Howdy all. I'm seasoning my Bronco Pro and am planning a cook for tomorrow. I think ribs are on the menu. I'll be my first cook on the Bronco Pro. My current plan is to do a 3-2-1, hanging for the three, and wrapping in butcher for the 2. I may glaze one rack for the 1.
I've only done ribs once on my pellet grill, and they were... fine. I think the cook was to blame. They were edible, but were over done, and should had been trimmed a bit.
What's worked well for you on this cooker? Should I wrap, not wrap? Do I need the membrane to hang, or can I go without?
Retired, living in Western Mass. Enjoy music, cooking and my family.
Current cookers Weber Spirit 3 burner with a full insert griddle added. A 22" Kettle with vortex, SnS and a Smokey Joe. The most recent addition is a Pit Barrel Jr with bird hanger, 4 hooks and cover. ThermoWorks Smoke 2 probe, DOT, 2 ThermoPops and a Thermapen MK4. A Thermoworks RFX Gateway 2 probe meat thermometer.
Can't help out with the OKJ. I'm sure plenty will chime in. I do have a PBJ. I've done ribs a few times. A barrel is a barrel, right? I hang them and run at 250 to 275. I check after 3 hours and do the bend test. If done, I wrap and place in oven till ready to eat. I don't sauce ribs. It's on the table if someone wants it. Another note, I cut the rack in half. This keeps them further away from the coals. For me, it prevents the ribs closest to the coals from being overdone.
Good luck with the cook and please share pictures.
The 3-2-1 method is popular with a lot of folks, but not myself. I found the 2 hour wrap makes the ribs “fall off the bone” tender, I like a little tug to em. I’ve hung ribs in my Bronco several times, just using a rub…no spritzing or mop, they came out great. Normally it takes right around 5 hours for STL cut and about 4 hours for BB’s. I’ve always left the membrane on my ribs, it doesn’t bother me when I’m eating them.
You can certainly hang them without the membrane, but just to be safe, I’d double hook em. I have the regular Bronco, so I have to trim the ends some, so they don’t hit my deflector plate. I’ve also just cut them in half before hanging. The best ribs I ever cooked were done on my Bronco, just rub em and hang.
Oh, not sure if you’re familiar with em, but a LOT of us here like the B & B Charcoal Briquettes for low and slow cooks. They burn cleaner and longer than the Kingsford.
Last edited by Panhead John; October 29, 2022, 06:17 PM.
3-2-1 would probably overcook them if you're running over 200-225, and I agree with John's texture comments. For hanging I'd leave the membrane for strength, and daisy chain hooking is good insurance. Since you have a Pro you have more hanging room unless your racks are overly long. I don't use the deflector for hangs, but others do. Without the deflector no need to cut the rack in half, with the extra height, but it doesn't hurt anything either. Don't overdo your smoking wood chunks (say two or threeish), unless you like over smoked flavors. To wrap or not to wrap is another personal choice thing. They'll get better bark without, but some folks don't care for that texture.
This is awesome feedback. Thank you all. I just got back from Sam’s and got two racks of BBs. I’ve adjusted my plan to roughly a 4 hour cook, no wrap, hang them and leave them.
I’m curious if I’ll be able get the full racks on w the deflector plate. If I can, I think I’ll cut one into half’s and keep one full length to see if I can tell the difference.
I can get a full length rack of spares on, with the bottom tip just off the deflector. Came out fine, you will be surprised at how evenly things cook in there, even when it seems the bottom should be charred. But, yes make sure to daisy chain. Using 4 hooks, 2 on a side. I have a picture somewhere with one side almost completely loose, but fine on the other side.
jdsegra you can probably find people that do it both ways, but I hang them with the thickest end on top. Gives more to hang on to. And I also leave the membrane on. That's the side with all the bones anyway, I really don't think that much smoke is going to somehow soak in there. And it gives something for the hooks to grab.
Equipment
Weber Genesis Gas
Weber 22" Kettle (black)
Smokenator
Slow N Sear
Thermometers
Maverick 732 Redi-Chek
Thermopop
Fuel
Kingsford Blue Bag
Kingsford Professional
Wood
Apple (chunks)
Mesquite (chunks)
Hickory (chunks)
Oak (chunks)
Beverages
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Bourbon: Basil Hayden
Rye: George Dickel
Cocktail: Manhattan
Personal
Married, one child (son)
Originally from Indianapolis, IN. Currently live in Chicago's Western Suburbs (near Meathead!)
