I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while. The
results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.

1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain the
same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with higher
heat or the reverse?

2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?

3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?

Thanks

Dimitri

On Jul 30, 10:16 am, "Dimitri" > wrote:
> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while. The
> results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.
>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain the
> same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with higher
> heat or the reverse?

Have only used offsets as well.
Following comments are for St. Louis or full slab only. Haven't done
baby backs.

Constant heat, have found that 225-270 is the sweet spot, have had
problems with tough rawhide like meat at 275+. Others report different
results.

> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?

None required.

> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?

I serve dipping sauce on the side. Your choice though. Good stuff
aren't they?

Dale

Dimitri wrote:
> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while. The
> results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.
>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain the
> same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with higher
> heat or the reverse?
>
> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?
>
> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?

I start mine at about 225f, lately, and let the temp decline to
165f-170f as the ribs cook. They take about 6 hours that way and I have
the hood temperature at the meat temperature for at least an hour or
two. Something else I've been doing lately is to cut the first 3-4
bones off the big end of a rack. The big end is much thicker and takes
longer to cook. Cooking it perfectly overcooks the remaining ribs and
cooking for the smaller sizes leaves the big piece cooked well-enough to
eat, but not as tender.

What I've been doing is inserting the probes in a sweet spot on the main
rack and cooking them (see above) normally. I then remove them in 6
hours and insert the probe back, but into the remaining 3-4 bone pieces.
They take about another hour or 90 minutes, but now they're perfectly
done as well.

When cooking for company, I've been known to just toss the big pieces
back into the freezer and cook them up all at once. Since they're the
target and not secondary, it's back to 6 hours, since the temperature
ramps down more slowly.
--
---Nonnymus---
You don’t stand any taller by
trying to make others appear shorter.

Dimitri wrote:
>
> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while. The
> results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.
>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain the
> same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with higher
> heat or the reverse?
>
> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?
>
> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?
>
> Thanks
>
> Dimitri

I don't do the baby backs, overprices and not meaty enough for me.

I run the smoker in the 220-250 range. I've found that there seems to be
a pretty big window from "done" and before you get to "over done"
without any degradation throughout that range. Generally the ribs are
done around the six hour mark, I try to allow about eight hours until I
expect to serve them which I find gives me some breathing room and never
seems to result in anything overdone.

When the ribs reach about the eight hour mark I will stop refueling the
smoker and let the temp drift down. I normally pull the ribs when I'm
ready to serve them. If the temp drifts down past about 170 and I'm
still not ready to serve I'll pull them, wrap in foil and hold in the
side oven at 180. This process works consistently for me, but may or may
not work for you. I also only do dry rub ribs so there is no sauce
involved.

Pete C.

Dimitri wrote:
> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a
> while. The results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.
>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to
> maintain the same temperature all the way through or start low and
> then finish with higher heat or the reverse?

I cook mine in the 275-300°F range. I know when they're done in 2 ways; 1)
the meat has pulled back 1/2" or so from the ends and 2) when you pick the
rack up at the end, the rack will "snap" in half, seperating beftween the
ribs.

> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?

No need to let them rest.

> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without
> sauce?

I serve the ribs "as is" with sauce on the side for those who want it.

-frohe

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
...
> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while.
> The results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.

St. Luis ribs should be seasone with Adobo


>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain
> the same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with
> higher heat or the reverse?
>
> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?
>
> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?

Same all the way, about 250
10 minutes
no wrapping, no sauce unless requested.

"Dimitri" > wrote in
:

> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a
> while. The results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.

What are you calling a St. Luis rib?

> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to
> maintain the same temperature all the way through or start low and
> then finish with higher heat or the reverse?


I try to keep a constant temp

> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?

I don't. I like to serve straight from grill to plate (or gril to mouth)

> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without
> sauce?

I finish my ribs in foil with a little lemon juice. If I'm cooking 4
hours, I'll wrap tightly in foil the last 30 minutes. That gives the ribs
plenty of time to get smoky, but plumps them up right before serving. If
I'm not serving straight from grill to plate, I leave them wrapped in
foil until time to serve or refridgerate.

--
Ask Me Why I support Stem Cell Research
http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/faqs.asp

On 30-Jul-2007, "Dimitri" > wrote:

> I've been "experimenting" with Baby Backs and St. Luis ribs for a while.
> The
> results have been quite good but a little inconsistent.

I'm already wondering if you want to cook, or do you just want to play
with food?

>
> 1. When you are smoking ribs ( I use an offset ) do you try to maintain
> the
> same temperature all the way through or start low and then finish with
> higher
> heat or the reverse?

Find out where your pit wants to cruise without much attention and leave
it the hell alone. (My pit runs at about 270°F. That's where it stays, more
or less. I don't try to make it go anywhere else. I drink beer instead of
messing with it.). Take the meat off/out when it's done. Nobody, but
nobody bitches about my ribs.

>
> 2. How long do you rest the ribs before serving if you do so?

I take the ribs out of the pit and find someone to cut them apart
while I replenish my beer. I don't know how long that is. By the
time I check on the cutting board, half of the ribs are gone already.

>
> 3. If you rest the ribs do you wrap them in foil with or without sauce?
>

I had to bite my tongue before answering this one. But I happened to
remember attending my neighbor's party just last Saturday. All of
his family grooves on sauce, so he sauces everything right on the
(gasp) grill. None of my BBQ see's any sauce until it appears on
a guest's plate and then only if the guest puts it there. But then,
and this is important, I don't usually know what my guests will
prefer and he does. "And he's right within his own little circle".

Oh yeah, his circle likes my cajun spiced ribs too.

> Thanks
>
> Dimitri

I catered ribs and a picnic for a grilling only friend on the 4th of
July. He has a nice patio gas grill but, no smoker. He called
me a couple of weeks later and asked me to buy him a smoker.
His WSM will be delivered from Amazon the week of Aug 22nd
with free shipping. He's already paid me for the smoker.

He was very clear about the fact that smoking doesn't displace
grilling, but, smoking stands in a class by itself and he is not
going to do without. Now I need to find someone near Brandon,
FL to show him how to operate a WSM.
--
Brick(Enforce the law first; change it later if necessary)