Dry rubbed hickory smoked pork and shine

[Randall53]

That's what the shine is for.

 

:stunned: :stunned: :stunned:  but...but...what about your liver?..... :dropjaw: :dropjaw: :dropjaw:

Edited August 22, 2013 by Randall53

[Raoul]

Cast iron evidently

[peejman]

Best luck I've had with ribs on the grill is cooking them in the oven first.  225-250 for about 4 hrs, then put them on the grill long enough to caramelize the outside and add a little flavor.  Getting them on/off the grill can be a challenge. 

 

I've got one of those small "smoker" boxes for my gas grill and can't tell that it does much of anything for the taste. 

 

When I run my smoker, I pack it full.  I freeze whatever I'm not going to eat immediately.  The only thing I've found that doesn't freeze real well is chicken.  It dries out for some reason.  It's excellent when eaten immediately. 

[GKar]

As far as storage: I've been using a vacuum-sealer of late (Food Saver), and have been VERY pleased.  The last brisket I smoked ended up supplying enough flat to put 3 meals worth sealed in meal-portion bags that went to the freezer.  Chopped the point and sealed in 1 lb portions to supply meat for BBQ beans when I want them.  Same deal with leftover pulled pork butt.

 

I tried and tried to get ribs et all the way I wanted them using my gas grill.  I fianlly purchased a Weber Smoky Mountain smoker back in January, and have been extraordinarily pleased.  Perhaps more importantly, so have my wife and family...purely coincidental, I'm sure, but it seems that most of my recent firearms purchases have come just a few days after cooking up a nice tender brisket or several slabs of ribs... 

[JAB]

My first experiences with smoking meat were with one of these:

 

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Brinkmann-Smoke-N-Grill-Charcoal-Smoker/876295

 

You can actually get some pretty good results but I will warn that true smoking with one of these is pretty labor intensive.  You really have to keep an eye on it to keep the fire/smoke going but not allow it to get too hot.  That means choose a day when you can sit around the smoker with a beer and maybe some buddies, not a day when you have a lot of other stuff you want to do.  Also, even with pretty tight management these still generally cook the meat a lot faster than an offset smoker, meaning you still can't go quite as 'low and slow'.  Still, when it is what I had I loved it and got some really good barbecue off of it.  Hard to beat for under $50.

 

The smoker I have now is nothing special.  It is just a Brinkmann like this one:

 

http://www.productwiki.com/upload/images/brinkmann_805_2101_s_pitmaster_deluxe_smoke_n_pit.jpg

 

I think they generally run a little under $200 at Walmart.  My ex-wife got mine as a Christmas present for me one year.  Because it was the 'off season' I think she got it on clearance for somewhere around $100.  I have had to make a minor mod or two (such as using an old cast iron skillet for a baffle in front of the opening between the firebox and cooking area) to improve it.  At first, I would put a lot of effort into smoking on it, too.  Now, once I get a good coal bed established I can literally load the firebox up, set the firebox vent and the exhaust vent to exactly the right amount of opening then go to bed and it will still be smoking - and just be time to add more wood - when I get up the next morning (although I still often get up and check on it after about four hours or so.)  It is just a matter of getting to know your individual smoker, much like getting to know your individual firearm.  Makes those 16-18 hour smokes I use for larger cuts like pork arm shoulder roasts or huge pork butts a whole lot easier (I once smoked a green ham and, IIRC, I let it go for 24 hours before it was 'right'.)

 

BTW, I like pork butt better than shoulder but the shoulder is still pretty good - and often a lot cheaper, especially if you catch it on sale.

 

Oh, and Erik88, if you like sweets (especially pineapple upside down cake) try this on your gas grill, sometime.  I came up with it when some friends and I rented a cabin in the smokies and it was a big hit:

 

Slice a store-bought pound cake into roughly 1 inch thick pieces and brush both sides with a little melted butter and set aside.  Now you need one slice of pineapple for each slice of pound cake (I love fresh pineapple on the grill but for this I think the canned is actually better.)  If using canned pineapple, reserve the juice in the can.

 

Place the pieces of pound cake and pineapple slices on a warm grill.  Keep the heat low to medium - you don't want to burn anything.  Allow the pound cake slices to warm and ever so slightly toast on both sides (careful that they don't stick) then remove them.  Allow the pineapple slices to get some nice grill marks and a little carmelization on both sides then remove them from the grill, as well.

