Pre-slicing pork ribs

[teebob2000]

Hi all -

I'm going to be trying pre-slicing my BB ribs before smoking this weekend for the first time.  I'm cutting them up anyway as little appetizers and that seems like the most trouble-free and least messy (for my guests) way of serving them.

I'm following Jeff's recipe, found here.  Does anyone have any thoughts on this recipe or, if you've pre-sliced ribs before and have any hints or suggestions, I'd appreciate it!!  I am a little concerned about them getting too dry, even with using BB ribs which are pretty forgiving in that regard.

One question about the recipe:  on step 9, he says "With the top left uncovered."  Does that mean leave the foil off the top of your foil pan, or with the smoker uncovered?  They are covered with foil during the previous cooking stage.  Doesn't make sense to leave the smoker uncovered as it's meant to be finishing the smoking process.

TIA!!!

Tom

 

[jbills5]

Leave foil off the top of your pan

 

[pit of despair]

Tom,

He means to leave the foil off of the pan.

Good luck.

Teddy

 

[joe black]

This method is almost the same as I do my CSRs. It works great on them. I'll have to slice up some ribs and give it a try. If you're worried about the ribs being dry, add about the same amount of apple juice as sauce. This makes a double amount of braise and also the acidity will help tenderize the ribs and receive more steam.

Good luck. I'll bet they turn out great for you. Let us know, Joe

 

[teebob2000]

Thanks for the info everyone.  I assumed he meant the pan and not the smoker.

I'll post pics when they're done tomorrow!

 

[Bearcarver]

All I can say is it takes less time than full slabs, because the meat gets hit from all sides, instead of just top & bottom.

So be careful not to overdo them.

Bear

 

[b-one]

image.jpeg

• b-one
• Jan 23, 2016

You should be fine but if you want rub them wrap in bacon and add more rub.

 

[eman]

Only time i pre slice ribs before cooking is when making  Smo - Fried ribs.

  A lot of times i will slice them after cooking if i am doing a big group to cut down on waste. (doesn't work if you make fall off the bone AKA Mushy  Ribs).

 

[teebob2000]

 
All I can say is it takes less time than full slabs, because the meat gets hit from all sides, instead of just top & bottom.

So be careful not to overdo them.

Bear

That was my concern.  I planned to check at the shortened intervals in Jeff's instructions rather than letting them go the full length of time for each step.  If they're getting done a little too fast, I'll just cover the pan back up in the smoker and let them go slowly.

 

[Bearcarver]

 
That was my concern.  I planned to check at the shortened intervals in Jeff's instructions rather than letting them go the full length of time for each step.  If they're getting done a little too fast, I'll just cover the pan back up in the smoker and let them go slowly.

Just thought I should toss that out there, because since it's nearly impossible to accurately temp probe a single Pork rib (or most full racks), you should keep an eye on it.

Bear

 

[teebob2000]

Here's how they looked going on initially.  I used one of the Swift Costco vacpack 3-packs of BBs, about 11.5 lbs.  Fit on my 22" WSM pretty much perfectly.  I discarded a couple of the smaller, gristly ends.

20160423_120109(0).jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 23, 2016

 

[Bearcarver]

 
Here's how they looked going on initially.  I used one of the Swift Costco vacpack 3-packs of BBs, about 11.5 lbs.  Fit on my 22" WSM pretty much perfectly.  I discarded a couple of the smaller, gristly ends.

This is gonna be interesting!!

You called it pretty good---Couldn't get many more on there!!

Be Back-----

Bear

 

[dirtsailor2003]

A Full smokers a happy smoker!

 

[teebob2000]

Here's half-way through the first step before flipping them over.  I flipped and put the ones on the outside ring on top of the middle ones because they were getting pretty browned.  Before and after flipping, I spritzed liberally with my usual, 1/3 cranberry juice, 2/3 good quality dark rum.

20160423_130231(0).jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 23, 2016

 

[teebob2000]

Here's how they looked coming off after the first 2 hours of smoking.  REALLY wanted to eat a half-dozen of them!!

20160423_140325.jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 23, 2016

Next is how they looked after adding the rub.  Again, I first spritzed and then added some rub, tossed the ribs, spritzed again and added more rub.  They're covered with foil and they're steaming away in there now.

20160423_140726(0).jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 23, 2016

 

[joe black]

I really like the Swift Costco baby loin backs. They are very meaty and the membrane is already off. Don't discard the gristly ends, they are a bonus for the cook about half way through the cook. Some folks call them "Chefs Delight".

 

[Bearcarver]

Looking real tasty already Teebob!! 

Be Back to see final pics.

Bear

 

[teebob2000]

Word of warning on these...  Beware when you open up the foil to check on them because hot steam will come billowing out!  Luckily I was wearing my silicone BBQ gloves because otherwise, I'd have had some burned fingertips.

You'll notice from the previous pic that the foil pan is crimped up a little bit.  These are the large banquet foil pans they carry at Costco.  As is they don't fit on the smoking grate so you have to bend them up in order to close the lid.  It's easier to see in this pic.

So after the full 90 minutes or so of the braising step, the meat pulling in from the end of the rib bones about 1/4".  The bottom of the pan was full of grease.  (Makes sense, but I'm surprised Jeff didn't mention this in his write-up.)  I didn't want that in with the sauce so I brought the pan into the house, poked a small hole in one side, about an inch from the bottom of the pan, and let it all drain out.  Leaving it in would have messed with the saucing step and made the ribs unacceptably greasy.

After draining, back out to the smoker.  I sprinkled the ribs with about a 1/2 cup of rub, tossed, ladled about a cup of my 'Q sauce over, tossed again, more rub/tossing/saucing/tossing and this was the result.  They looked damn good but were definitely not fully done yet.  (I did sample one, for science.)

20160423_160257.jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 24, 2016

 

[teebob2000]

I left them in the smoker for another hour with the pan uncovered.  Below is the final product: (it's dark, sorry, my tablet doesn't have a flash)

20160423_172124.jpg

• teebob2000
• Apr 24, 2016

Put them into a preheated 24-quart roaster on the warm setting for serving to guests, along with 'Q sauce on the side if they wanted more.  They went over VERY well with our guests.  Most people attending have had either my normal ribs, brisket or pulled pork and know how good they are, so the bar was pretty high.  

Final verdict: definitely smokier than the BBs I do the normal way, a little more pull on them as well.  If I had left them in the smoker for another hour, I'm sure they would have tenderized a little more, but then they may have been harder to deal with if they were fall-off-the-bone done.  I have to say, they are a lot more work than normal BBs.

Everyone loved them, except for the one that matters most: the wife!  She likes a little less smoke flavor, and fall-off-the-bone tender BBs.  I probably could use less wood (I used apple, btw) and leave them on longer and get closer to my normal BBs.  I asked her if we had another party, should I make these again or my pulled pork, and she votes for pulled pork.

 

[Bearcarver]

Looks Great from here, Teebob!!

------------

Mighty Tasty!

Only thing I might change would be maybe less BBQ sauce, but that's just us (matter of preference).

Thanks for Showing everything!

Bear