Question on Foiling Ribs

[Smokin Tiger]

I usually just rub my ribs and smoke until done. I have never foiled. What is the advantage of foiling, and when do you do it? Do you sauce before foiling and what temps do you cook at and then foil at?

By the way, I am talking about baby backs.

[Top Gun]

Tiger... I am a "newbie" to this "ring", and at the same time have been smoking food for over ten years. In all that time, I never got a piece of aluminum foil close to the smoker.

Since joining the "ring" last month, my real education has begun. Alot of these guys are GOOD at this, much better than I, and I have read as much as possible about prep and cooking, specifically about ribs, chicken and Pork Butt, 'cause those are our favorites.

Check out the Recipes forum, the General Discussion forum and the Smoke Foods forum for the reasons behind my response. Wish I could post the "threads" that you need, but I'm not that computer literate.

I have adopted Alien's "3-2-1" method for spares and baby back ribs. Three hours just like you normally smoke, then two hours wrapped in foil, and the last hour open again, making the ribs available for my 50/50 spray mix of Jack Daniels and Apple Juice and/or sauce, or sometimes, both.

I don't know why they taste better and and more tender with this method, but I do know IMHO, that they are. And my Daddy always said, "the proof is in teh pudding".

Best of luck! Jim

[Smokin Tiger]

So basically you are saying 6 hours total. If you sauce, when do you do that. I don't sauce my ribs, but my wife and others I cook for like theirs sauced. What temp during the 3-2-1? Same temp for all phases?

[Top Gun]

Apologies for not being thorough....

1) Yes, that is correct. Six hour cook time.

2) Sauce applied during the last hour.

I like'em with a Memphis style "dry" rub applied after I take them off, but my kids and wife like a sauce... and frankly, I don't care tha much one way or the other... I like Pork ribs, period! But you start applying sauce during the final hour of the cook.

3) I shoot for 250 degrees, and, yes, same temp throughout the cook.

You're going to love it!

[Smokin Tiger]

I started looking back through the threads about 3-2-1 and some said that the 2 hours for foiling was too long and that the ribs fell apart. What has been your experience?

[Top Gun]

Never got to the point of being "falling off the bone" tender, wouldn't want them that way, either... that's what pulled Pork is all about.

No, that hasn't happened to me yet. But, if I had never used the method, and was concerned about that possibility... I'd check them after an hour in the foil, and use my best judgement.

[bigabyte]

I think 3-2-1 is too long on BB's. 3-2-1 is better suited for spares, and as some have recently pointed out it is important to stress that 3-2-1 is for cooking at around 225 degrees. Decrease the time as the pit temp goes up. I like to cook around 275, and I get better results with more of a 3-1-1 on spares.

However, you are not interested in spares, are you? Babybacks are your thing, and those are some tasty ribs. I'm a spare guy myself but cook BB's whenever I can because, well, they're good too.

Foil serves a couple purposes. First is that it can be used to speed up the cooking process. The other is that it can be used to keep ribs from drying out if you tend to have that problem.

It's important to understand the difference between spares and BB's. BB's are not cooked faster jsut becuase they are smaller. The tissue composition of these two are quite different. BB's are much more lean, from the loin, and do not really need low and slow cooking to render them. They are actually better suited for cooking at higher temps to cook them faster to avoid them drying out. Spares are the opposite. They need more time to cook to render and break down to being tender.

Now, understanding all that, try cooking your BB's at 250 using a 2-1-1 method. When you go to foil, spritz on a little apple juice. This makes the foiling more effective. Just a misting, your not bathing them in apple juice, just giving some moisture. After you take them out of foil, I like to sprinkle on a little more rub, and let it cook for 30 minutes to firm back up. Then I sauce every 15 minutes until they are done.
_________________
--Chris Baker
--Mad BBQ Scientist
--When my lab fills with smoke, that means it's working!

[ceedubya]

I have experienced the "fall off the bone tender" from foiling. Not a good thing.

You can't rely on just time alone, a lot of other factors go into it: the meat itself, pit temp, etc. you just have to become good at judging when they are done, and when to remove from the foil. I am still working on that one

I have gone back and forth on the foil issue. It works well sometimes, and then I have had horrible experiences with it.

