st louis vs baby back

jnstrom · Joined: 28 Feb 2009 Posts: 6

Does the st louis cut make a more tender rib? I havent tried to cut my baby backs st louis style yet and was wondering if their is a big difference.

SoEzzy · Posted: Mar 05 2009 Post subject:

Baby backs are taken from next to the spine, and the spares are taken from the baby backs to the belly.

You will be wasting your time trying to trim down baby backs.

Spares include all the meat and cartilage to the middle of the sternum, the meat from the end of the rib bones to the middle of the sternum is what is removed when trimming spares with a St Louis cut. The skirt (diaphragm flap) off the back is removed as well.

True baby backs come from younger smaller pigs, often what are sold as baby backs are really loin backs, these come from hogs, (pigs over a certain weight), spares come from the belly of pigs and hogs and are categorized by weight, 3 1/2 and down, 4 1/2 and down etc.

IMO spares are the better buy, if you're looking for eating well, and baby backs are the better buy for presentation and fancy plating.

Seeing as I mostly buy to eat, I buy spares! Wink

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whitey · Posted: Mar 11 2009 Post subject:

I am with Soezzy spares are the way to go. Lots of good meat
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tinovr · Posted: Mar 11 2009 Post subject:

we get our BBs at a BJs Wholesale Club... typically $3.49/lb in 3-rack cryos and very, very meaty.. enough that a 1/2 to 2/3 of a rack is plenty for an adult man.

and nothing to trim... take off the membrane rub em down, and smoke em up.
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mgwerks · Posted: Mar 11 2009 Post subject:

I have to go with SoEzzy on this too. At $3.49, they are a little rich for my blood - but I get my spares at $1.50 /lb. Even so, I find that they may have a little less meat than baby backs per lb, but it is more flavorful even if not quite as tender. That's what a smoker is for!
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Harry Nutczak · Posted: Mar 11 2009 Post subject:

I prefer spares and St. Louis trimmed spares for several reasons. First off, The cost difference! Spares are usually 1/4 the cost of loin-back ribs.

They are more meaty, and they are an even thickness from one end to the next and it makes a more impressive looking presentation IMO

Back ribs have really long thin bones on one end, and short fat bones on the other, and the thickness varies trememdously also.

Not all backribs are created equal, and the term "Baby Back" has been bastardized all to hell.

The story I tend to believe how baby-backs got named is from Danish ribs (pork ribs imported from Europe) they have very thin bones and more meat between those bones. Somebody needed a catchy name to call them so they could be set apart from North American raised hogs and coined the term 'Baby Back" ribs.
Nowadays any rib that comes from the back of a hog is identified as baby backs. The first bastardized version allegedly meant racks of 1.5 pounds or less. And now many restaurants call any back ribs a baby-back even if they are 4#-5# sow ribs that look like they came off an army mule!

Someone even mentioned on this forum they saw a restaurant offering the largest baby-backs in town at 4 pounds per rack! (WTF?) trying to show they were better than everyone else.
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Toga · Posted: Mar 12 2009 Post subject:

Spares all the way for an actual rib. Keep them full or trim them to a st louie cut and cook up the rib tips for snacks.......................Rib tips rock Smile

My personal preference are country style ribs. Nice large chunks of meat. Typically cut from butts and do well in the smoker. I like to fire them up on the grill too if they are not thicker cuts.
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MRS BBQMAN · Newbie Joined: 12 Feb 2007 Posts: 26

We only use the St Louis style ribs as they are meatier and less expensive. Unless we have a request for BB's that is all we use. I personally like the St Louis style because I can have 2 or 3 and be full, not so with the BB's. We sell a rib sampler that includes 2 St Louis style ribs and grilled flat bread and people really line up for it.

Ranucci's Big Butt · Posted: Mar 12 2009 Post subject:

Baby backs. Better tasting, less fat, less work, no waste.

What's the cost difference if you take the waste of a spare? I'm sure it's still less than a baby back but I have cooked both side to side many times as many on here claim spares but I just can't see it.
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mgwerks · Posted: Mar 12 2009 Post subject:

Ranucci's Big Butt · Posted: Mar 12 2009 Post subject:

If you trim them down to St. Louis there is plenty waste.
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mgwerks · Posted: Mar 13 2009 Post subject:

SoEzzy · Posted: Mar 13 2009 Post subject:

I see both sides of this equation.

If you're buying spares and trimming St Louis style and you're serving lots of them, there comes a point where I'd tend to start wasting the extras, if I can't use enough of them.

At this point, I'm cooking for the family and friends only, I don't reach the point of cutting / wasting the extra's, if I can't use in beans or rib tips, etc.

So if I had the choice between baby backs and prepared St Louis I'd probably go with the prepared St Louis, but if I could get baby backs at a cheap enough price, I'd go with them!

If you're cutting lots of spares into St Louis and you don't have time, space or temperament to save and cook the rib tips and trimmings, then there is bound to be waste, if you're doing it commercially, time is money and that means the other bought cuts may work out more cost effective.
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Reggae Q · Posted: Mar 13 2009 Post subject:

In my opinion, there are no advantages to BB's except maybe less work. I'm seeing less and less BB's out there. I think most people were passing loin backs off as them and people started to catch on.

Spares have more meat, better flavor, better price and if you're trimming them down to St. Louis Style, you'll be left with plenty of rib tips, etc... for snacks, chili, etc...(even though I throw away my tips)

Here in St. Louis, the main grocery stores have spares already trimmed SLS with the tips just rolled up in them...Plus, you can usually find them on sale for $1.39-$1.69 lb. and you don't have to do all the work you do if you go to Sam's

enzyme80 · Newbie Joined: 04 Mar 2009 Posts: 31

tinovr · Posted: Mar 18 2009 Post subject:

99nails · Newbie Joined: 11 Oct 2008 Posts: 30 Location: western NY

6/lb, I thought they shot Jessie James. Laughing

Sounds like he made it and opened a butcher shop. Rolling Eyes

Sunday we picked up 3 cryo-vac pacs of bb @ sam's @ 3.29 (3 racks per), two 7/lb shoulders @1.18/lb. Full racks were @1.79. Smoked up one pack yesterday, fantastic. Doing the pulled pork tomorrow.

I like both, but the bb cook quicker, so I spend the xtra. If you have the time, nothing goes to waste, as mentioned above.