inside your smoker at grate level?

No I am just going by the temp on the controller

 

[gmc2003]

Probing ribs can be difficult. You have to make sure that your probe isn't touching bone, to close to the bone, or poking thru the rib. A thinner probe is best. As for the bend test if they freely drop to a 45 degree angle then they are done.

Chris

 

[solman]

I can't offer any advice but i had similar issues the other day when i smoked 3 St Louis ribs. I stuck a temperature probe in all 3 for the first time so i could go by temperature instead of time. At the 3 hour mark i wrapped all 3 ribs. It took another 1 to 2 hours until each probe reached 198-200F. Unwrapping them caused the temperature to drop into the 160s to 180s.

I wanted the internal temperatures to get back to the 190s, and it took one rib about another 2 hours to get back to 195F. the longest took another 4 hours to reach 195F, 9 hours total.

Surprisingly the 9 hour rib didn't turn out like shoe leather, it actually came out pretty good. I think if you're going to smoke ribs by temperature, you risk a very long stall time. Wrapping it may help but then the temperature nosedives after the wrap is removed. Not sure how to get around that as every rib seems to reach temperature at different rates.

 

[John Goostree]

I can't offer any advice but i had similar issues the other day when i smoked 3 St Louis ribs. I stuck a temperature probe in all 3 for the first time so i could go by temperature instead of time. At the 3 hour mark i wrapped all 3 ribs. It took another 1 to 2 hours until each probe reached 198-200F. Unwrapping them caused the temperature to drop into the 160s to 180s.

What temp was your smoker at?

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

No I am just going by the temp on the controller

You should consider running a separate probe set up.
The display temp versus actual temp are notoriously off.

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

As for the dry portions for smaller ribs, you could always wrap.
For baby backs use the 2-2-1 method.
For St. Louis Style Ribs use the 3-2-1 method.

 

[motolife313]

Big thick ribs take about 6 hours for me on my stick burner at 225

 

[indaswamp]

You should consider running a separate probe set up.
The display temp versus actual temp are notoriously off.

^^^^^This^^^^^

 

[John Goostree]

What probes do ya'll recommend?

 

[indaswamp]

Both Thermopro and Maverick make great units but you can pick up an el cheapo at walmart for like $14 bucks if you are on a budget...
just calibrate it in ice water and boiling water to be certain it is reading correctly. Should be 32* in ice water and 212* in boiling water......

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

What probes do ya'll recommend?

I used to use a TP20 for smoking until I realized it only had a high temp alarm. It is relegated to grill use now.
I picked up the Inkbird IRF-4S recently during the promotion here on SMF.
Another brand to consider is Maverick

 

[Rafter H BBQ]

You have had some great responses by some folks... only thing I would add is to make sure elevation is taken into consideration on your boiling test. For a lot of folks, it does not affect them.. however, I'm just shy of 5,000 feet and my boiling point is round 203*. I'll give an address to calculate it for ya, given to me by Dirtsailor2003...

www.csgnetwork.com/h2oboilcalc.html

 

[noboundaries]

What we know: pork...….ribs, so either spare ribs untrimmed, trimmed (St Louis), or baby backs. All three require adjustments. A dry pork rib is undercooked. An overcooked pork rib will fall off the bone and dissolve in your mouth when bitten.

I can't help with the BBs. I don't smoke them, preferring spare ribs. I also don't wrap, spritz, or peek while they are cooking/smoking. Trimmed spares will cook faster than untrimmed due to less mass. At 225F, trimmed spares will usually finish in 6 to 6.5 hours. Untrimmed usually closer to 7-8 hours.

All the temp and probe advice above is good, but I suggest you buy a $5 oven rack thermometer at the grocery store and see what temp you have in your smoker compared to the controller. Compare the oven rack thermometer to your controller temp about 15-20 minutes after setting the controller.

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• noboundaries
• Apr 28, 2017

 

[Bearcarver]

Don't ever go by the readings on the MES Therms.
If you're going by Temps, you need an accurate set of Digital Wireless (Mavericks or one of the others bragged about on this forum).

Bear

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

You have had some great responses by some folks... only thing I would add is to make sure elevation is taken into consideration on your boiling test. For a lot of folks, it does not affect them.. however, I'm just shy of 5,000 feet and my boiling point is round 203*. I'll give an address to calculate it for ya, given to me by Dirtsailor2003...

www.csgnetwork.com/h2oboilcalc.html

Good advice.
Lots of folks forget about how elevation and barometric pressure affects boiling point.
Coming from 1200 feet above seal level to now at over 3,000 feet, I sure did learn quick.

 

[Preacher Man]

Good advice.
Lots of folks forget about how elevation and barometric pressure affects boiling point.
Coming from 1200 feet above seal level to now at over 3,000 feet, I sure did learn quick.

Yup. Here's a calculator to help you figure the boiling point at your specific location.

https://www.thermoworks.com/bpcalc

 

[solman]

What temp was your smoker at?

225 top grate, 240 bottom grate, using 4 probe inkbird thermometer.

 

[smokinbarrles]

Iv had similar issue with bb's in my MES. Got temp to about 190 in 5 hours. Went to sauce. Temps dropped about 20 degrees IT. let them go another hour to raise temp and cook sauce on. Came out a little dry and had decent pull and clean bones after eating. Might try wrapping next time 2-2-1.

Side note they were still pretty good and still learning my new MES.