Spare Ribs at 300 in WSM with no Pan?

[Count Porcula]

Having had great success with pork butt and pork belly in the new WSM, I want to make spare ribs.

I used to go 225 in the Smokin-It, but as noted in recent posts, I got inspired by Malcom Reed and prepared a butt and belly in the WSM without a pan. The butt was smoked at 300-ish. I tried to do the same for the belly, but I got stuck at more like 250 for a lot of the cook due to incompetence. Anyway, both meats came out great.

Obviously, spare ribs are not butts or bellies. I am thinking of shooting for 300 again, same method. No water. No pan. I picked up some B&B lump charcoal for this purpose.

Let's have opinions.

 

[Brokenhandle]

I'd say go for it... I think they'll turn out great!

 

[Compulsive Smoker]

I think that should work, just keep an eye on the IT... at a higher temp like that it would be easy to overcook...

 

[912smoker]

Do it all the time with great results.
Check after 1 to 1.5 hrs for bark and desired color. If your going th wrap that is.

Keith

 

[JLinza]

 

[Colin1230]

I think the ribs will turn out great. They will cook fast at 300* but shouldn't be a lot different than cooking them on a kettle other than a little grease dipping into the coals.
I'm following this one for sure.

 

[Celebenya]

Having had great success with pork butt and pork belly in the new WSM, I want to make spare ribs.

I used to go 225 in the Smokin-It, but as noted in recent posts, I got inspired by Malcom Reed and prepared a butt and belly in the WSM without a pan. The butt was smoked at 300-ish. I tried to do the same for the belly, but I got stuck at more like 250 for a lot of the cook due to incompetence. Anyway, both meats came out great.

Obviously, spare ribs are not butts or bellies. I am thinking of shooting for 300 again, same method. No water. No pan. I picked up some B&B lump charcoal for this purpose.

Let's have opinions.

Spare ribs can take that hotter WSM run fine, but they'll get to tender way quicker than a butt and the ends can darken up fast. No pan keeps the bark nice, just means a little more cleanup afterward

 

[Count Porcula]

Things are looking good.

 

[Count Porcula]

I now realize I need a Tel-tru. Probes are great, but a dial thermometer is easy to see from a distance, and even if it's wrong, it ought to be consistent enough to tell me I'm in the right range. If it's always at ten o'clock when a probe says my temperature is right, it doesn't matter if the dial's number is wrong.

Is there any reason not to use a 225? I don't want the aggravation of using a step bit on porcelain.

 

[Count Porcula]

The verdict is in.

These things went a little longer than 3 hours. Maybe 15 minutes more. That's all. I did not use a meat thermometer. At the end, they were a little overcooked. The smaller ribs fell off the bone but were not mushy. The bigger ones were a little less tender, and for me, that is about right.

I'm used to ribs taking almost 5 hours, so this was very fast.

The meat was dryer than I would like. Not dry, but not the juicy ribs I'm used to. I wonder if the high temperature did that.

I brushed some thin sauce on the ribs during the cook. Ordinarily, I don't like putting sauce on ribs in the smoker, but it worked very well for butt and belly, so I tried it. It was a mistake. All that caramelized black stuff is overpowering on ribs. They tasted great, but they would have been much better without the sauce.

I use chipotle in my rub, and the last batch I bought is very hot. My meat keeps coming out spicier than I want. I think I'm going to quit using it and go to cayenne. I'm already getting smoke flavor from...smoke...so I don't think there is much point in using powdered smoked peppers. I don't know if chipotle brands are inconsistent or what, but cayenne should be pretty standardized.

The smoke flavor was excellent. I think letting the fat hit the fire probably helped.

My plan is to go back to 225-250 for the next cook, and I will be using a rub without sauce.