Weekend pics - first time smoker

[walknbluez72]

Well after reading all the great comments on the WSM I decided to go pick one up on Friday and try my first time smoking. Got it for $179 at California Backyard. Friday night, first time using it, I put in a little less than half a chimney of charcoal briquettes and got it to 250 degrees where it held steady! I did ribs Sat night and again on Sunday. Sunday I put in a little too much charcoal and the temp kept spiking to 300 even with vents closed. Sat cooked them between 4 - 5 hours and Sunday since the temp spiked about 3 hrs 45 mins. First I smeared the ribs with yellow mustard, then I used a rub. Sauced them once at last 30 minutes. Here are some pics maybe you can tell me if thats the way they are supposed to look or if I should have done something different?



Almost done:



close up



Finished complete with smoke ring:



They were very smoky, maybe too smoky? My wife said they weren't as tender as when I slow cook them in the oven and finish them off on the grill where the meat falls of the bones. I told her that with true BBQ there was supposed to be some "tug". Am I right? Any comments are appreciated!

Rob in CA

[Thomas P.]

Nice looking ribs!

What type of wood did you use for smoking and how much how often?

In my opinion, true BBQ ribs should pull clean from the bone when you bite them, but the meat should never just fall off the bone when you pick it up.
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[walknbluez72]

I used hickory wood chunks. I put in about 3 chunks in at first, then another 3 or 4 the second hour.

The pics are from the second time around. First time I did steady at 250 degrees for longer but I didn't get as much of a bark. Second time, although I didn't want it to, the temp spiked because I had too much coals and went up to 300 degrees but that time I got some bark.

I basted with apple juice throughout. I would like to figure out how to get them a bit more tender though.

Foil at some point maybe??

[MoeBiscuits]

I foiled my ribs for the first time this weekend and was able to pull a couple of the bones right out. Seemed to work pretty well for me. From what I understand, BBQ judges like ribs to have some pull to them, but I gotta side with Thomas. I like 'em to pull clean away from the bones, but not completely fall apart.

Try either cutting back on the wood or keep a burn pit going to cut back on that smoke flavor. Adding wood directly to your fire will produce a lot of smoke. If it's already burning, you still get that smokey flavor, but not all that billowy white smoke that can be overpowering.

Ribs look good to me. Nice smoke ring on 'em. If that's your first attempt, I'd say you're doing well. Beats the hell outta the charred black things I ended up with after my first attempt at ribs.
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[walknbluez72]

Thanks for the comments MoeBisquits. One question that maybe you or anyone else can answer:

When do you foil and for how long?

The ribs tasted good but I think I need to experiment with the amount of smoke. They tasted almost bacon like so maybe it was too much smoke or maybe it was the rub.

[MoeBiscuits]

[Mike Lawry]

The 3-2-1 ribs method is a good backyard bbq starting place. (But Im no expert).

3. Smoke for 3 hours

2. Foil for 2 hours

1. No foil the last hour. Sauce the last 30 min.


Lots of people flash grill them at the end to caramalize the sauce.

[walknbluez72]

Mike,

How many hours for baby backs?

[Mike Lawry]

That was for baby backs. Backyard style.

This is what Im trying to adjust to.

spare ribs

• longer cooking
• tough
• meatier

RM: ... and the baby back is just a more tender piece of meat.
AB: So a little more forgiving, probably?
RM: Yeah. It doesn't take that long to cook. baby back ribs

• tender
• take flavor well
• fast cooking




Good luck, I need it too.


Mike Lawry.

[Doc1680]

Those suckers look mighty fine to me walknbluez72. Good stuff.

To me when you bite into ribs, you should be able to bite clean through, but without it falling apart and leave a bite mark. It should be firm with a little tug, but tender.

As for the 3-2-1. I believe that is for spares that cook longer (5-6 hours). For BBs use the 2-1-1 method.

2 no foil
1 w/ foil
1 w/o foil (Sauce in the last 30 mins.)

