what kind of beef ribs?

[cabrego]

Greetings all,

I cooked some beef short ribs this weekend low and slow using a 321 method and they game out really great.  My only complaint was that the membrane was nearly impossible to remove.  As you could imagine that made the ribs  a bit of a chore to eat.  

What kind of beef ribs are u guys smoking, is there a better way to remove the membrane?

 

[smoking b]

Most take the membrane off before smoking them & beef can be more of a pain than pork. If you do a quick search on youtube there are tons of videos showing how to take the membrane off. If you would rather read, a quick search using the search bar at the top of the page will give you tons of threads.

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/newsearch/?search=remove+rib+membrane&type=all

 

[cabrego]

I did pull the silver skin off but it was nothing like pork ribs. There was still an obvious tough membrane-any tips?

 

[forluvofsmoke]

My favorite beef rib is from the 7-bone whole beef rib (prime rib or bone-in rib eye), separated from the rib eye...but, I've never removed the membrane from slabs..easy to bite around it with long bones...it should be easier to remove from a larger slab than short ribs, though. I've read that a paper towel helps to grip the edge of the membrane once you lift it up a bit with a blade, then grab with the towel to slowly and gently peel it off.

Boneless rib eye on top, ribs below:

Cut from an 18lb whole beef rib...this slab was 5.5lb precooked weight:

A rather large and juicy appetizer before dinner:

The fixings for the main course...precooked weight was 12.6lb:

Med-rare:

Smoked Russet on the side, drizzled with it's own juices from the board (no Au Jus needed here):

I couldn't resist the temptation to post pics...just a teaser to nudge you into pulling the trigger on one, I guess...LOL!!! Seriously though, this is the best cut of beef at an affordable price when it's on sale. Last week, they went on sale for $3.99lb in a nearby grocery chain here (reg. $8,99-10.99lb)...crazy low sale-price, especially when chuck has been $3,89/lb regular, lately. I hope lots of other areas offer good sales on them like this. Even for our family, a 7-bone whole beef rib can make 3 meals: Ribs for lunch, 1/2 the rib eye for dinner, and steak-out the other half of the rib eye to marinade overnight for dinner the next evening. This particular beef dinner was $4.49lb, $81.31...not something for a once per week meal, but a darn fine treat to have a few times per year, and is a Christmas tradition here as well.

EDIT: btw, if it's the heavy connective tissue on the bone you're talking about, there's not much you can do about that except to cook them low & slow for a bit longer to get it to melt away a bit more.

Eric

 

[joben]

Cut from an 18lb whole beef rib...this slab was 5.5lb precooked weight:

A rather large and juicy appetizer before dinner:

Eric

How AMAZING does that look????????????????????????? My mouth is watering

 

[jarjarchef]

The connective tissue on beef ribs is a lot thicker than on pork ribs. Some you can remove like pork ribs with a paper towel or even a towel. Some times I use the tip of a small knife to get a corner up so I can get a grip on the membrane. Like with pork ribs there are actually two layers of membrane. The top layer is the one you can remove, the bottom one you can but it will be very frustrating and almost impossible. Beef ribs benifet from low and slow, but may require a longer cook then the 3:2:1 method to break down the membrane. As usual each cut of meat will cook in its own time......

Eric that was just not fair to wake up and see that amazing food first thing in the morning.. Great job on it!!! :drool

 

[forluvofsmoke]

The connective tissue on beef ribs is a lot thicker than on pork ribs. Some you can remove like pork ribs with a paper towel or even a towel. Some times I use the tip of a small knife to get a corner up so I can get a grip on the membrane. Like with pork ribs there are actually two layers of membrane. The top layer is the one you can remove, the bottom one you can but it will be very frustrating and almost impossible. Beef ribs benifet from low and slow, but may require a longer cook then the 3:2:1 method to break down the membrane. As usual each cut of meat will cook in its own time......

Eric that was just not fair to wake up and see that amazing food first thing in the morning.. Great job on it!!!