 

Finally, in a saucepan - either on the stove or on the 'hot plate' burner of your gas grill, if it has one, combine the pineapple juice with enough brown sugar (and water, if needed to make a sufficient amount) to make enough syrup to have a good amount for each slice of pound cake (sorry I don't have exact measurements - I made this up and don't normally measure stuff for things like this, I just 'eyeball' them.)  Now, on individual plates, stack a pineapple slice on top of each cake slice.  Now, place a maraschino cherry in the center of each pineapple slice (you can actually skewer and grill the cherries along with the pineapple and cake, if you want.)  Now drizzle some of the syrup over each of the cake/pineapple/cherry combinations.  Add a little whipped cream or a small spoon of vanilla ice cream to each plate, if desired.  Enjoy!  Delicious and looks impressive on a place - even though it is ridiculously easy.

Edited August 22, 2013 by JAB

[Raoul]

As far as storage: I've been using a vacuum-sealer of late (Food Saver), and have been VERY pleased.  The last brisket I smoked ended up supplying enough flat to put 3 meals worth sealed in meal-portion bags that went to the freezer.  Chopped the point and sealed in 1 lb portions to supply meat for BBQ beans when I want them.  Same deal with leftover pulled pork butt.

 

I tried and tried to get ribs et all the way I wanted them using my gas grill.  I fianlly purchased a Weber Smoky Mountain smoker back in January, and have been extraordinarily pleased.  Perhaps more importantly, so have my wife and family...purely coincidental, I'm sure, but it seems that most of my recent firearms purchases have come just a few days after cooking up a nice tender brisket or several slabs of ribs... 

 

Foodsaver is definitely a must have.

[Worriedman]

...purely coincidental, I'm sure, but it seems that most of my recent firearms purchases have come just a few days after cooking up a nice tender brisket or several slabs of ribs... 

 

Ah Mr GKar, you are such a wise individual.  8 lbs. of powder is not nearly the sell right after you have fed the masses, and carried the FIL a couple of food saver baggies of pulled pork for him to microwave later on.  Between the Weber and the Primo, there was no cooking for the 4th in the house, SWMBO loved the eats and lack of mess.

[peejman]

My first experiences with smoking meat were with one of these:

 

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Brinkmann-Smoke-N-Grill-Charcoal-Smoker/876295

 

You can actually get some pretty good results but I will warn that true smoking with one of these is pretty labor intensive.  You really have to keep an eye on it to keep the fire/smoke going but not allow it to get too hot.  That means choose a day when you can sit around the smoker with a beer and maybe some buddies, not a day when you have a lot of other stuff you want to do.  Also, even with pretty tight management these still generally cook the meat a lot faster than an offset smoker, meaning you still can't go quite as 'low and slow'.  Still, when it is what I had I loved it and got some really good barbecue off of it.  Hard to beat for under $50.

 

 

 

This is exactly what I have.  I've made a few modifications that make it work much better and I get good results with it.  I've never done anything that required a really long time (12hrs+).  The longest I do is a turkey at Thanksgiving which typically takes 9-10 hrs.  And yes, it gives me an excuse to sit around and drink beer all day.  :)   I'd like to have a bigger, wood fired smoker, but as you said, this little one is hard to beat for $50. 

 

 

 

Foodsaver is definitely a must have.

 

Agreed.  It works great on everything but the chickens.  Even when vacuum sealed, the meat still seems dry after being frozen for a while.  Don't have that problem with anything else. 

[JAB]

This is exactly what I have.  I've made a few modifications that make it work much better and I get good results with it.  I've never done anything that required a really long time (12hrs+).  The longest I do is a turkey at Thanksgiving which typically takes 9-10 hrs.  And yes, it gives me an excuse to sit around and drink beer all day.  :)   I'd like to have a bigger, wood fired smoker, but as you said, this little one is hard to beat for $50.

 

Well, as far as 'wood fired', I know it is called a 'charcoal' smoker but when I used one I generally only used charcoal to start the fire/build a coal bed.  After getting it going, I would use small (soaked) chunks/pieces of wood to do most of the actual cooking/smoking.  That is part of the reason it was a bit 'labor intensive', I guess, but the results were really good - not that a good charcoal with some wood chips couldn't also give excellent results.  I'll bet there are no complaints about the turkeys you cook.  IMO, smoking the turkey is a lot safer and tastes better than deep frying it.  I generally only do a turkey breast, when I smoke turkey, because no one that I feed really likes dark meat.  A good sized turkey breast is still a nice chunk o' meat, though, and takes some time.  One of the best I have done was one that I brined overnight in a mixture that contained, along with the usual brining ingredients, some white cranberry juice.

