Smoked & Grilled Baby Back Ribs

[StinkyH]

Was thinkin about grillin up some baby back ribs this weekend. I have a weber smoke box - small metal box to hold chips and place over the propane element for smoke in a gas grill. However, I now I have a little chief thanks to Santa. Just curious how many of you have smoked ribs in their little chief them moved them over to thier BBQ or gas grill to finish them? Sure would be nice to put a few pans of hickory chips on a couple of full racks and then grill'em up to smoky perfection... just not sure what the temperature limits are with pork and what the smoker can maintain?

StinkyH

[ 01-24-2004, 11:09 AM: Message edited by: StinkyH ]

[HeavyMetal BankFisherman]

I would skip the little chief and just do them on the barbeque. You can throw some chunks of wood next to the charcoal to get all the smoke flavor you need. Soak the chunks in water first.

[StinkyH]

Originally posted by HeavyMetal BankFisherman:
I would skip the little chief and just do them on the barbeque. You can throw some chunks of wood next to the charcoal to get all the smoke flavor you need. Soak the chunks in water first. <font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">I would do that but I have a gas grill. I like using the Weber smoker box but it sometimes flames up and if not caught in time can really singe your ribs. Weber did come out with a new model of smoker box which has a lid... I'm thinkin about picking one of these up. The lid should keep the chips smoldering and not allow them to flame up.

StinkyH

[Small Fry]

Take it from a pig farmer:

The trick to good tender ribs is to boils them first. This helps to get most of the fat out of them and will make them real tender. If your doing a singal rack boils the for about 45 minutes add more time for more ribs. Once there boiled you can either place them right on your grill or let them cool and do it later. I let mine cool and then add BBQ sauce let them sit for several hours in the fridge. Then all you need to do is warm them through on the grill. Good luck.

[ 01-24-2004, 09:30 PM: Message edited by: Small Fry ]

[StinkyH]

Originally posted by Small Fry:
The trick to good tender ribs is to boils them first.<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">I agree - my usual method is to take the ribs - remove the membrane - put in to a large stock pot with garlic and a bit of chicken boullion at a slight boil for one hour then onto the grill for some smoke and fire... however - serious rib BBQ'rs will bark at boiling ribs as blasphemous!

Boiling the fat out sacrifices some flavor I imagine but boy are they good and tender and you can eat every bit of them with no gristle.

I'm partial to letting them dry for a few minutes after I boil them before they go to the grill and then putting on a _thin_ coating of whatever BBQ sauce I am using, just enough to get them wet and then a very light dusting of cornmeal and then onto a grill with some hickory chips smokin. The cornmeal adds some nice texture and the thin coating of BBQ sauce will help lock in some moisture.

They don't get fully coated with BBQ sauce until they are at the table. Best BBQ sauce I've had was from Dinasour BBQ in Rochester, NY. Wango Tango Habajero BBQ Slathering Sauce. You can order it via Dinosaur BBQs website. Just enough heat to put a stank on your ribs but not overpower it. I can polish off half a bottle of it on a full rack for myself. It's damn good stuff.

Either way - whatever makes'em taste good in the eye of the ribholder is what matters. :grin:

Happy grillin!

StinkyH

[ 01-24-2004, 11:33 PM: Message edited by: StinkyH ]

[WheresMyBobber]

I've never done ribs, but I have smoked chickens, turkeys and home made sausage.

What I've found is that it really doesn't take much time in the smoker to add the flavor you're looking for, and it's easy to smoke it too much. I only use 1 pan of chips for a chicken or turkey, and only about 5-8 minutes for homemade sausage. I'd start by only using 1 pan, and if that isn't enough use more pans next time.

[salmurai]

Boilin' Ribs, just another excuse to have a turkey pot. :grin:

[Fshklr]

Instead of boiling ROAST them in a couple inches of water covered(with lid or foil top) for 6 to 10 hrs in preheated oven at 250. This with make them very tender and they will retain their moisture instead of boiling the fat out. Be sure to check often after a few hrs because they can get to the point of fall apart if neglected.
I will usually cut them into 3 or 4 bone pieces for service and they will be easier to handle once on the BBQ! :cheers:

[Firedog]

Here is the base of a recipe I use. These are called the worlds greatest ribs. They are so tender you cant even pick up a rack because the meat falls off the bones. I have an off set smoker type BBQ though that I use lump charcol and Mesquite chunks for smoke.