I have gone back to no foil, and havn't looked back once. I have found that if I can keep the temp at 225 or a little below, and try to avoid any spikes, that I get great consistant ribs. Tender, juicy, nice & pink all the way through. I have been cooking over lump, with just a little sugar maple and hickory.

Last batch I did was BB's. rubbed, cooked for 4 hours @ 225, and glazed the last 45 minutes with Huckleberry preserves. YUM!

[Top Gun]

Tiger... see what I mean? These guys are "all over it"... wealth of knowledge, PLUS educated experience.

I'm a spare kind of guy, and the difference in the meat makes all the difference!

Wooodoggy and Ceedubya... thanks for being there!

Jim

[bigabyte]

That's what this place is all about! Lot's of others here, and many different approaches as well. One thing is for sure, there is no one single right way to do BBQ. There are MANY ways, the trick is finding what you like best and what works for you given your equipment and many, many other factors. Foiling is a good way to start making good ribs, but you can mess up with foil just as easy as without. Some think that you shoudl learn to make good ribs without foil first, so you can then use foil as a tool to make them better. I see the logic there. It's all up to each individual how they do things really. In the end, it's hands on experience that will get you to crank out great BBQ regularly, but without advice from places like this, it could be a long time before it gets good. Places like this can give you 2 to 3 years experience in just a few months (I think).

ON EDIT - It did for me anyway! And this site really does kick butt! LOTS of info!
_________________
--Chris Baker
--Mad BBQ Scientist
--When my lab fills with smoke, that means it's working!

[Oregon smoker]

im no expert but i tried the 3-2-1 method last time for some BB's and i liked em that way. the Q cooked at about 225 most of the time. they were just about fall off the bone tender. now here is the reason why i like them like this; im not a big fan of bones in meat. call me weird call me a freak, i dont give two cents what you think. so i decided when i got serious about cookin good Q i needed to start eatin ribs and cookin em. the ribs i eat at comps i only polish off half the meat, fall off the bone tender or close to and there is nothing left on the bone when im done.
jason

[Ranucci's Big Butt]

Get a Diamond Plate smoker and you will never need to foil anything ever again.
_________________
Alex

Ranucci's Big Butt BBQ
www.ranuccis.com
www.bigbuttbbq.com

[roxy]

[Top Gun]

Would really like to have DP... but, as my Daddy used to say...."you can only blow as far as you have breath".

But, that's o.k., I have my dreams

[Alien BBQ]

Roxy is right, in fact I think I got it from him, …or maybe Chris or Mike …no I think it was Roxy. Anyway, I have learned a lot from many of these guys and freely tell everyone about the things that I have learned. I spend a lot of time developing recipes for my classes but I learn more from this site than I give. Unfortunately, with over 50,000 articles on this site, where you read things get foggy real quick. In fact, when you guys ask me about stuff, I normally have to use the search engine to find out where I put it.
_________________
https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeloberry

[roxy]

I learned it from BBQMAN way back when I was trying to figure out how to make a tender rib and he came to my aid.

Thanks for clearing that up.
_________________
Chargriller Akorn
WSM
LIAR #100
_________________
Do not rely on a rabbits foot for luck, it did not work out too well for the rabbit...

[alages]

[Michael B]

[BBQMAN]

Good morning Guys!

I certainly didn't "pioneer" using foil, and wont take any credit for developing the technique either. However I do love the "F" word and promote being an "F"er to most of my friends! It's funny that this has come up again- I was recently sitting around wondering how Jim Minnion came up with THE "Minion Method" Did someone else show him the idea, or did he just come up with it after years of tinkering with fire management? I recently sent him an e-mail, and have not heard back. I'll keep ya all posted when I do!

Hey, I like to use use foil. If you dont , that's fine too! Lot's of competition folks use, and win with foil. Does this then make it right for everyone, of course not!

I get good resuts with it, so do lots of others. Spares are tough, lets face it. I also don't cook baby back ribs in general, and yes they can be mushy if cooked too long in foil.

Hate to bring up brisket and foil, but let me tell you brisket needs some time in foil IMHO. If you can cook tender brisket without it (regardless of your cooker) my hats off to you! I'm not saying that I believe it, but I'll just take your word on it!

I get good results with foil, and I cook during the season here 2-3 times a week. My clients and friends say that you just can't beat my,um,um, BBQ!
_________________
BBQMAN
"I Turned A Hobby Into A Business".
Providing "IMHO" Since 2005.

[BBQMAN]