 

One other thing - do you use the second, metal 'bowl' in yours - the one that sits above the fire bowl that you are supposed to put water in to help create steam and keep the meat from getting dry?  Well, I found that adding other things (like apple juice) to the water in that 'bowl' could have a subtle but noticeable, positive impact on flavor depending on what kind of meat you are cooking.

 

The only time I had an 'epic fail' when I was using one of those was once when I decided to try cooking a duck on it.  Now, keep in mind that I had never cooked duck, before (or since.)  I made sort of a 'rack' out of an uncoated, wire clothes hanger so I could sit it on the grill with the cavity opening pointing down towards the heat.  I also decided, for whatever reason, to forgo using that second bowl - I think because I didn't want the heat baffling effects so the bird would cook faster.  Well, I didn't realize just how fatty a duck is.  The fat in that thing started rendering and dripping down into the fire and, before I knew it, I had a friggin' bonfire going.  Pretty well charred the skin on the duck before I could get things under control.  The meat was still 'edible' but too dried out - plus it tasted a little like I had cooked it over flame fueled with motor oil because of the burning fat.

Edited August 22, 2013 by JAB

[GKar]

Longest cook I've done with the WSM was all-nighter for 18 hrs - had it full of pork butt.  Hit the stall at around 165 degrees or so around 11 hours in, and thought it was never going to get movin' again.  Brought em off at 205 degrees, and you could basically shout at em and they'd fall apart...that pig did not die in vain.  Smoker never topped 225 degrees, and still had charcoal left from the approx 20 lb it started with.

 

May hafta try the cranberry juice addition for turkey brine - I've only brined a couple using an apple juice/honey/salt/sugar brine, and was quite pleased.  I can see cranberry adding a nice flavor!

 

Which wood(s) do you prefer to use?  I find that I'm slowly moving away from exclusive use of hickory.  Of late, been using pecan+apple+peach for ribs, oak+hickory for brisket/beef, and pecan+apple+hickory for pork butt/shoulder.  Just came in to some alder for fish/salmon, but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

[peejman]

Well, as far as 'wood fired', I know it is called a 'charcoal' smoker but when I used one I generally only used charcoal to start the fire/build a coal bed.  After getting it going, I would use small (soaked) chunks/pieces of wood to do most of the actual cooking/smoking.  That is part of the reason it was a bit 'labor intensive', I guess, but the results were really good - not that a good charcoal with some wood chips couldn't also give excellent results.  I'll bet there are no complaints about the turkeys you cook.  IMO, smoking the turkey is a lot safer and tastes better than deep frying it.  I generally only do a turkey breast, when I smoke turkey, because no one that I feed really likes dark meat.  A good sized turkey breast is still a nice chunk o' meat, though, and takes some time.  One of the best I have done was one that I brined overnight in a mixture that contained, along with the usual brining ingredients, some white cranberry juice.

 

One other thing - do you use the second, metal 'bowl' in yours - the one that sits above the fire bowl that you are supposed to put water in to help create steam and keep the meat from getting dry?  Well, I found that adding other things (like apple juice) to the water in that 'bowl' could have a subtle but noticeable, positive impact on flavor depending on what kind of meat you are cooking.

 

The only time I had an 'epic fail' when I was using one of those was once when I decided to try cooking a duck on it.  Now, keep in mind that I had never cooked duck, before (or since.)  I made sort of a 'rack' out of an uncoated, wire clothes hanger so I could sit it on the grill with the cavity opening pointing down towards the heat.  I also decided, for whatever reason, to forgo using that second bowl - I think because I didn't want the heat baffling effects so the bird would cook faster.  Well, I didn't realize just how fatty a duck is.  The fat in that thing started rendering and dripping down into the fire and, before I knew it, I had a friggin' bonfire going.  Pretty well charred the skin on the duck before I could get things under control.  The meat was still 'edible' but too dried out - plus it tasted a little like I had cooked it over flame fueled with motor oil because of the burning fat.