This recipe and cooking procedure won the prestigious title "Best Ribs in the Universe" at the 1993 American Royal Bar-B-Que contest as the Overall Grand Champion. They also took "Reserve Grand Champion" at the 1994 American Royal. This is the largest Bar-B-Que contest in the World. Enjoy!
Meat: Baby Back Ribs. 13/4 - 2 lb. Size. Membrane on the inner (Stomach) side removed. All excess fat trimmed.
Dry Rub: Mix all ingredients thoroughly and store unused in moisture proof container
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Non-Iodized Table Salt
½ Cup Brown Sugar (Dried out lightly by exposing on cookie sheet room temp. several hours, or slightly warmed
5 Tablespoons + 1 Teaspoons Chili Powder
2 Tablespoons + 2 Teaspoons Ground Cumin
4 Teaspoons MSG (Accent)
4 Teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
4 Teaspoons Black Pepper freshly ground (important)
4 Teaspoons Garlic Powder
4 Teaspoons Onion Powder

Sprinkle Meat 2 hours before cooking with rub and allow meat to come to room temperature. Do not over-season. A good overall dusting of the spices is all that's needed. The spices will become a nice red liquid coating after sitting for about an hour, if you used the proper amount.
Basic Cooking procedure: Smoke ribs in a "Water Pan" smoker i.e. Brinkman, or Weber "Smoky Mountain Cooker" (the best) Start Charcoal (7-10lbs.) and 4 chunks of White Oak and 2 chunks of Cherry wood (about the size of a tennis ball) at least 1 hour before cooking meat. All fuel should be started in a chimney style starter, no starter fluid and all the charcoal must be grey/white hot. Remove all bark from wood chunks, do not soak. Very little smoke will be visible. Don't worry about that you'll get the flavor. Use straight water in the water pan and keep it full during the entire cooking process. Control oven temperature of cooker by regulating the bottom vents only. Never, ever, completely close the top vent! If you don't have one, put a thermometer on your cooker. Cook ribs for 3 hours fairly cool at 225 degrees on rib racks. After 3 hours lift the lid for the first time, flip the slabs end for end, and upside down, and open all the vents on the smoker wide open. Temperature of the cooker should rise into the 250 to 275 degree range. Peek every ½ hour to monitor doneness. Ribs will be finished when fairly brown in color, and the meat has pulled down on the long bones at least ¾ of an inch. (usually another 1 or 2 hours) Remove from cooker and sauce both sides before cutting individual ribs. I like K. C. Masterpiece BBQ sauce sweetened even more. ( 5 parts sauce, 1 part Honey), and so do the Judges! This basic cooking procedure is probably the most important of all, and works very well with other meats as well. Forget about how much smoke is coming out of the cooker, if you've got the wood you like in there burning up cleanly, the flavor will be in the meat. Smoke is nothing more that a smoke screen, and any coming out of the top of the cooker is flavor lost!

[ 01-25-2004, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: firedog ]

[HeavyMetal BankFisherman]

Boy do I miss those baby back ribs. I quit eating pork several years ago. If there was ever a reason to start eating pork again it would be for those baby back ribs.

[GutZ]

THANK YOU, FIREDOG!

[Firedog]

GUTZ, you are welcome. I love that recipe. Will also use that rub on pork chops and smoke them. They come out awesome.

[fishingchef]

Leave it to a fireman. You guys know food. Not bad firedog. You are correct on using a good rub. It is best to let a rub or marinade sit 24 hours or over night on your product. I would leave out the msg though and I would use pickling salt here and I would smoke that salt for an hour the day before i mixed the rub.

Finishing on the grill with a good sauce isthe way to go. allot of restaurant will smoke a large batch of baby backs then grill them to order with sauce to order.

Remember BBQ is low and slow. 200 - 220 is the best temp range for pork. allot of the world champs smoke for 12 hours.

Some great books on smokeing and bbq are Smoke and spice or sauces, rubs and marinades. Smoke and spice has a real nice chapter on fish too.

Oh yeah, I hate to bad mouth a restaurant but

I recently went to Big daddy's bbq on hawthorne.
I knew I should have walked out and gone to clays when I saw they had tv mounted over the line for the cooks to watch. Maybe if these guys had been able to pay attention to our food instead of the tv we would have at least had hot food. Nothing we tried was better then so-so at best. we tried there meat sampler( 25.00 for 2) and ordered a couple extra sides to get an overall picture. It was very disapointing.

[StinkyH]

Originally posted by fishingchef:
... and I would smoke that salt for an hour the day before i mixed the rub.<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">How do you smoke the salt? :whazzup:

StinkyH

[fishingchef]

Easy,
you can take a foil pie tin and poke holes in it and then smoke the salt in your little or big cheif smoker. You can even do it with a good piece of foil wrap. fold up the edges a little, you just have to be a little more careful handling it.