Those time are just guidelines though. The ribs will be done when they're done.
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[walknbluez72]

Thanks guys! I can't wait to try other stuff too!

[roxy]

Doc, ya beat me to it.

Yeah, 6 hours is too long for BB's. 4 to 5 tops will do it.

From what I have read the amount of wood you used sounds a bit much for that kind of smoker. I would suggest you use less wood and only for the first 2-3 hours. You can increase the amount of wood you use as you develop your skill and taste for smoked food. You can easily get an over smoked flavour if you get too much smoke happening. Best to have a faint blue smoke than thicker white smoke the latter will make your meat unpleasant to eat.
If ya got the temps too high I would guess you had too much charcoal going at once. The minion method works best in your type of smoker and a search of the forum will yield some directions on how to do it.

Good luck with your next attempt.
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WSM
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[Jeff T]

6-7 chunks of hickory wood is a bit much for the WSM. Hickory is a pretty strong flavor try mixing with a fruit wood like apple or cherry, say 2-1.
Or maybe 3-5 chunks of just a fruit wood like apple, cherry, peach, plum. Fruit woods have a lighter smoke flavor. You`ll dig it when ya try it.
4 - 6 chunks tops mixed in with the coal or lump is about all you`ll ever need for the WSM.
Nice ribs though, nothing wrong with them.

[walknbluez72]

Thanks Roxy I'll give the fruit woods a try. When I went to the BBQ store all they had was Mesquite and Hickory but I'll try looking around for fruit woods.

[mding38926]

[walknbluez72]

Cool, there is a bbq galore not too far from me.

I hope I made the right decision with the WSM. After the ribs came off, I needed to cook some steaks and since it was hot, it isn't too conducive to changing the setup for grilling. So I had to use my gas grill. For smoking however it maintained temp very well.

[mding38926]

[Virindi]

Ribs can be one of the most unforgiving things to cook in a smoker. I would not recommend putting wood chunks on the fire that have been soaked or are very large. This will cause smoldering. Rather, use smaller pieces that catch fire faster and burn cleaner. I always keep handy a hand axe, fireman's axe, and a maul for reducing the size of my firewood. For most of us, there is definitely such a thing as too much smoke, just as there could be too much salt or pepper, garlic, or any other seasoning. Also, thick, heavy smoke contains creosote, which will add bitterness to the meat. I like to cook pork ribs about 5-5.5 hours until they are tender (not dry or mushy) and pull away from the bone cleanly. Two things to help achieve this: a clean fire (I'm forever advocating tending a small hot fire over a large, cool, smoldering fire - I generally tend my fire so that I get no visible smoke) and mopping with a baste that is mostly oil. The clean fire will infuse the meat with a smoke flavor that has to be tasted to be appreciated. The oil mop will seal in the juices and keep the meat from drying out. Also, I like to keep the heat around 250 at grill level. I use an offset; I haven't owned a vertical smoker for about 10 or 12 years, and I can't remember how difficult it may be to babysit a fire in one. My method is without a doubt more time-consuming, but the results are certainly worth the effort in my opinion.
Good luck and good Q!

George

[EastTennQcrew]

I think your going to have to get used to your cooker and the times required to get the product out that you want.

At judging class they talked more about how done the meat was, instead of falling off the bone. Most everyone agreed there needed to be some tug before the meat pulled apart and not just crumble in your hands.

I've used the 3-2-1 method and I found them over cooked. I then backed down to 1 hour of foil, and they weren't tender enough then I went to 1 hour and 15 minutes and then 1hour and 30 minutes. With the same cooking temp, it seems that it has the most to do with ribs them selves. I have found a wide range in thickness of the ribs I get locally.

RandyE
East Tenn Q Crew

[RICK_IN_LB]

Rob the meats looks really good, should of called me and I would of helped eat them , Like Doc I use the 2-1-1 method and it works for me just fine. You are going to have to practice and practice till you get it the way you like. In other words start smoking and don't forget the cigarzzz

Enjoy