 

 

I use charcoal for the heat with fist-sized chunks of wood (soaked) on top for the smoke.  I made a small grate out of expanded metal to get the coals up off the bottom of the pan, and drilled some holes in the pan so the ashes can fall out the bottom.  One of the initial problems I had with it was the fire getting smothered out by the ashes after 6-8 hrs of cooking.  I don't have a good way to control the temp, but so far that hasn't mattered.

 

I don't like much salt (don't need it either), so I've never brined a turkey.  The dark meat is my favorite so I like doing a whole turkey.  Plus I get lots of broth for soups from the carcass (turkey noddle soup, mmmmm...).  I have done just a breast a couple times, they're really good too and cook in about half the time, which is nice. 

 

I do use the "water" pan, but I use a 50/50 mix of beer and apple juice.  So far, the type of beer doesn't appear to matter much so we just get whatever is cheapest.  There's two types of beer in my house, the good stuff for drinking and the cheap stuff for cooking.

 

My only "epic fail" involved using Match Light charcoal.... don't ever do that.  Pork roast with just a hint of kerosene... eeeww. 

 

 

 

 

 

Longest cook I've done with the WSM was all-nighter for 18 hrs - had it full of pork butt.  Hit the stall at around 165 degrees or so around 11 hours in, and thought it was never going to get movin' again.  Brought em off at 205 degrees, and you could basically shout at em and they'd fall apart...that pig did not die in vain.  Smoker never topped 225 degrees, and still had charcoal left from the approx 20 lb it started with.

 

May hafta try the cranberry juice addition for turkey brine - I've only brined a couple using an apple juice/honey/salt/sugar brine, and was quite pleased.  I can see cranberry adding a nice flavor!

 

Which wood(s) do you prefer to use?  I find that I'm slowly moving away from exclusive use of hickory.  Of late, been using pecan+apple+peach for ribs, oak+hickory for brisket/beef, and pecan+apple+hickory for pork butt/shoulder.  Just came in to some alder for fish/salmon, but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

 

 

I've never found the type of wood to make a very noticeable difference in flavor.  It might with a wood fired smoker, but with charcoal + wood, I don't think it makes much difference.

 

I've tried a bunch of different woods (oak, hickory, maple, mesquite, apple, pecan, cherry, ash, ...) and so far, pecan is my favorite simply because it soaks up the water and smokes for a long time without burning up.  Cherry was terrible for that.

Edited August 23, 2013 by peejman

[JAB]

Which wood(s) do you prefer to use?  I find that I'm slowly moving away from exclusive use of hickory.  Of late, been using pecan+apple+peach for ribs, oak+hickory for brisket/beef, and pecan+apple+hickory for pork butt/shoulder.  Just came in to some alder for fish/salmon, but haven't had a chance to use it yet.

 

My favorites tend to be fruit or 'sweet' woods.  Honestly, though, I generally don't buy wood for smoking and use whatever hardwood I can get access to, either some from trees that friends have had to cut or by harvesting a little, myself, from the woods at home.  Right now, I mostly have access to pecan along with a little peach and apple and maybe some red oak and a very small amount of maple and hickory.

 

I generally prefer using a blend of two or three different woods but if I smoke over just one type of wood hickory is not my favorite - not that it is bad, I just like others better.  Truthfully, my favorite is cherry.  Straight cherry wood does well with pork and chicken.  I like oak (preferably red oak) for beef but use an equal blend of oak and cherry (with maybe a little pecan thrown in) and it goes to a whole, 'nother level.  Maple may well be my second favorite, behind cherry, for pork and chicken usage if I were using just one type.

 

I have also kind of gotten into the idea of a 'finishing smoke', lately.  By that, I mean I will do the majority of the smoke time either over one, main type or a blend of different types then, for the last hour or two, toss in a whole, 'nother type of wood to 'layer' the smoke flavor a little.

 

Black walnut works as an 'additional' wood in small amounts but I find that it can quickly get overpowering if I use too much.  As and experiment, once, I collected up the empty shells (not the green outer hull just the shells) where we had cracked some black walnuts and added them to the firebox.  I think they worked just about as well as black walnut wood for adding another flavor note.

 

One of the more unusual things I did, once, was when I was smoking a 'jerk' style pork roast.  I mostly smoked that one over maple then, toward the end of cooking time, threw some small pieces of sassafras into the firebox.  Now, I don't know that I would recommend sassafras for the entire smoke nor would I necessarily recommend it for everything but for a jerk pork roast it added a really nice flavor note.