Smoked salt or lemon pepper is great and not to many people do it yet so you can impress your friends and family. :cheers:

[Firedog]

Fishenchef, You are right, leve the MSG out. I do and haven't noticed any diference at all.

You know us firemen need to know how to cook, nothing worse than having some new guy in the station that wants to feed you wiener wraps and tomato soup for chow. I have a lot of great recipes and always glad to share them and new ones I have found.

[long_shanks]

Heres a little tip I learned pull off the membrane off of the back side of your ribs, you may need to boil them to do this but its worth the extra hassel, I wish thay had spell check on hear , :laugh: Im terable tonight, Lack of sleep... :wink:

[long_shanks]

Good idea!! im gonna throw that too the wife! thats sure to get my my turkey cooker for my B-day LOL

[Myles]

These aren't smoked but you could add that step if you'd like, although it does have liquid smoke in the sauce. These are absolutely great. They start off a bit tangy from the vinegar, then mellow out to a sweet smokey flavor, then the heat kicks in :shocked:.

Burnt Tongue BBQ Sauce #67025
by The Crazy Chef
This bbq sauce has a nice sweet flavor combined with a spicy kick. If you fix your ribs the way I have suggested, I guarantee you will have the most tender, delictable ribs you've ever eaten. These ribs are a huge hit at partys and family gatherings, I have yet to find someone that didn't fall head over heals for them! 1 quart will coat 4-6 lbs. of pork spareribs.
2 cups ketchup
2 cups distilled white vinegar
1 cup dark corn syrup
1/4 cup molasses
1 tablespoon red bell pepper, finely chopped
4 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons liquid smoke
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce (Tabasco sauce)
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1. Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan.
2. Using a wire wisk, mix ingredients until smooth.
3. Bring bbq sauce to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer the sauce to desired thickness (I simmer mine for about an hour).
4. Remove sauce from heat when thickened and pour into a one quart jar.
5. This recipe will generously coat 4lbs.
6. of ribs, with sauce left over for dipping.
7. For bbq pork spareribs, cut ribs in 3-6 rib sections.
8. Coat rib sections generously with bbq sauce and wrap in tinfoil.
9. If you have time, I suggest you marinate these ribs in the refrigerator for 24-36 hours.
10. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
11. Cook ribs wrapped in foil for 2-3 hours at 300 degrees, ribs are ready when the meat has shrunk and about 1/2 inch of the bone is sticking out.
12. Remove ribs from tinfoil and coat generously with bbq sauce.
13. Bbq ribs for 2-3 minutes per side, or until sauce starts to char a little (if you like your sauce burnt more just bbq longer).

I get most of my recipes at http://www.recipezaar.com/
Serve this with Broccoli Cornbread #69013 and
Crockpot Baked Beans Bananza #49287 and fresh corn. :dance:

Myles

[River Ranger]

TTT.Need to use this one in a day or so.
RR.

[Firedog]

I did Baby backs yesterday. We used the rub I posted above then I smoked them for 2.5 hours at about 250 deg. Since we were having a family get together at another location I took them off the smoker and wrapped them in tinfoil. Two racks per package (we did 6 racks) Did this on thursday. Yesterday when we got to the cabin I set the oven at 250 and placed the wraped packages in the oven for another 3.5 hours. They were so tender we had trouble cutting them because the bones kept falling out. I will wrap mine from now on, juicy and tender. Way better than boiing the flavor out of them. Just before sering coat in BBQ sauce and serve.

I did about the same thing on the BBQ the last time I cooked them at work, just wrapped them after a few hours of smoke and let them simmer in the tinfoil.

[River Ranger]

ttt

[Lin A. Zimmerman]

The key to good ribs is preparation. In the South they use a sugar based rub. It is left on for a couple of hours before the meat is cooked. I have never had bad ribs in the South.

[Bank of Duvall]

MMMM... Anyone know where to get a frozen case of uncooked baby backs near Seattle or shipped? This one or two racks at a time just isn't cutting it and I've got some extra freezer space I'd like to fill up.

Fshklr - You've got it right on the roasting - They come out fantastic. You can get creative with seasoning the water you use with nice results too.

[backeddy]

willamete meat on se stark and about 2nd will sell by the case and wholesale to the public.

[backeddy]

if they dont have baby backs in stock I also buy them at cash and carry for about half the price. If you don't have a biz license you can pay cash.

[sng]

cash and carry is the place

[Bank of Duvall]

cash and carry it is - Thanks