 

I have also smoked and dried jalapenos (and other peppers) from my garden, in the past (won't have enough this year.)  Before making my homemade chipotles, I read up on them a little.  I suspected that the 'traditional' wood for making them was likely mesquite (which I can pretty much only get by buying bags of chunks at the store.)  I was surprised to find out that pecan wood is just as 'traditional' as mesquite for smoking them - so I use pecan whenever I am smoking peppers to dry.

 

As far as the alder, I haven't worked with that one, much.  In fact, the only time I remember doing so was with a bag of chips I bought at Walmart to add to the charcoal grill way back before I even got that upright Brinkmann (Wally used to have a HUGE variety of wood sold for grilling and smoking - not so much, anymore.)  I found it worked well for chicken breasts - especially if I were going for a 'lightly smoked' chicken to be used as an ingredient in another dish. 

 

As far as smoking fish, on the recommendation of a guy who owned a little barbecue joint that I loved (it is now out of business), I once used cherry to smoke some trout.  Well, being that cherry was already my favorite, it didn't take much to talk me into it.  I put some onion, fresh dill and lemon slices in the cavity, brushed with a little olive oil and used one of those 'fish cooker' basket type things that are made for that.  It was really, really good.

[JAB]

May hafta try the cranberry juice addition for turkey brine - I've only brined a couple using an apple juice/honey/salt/sugar brine, and was quite pleased.  I can see cranberry adding a nice flavor!

 

I would just caution that you probably want to look for 'white' cranberry juice.  I was concerned that regular 'red' cranberry juice might do funky things to the color of the meat.

[JAB]

I do use the "water" pan, but I use a 50/50 mix of beer and apple juice.  So far, the type of beer doesn't appear to matter much so we just get whatever is cheapest.  There's two types of beer in my house, the good stuff for drinking and the cheap stuff for cooking.

 

My only "epic fail" involved using Match Light charcoal.... don't ever do that.  Pork roast with just a hint of kerosene... eeeww. 

 

I've never found the type of wood to make a very noticeable difference in flavor.  It might with a wood fired smoker, but with charcoal + wood, I don't think it makes much difference.

 

I've tried a bunch of different woods (oak, hickory, maple, mesquite, apple, pecan, cherry, ash, ...) and so far, pecan is my favorite simply because it soaks up the water and smokes for a long time without burning up.  Cherry was terrible for that.

 

I hear you on the cheap beer.  I am with you in that it doesn't seem to make much difference when adding it to a marinade or using for other cooking purposes.  In fact, the 'good stuff' can sometimes have too strong a flavor for that use - especially the darker beers and hefe weizens (which I like.)  I imagine using a blend of that and apple juice gives you a good flavor and moistness.  I haven't tried beer can chicken (yet) but I'd bet it is good.

 

I like Match Light charcoal for grilling simply because of the convenience factor (not sure I ever used it in a smoking application) but I do find that I have to let it burn for quite a while to get rid of that lighter fluid taste.  Of course, even when using regular charcoal and lighter fluid it has to burn long enough for the lighter fluid flavor to go away.  I think the Match Light takes longer to lose that flavor, though, because the briquettes are impregnated with the lighter fluid.  I can imagine it wouldn't work well for an application where you are slow smoking - especially if you are adding 'fresh' charcoal in as you go along.

 

I never really soak the wood for use in my offset smoker.  Once I get a good coal bed, I am generally able to keep things to a smolder just by setting the vents were I want them.  I can see that the type of wood used wouldn't make much difference using charcoal+wood in your setup.  It does make a difference in an offset, especially if you like a very pronounced smoke flavor like I do.

 

I am sure you have heard of 'lump' charcoal.  Basically, my understanding is that charcoal is made by piling a bunch of wood into a kiln, closing it up tight and letting it smoulder for a certain amount of time.  When it is done, you will have big pieces of 'charred' wood that can be broken up into lump charcoal.  For briquettes, the lump charcoal is ground up and pressed into pieces of uniform size/shape.  Well, one of the fringe benefits to having a smoker - at least with mine - is that if I still have wood in the firebox when I am done smoking then I can close all the vents down and let the wood smolder.  Once the fire goes out on its own, I will have a varying amount of lump charcoal in the ashes of the fire box.  That lump charcoal gets added to commercial briquettes whenever I fire up my charcoal grill.  It burns a lot faster than commercial briquettes but adds a noticable, smoky note to grilled steaks, chicken or so on.

Edited August 23, 2013 by JAB

[peejman]

The Match Light issues was adding additional charcoal.  I generally have to add a couple hand fulls about every 3-4 hrs.  When I first fire it up, I let the charcoal burn for a good 30-45 mins before I put any meat on to make sure it's going properly and plenty hot.  The lighter fluid smell is gone in a couple minutes. 

 

Interesting that you like cherry best.  I guess my problem with it is two fold... 1) it doesn't soak up water, and 2) Since i don't have good air control, I can't make it smolder so it tends to ignite. 

 

 

 

You haven't tried beer-butt chicken on the grill?!?!  It's the only way I cook whole chickens on the grill.  Moist, and fall-off-the-bone tender in 30-40 mins.

[JAB]

You haven't tried beer-butt chicken on the grill?!?!  It's the only way I cook whole chickens on the grill.  Moist, and fall-off-the-bone tender in 30-40 mins.

 

No, I must admit that I haven't.  Of course, as I mentioned earlier, dark meat isn't real popular among those I feed so I usually just cut to the chase and do breasts.  Or wings.  Now, you want to talk about some good eatin', mix some dried, ground habanero with a can of that Jumex (Mexican brand) mango nectar, a little lime juice, (and just a little orange juice, if you so desire) a little salt, black pepper, a pinch of onion powder, a dash of rooster sh*t sauce (Worchestershire sauce) and maybe a little ginger then cook that down until it makes a glaze.  Grill some bone-in chicken wings and, when they are nearly done, brush with the glaze and allow it to caramelize a little.  Dang good.  Just be careful not to get any on your forehead because your tongue will slap your brains out trying to get to it.

 

Oh, that also made me think of a pretty good glaze for pork chops.  Combine orange juice, ginger and soy sauce in a sauce pan and reduce to about 1/2 to 1/4 - again, until it makes a glaze.  Grill pork chops and brush that on a few minutes before they come off the grill.  Yum!

[GKar]

Definitely gotta try the mango/habanero glaze...right up my alley. 

 

With the WSM, I don't hafta soak wood chunks.  Air flow control is real good, so I can keep em smoldering without having to wet them.  Find that hickory by itself can be overpowering and actual leave an unpleasant aftertaste, so started mixing it with other woods.  Have access to a fair amount of free hickory, apple and oak (can cut my own on FIL's property).  Guy that works a tree service in Kpst also supplies smoker woods from their scrap, so pecan and cherry come in at a decent price.

 

Learned my lesson on the Match Light deal long ago.  Use nothing other than Kingsford Original and a chimney starter for the smoker.

[Fourtyfive]

Best luck I've had with ribs on the grill is cooking them in the oven first.  225-250 for about 4 hrs, then put them on the grill long enough to caramelize the outside and add a little flavor.  Getting them on/off the grill can be a challenge. 
 
I've got one of those small "smoker" boxes for my gas grill and can't tell that it does much of anything for the taste. 
 
When I run my smoker, I pack it full.  I freeze whatever I'm not going to eat immediately.  The only thing I've found that doesn't freeze real well is chicken.  It dries out for some reason.  It's excellent when eaten immediately.

THIS

Put the ribs in water in a roasting pan at about 180* for 3 hours , then hit the grill and add sauce , you will be telling your neighbors to get the hell out of the yard.

[GKar]

Of late, been starting dry-rubbed ribs at 225 for three hours, then kicking them up to 275 or so for another 2 - 2.5, spritzing them with apple cider/cider vinegar every hour.  Start testing them with the tear test at 2.5 hours after ramping the temp up.  When they are ready, I glaze them with sauce, lay em flat on the top rack of the smoker, and let them go another 15 mins or so to set the glaze.  Usually do at least three full racks in a smoke.

[JAB]

Of late, been starting dry-rubbed ribs at 225 for three hours, then kicking them up to 275 or so for another 2 - 2.5, spritzing them with apple cider/cider vinegar every hour.  Start testing them with the tear test at 2.5 hours after ramping the temp up.  When they are ready, I glaze them with sauce, lay em flat on the top rack of the smoker, and let them go another 15 mins or so to set the glaze.  Usually do at least three full racks in a smoke.

 

Yum.  Just...yum.