Associate Dean at Chicago area university
I did my first OKJ Bronco cook last week. If you hang without the deflector I suggest rotating the racks mine were great but did not cook evenly. The racks near the smoke stack cooked faster. Also recommend two wood chunks.
I removed the membrane and double hooked the racks.
Ran 235~250 degrees and StL were finished in 5 hours.
Panhead John, I think my burn in experience isn’t typical for what the cooker can do. It’s all over the place, but I managed to kick it off just before the rain hit. It’s been dumping buckets all afternoon 😂
But, 5 hrs on half a basket and I haven’t lost the fire yet.
If you give us a little more detail about…. how you lit the coals, type of charcoal…or lump used, vent settings, etc., some of us can help you with maintaining steady temps. Uncle Bob has the Pro as well as a regular Bronco. He’d be able to help for sure. After we get a little more info., I’m sure someone here can help you figure it out.
Panhead John, I think weather was a factor today, but I wasn't very precise. I used the rest of a bag of Kamado Joe Lump that I had around, and Royal Oak Briquets. Probably 2:1 Briquets to Lump. Used one fire starter at the side. Kept it wide open until I passed 200 and then moved the vents down to 1. It really tanked down to about 190 for a while and I yo-yo'd for a while until I finally settled in around 250.
I really messed with the vents more than I should have due to the rain. I was concerned about water in the cook chamber, but I probably should have just set the top vent to half to full open, and controlled with the intake. I'm hopeful that in dry conditions that the temp will be a bit more stable for me.
Oh, ok. Wasn’t sure about when the rain started. If it was raining on the Bronco during burn in, that was your main problem I’m sure. Also mixing the lump and briquettes together probably didn’t help. But it was a burn in, so what the hell. I’ve never been a fan of lump myself. There’s lots of people who are though. I’ve never liked lump because I’ve found it produces uneven temps due to all the irregular shaped pieces, and the sparks and popping it can produce.
This is what I’ve found to work best for me. Your lighting technique was spot on for low and slow. When you get a chance, get some B & B Charcoal Briquettes, that has absolutely worked like a champ in the Bronco. My temps have always been steady as hell with that stuff. You’ll find there’s many fans of that here. Good luck and show us some pics tomorrow!
I too love B&B for low and slow on both my Bronco and Weber Kettle. But I like to mix the briquettes with their char logs for long smokes. Academy is where I buy the B&B and also my Bronco.
Each person has to figure out what works for them, I'll just say, I only use lump because I like it that way. The irregular shape throws some people, but I avoid mixing the overly large pieces into the center/bottom and then give the fuel bin a shaka-shaka which settles them in a little tighter together. And I don't get too freaked out if the temp varies for a comparably short time during the cook. I rarely light within the basket, preferring to dump a prelit chimney load on the filled fuel bin. I use a small chimney for clearance, and will only light as many coals as needed to get the fire going; less for a longer cook, more for a short/fast cook. It's all in what you figure out for your methods...............there is no magic answer.
Time to cook! Two racks of Baby Backs from Sam's Club. One was dry brined with Kosher Salt overnight, then was basted in Frank's hot sauce, and rubbed with MMD.
The other has a made at home rib rub from Rodney Scott's new book, but with some changes.
I didn't have any "Jesus's Tears" (MSG) on hand, so I left it out... Also didn't know where the wife kept the brown sugar, so I used white instead. May not work out at all. Everything else was to plan. There's a nice vinegar based BBQ sauce recipe in there.. I may cook some up if I have time. I'm a little concerned that the rub has too much salt in the recipe. If I make it again, I may omit it so I can use it for the dry brine. I whisked everything together well, but in the shaker, the salt came out fast. The "Rodney-Style" ribs were coated in Franks, then rubbed with the Rib Rub to brine overnight.
Mostly filled the basket and lit a tumbleweed on the side. Probably to much charcoal, but its the first cook. Added a big chunk of Apple and Pecan wood.
Added the deflector plate.
Time to smoke some meat!!
Whoops.. not enough room to hang
There we go.
Still figuring out the vents. I went to clean up in the kitchen and realized that I was putting along at 209 for the first hour of the cook. Messed with the vents a bit and finally decided that it'd be better for me to let the top go wide open and adjust intake only while I got a feel for it. That's worked well. Intake is currently set at 2 and we've climbed to 265. If I get up to 300, I'll probably choke it back half a notch and try to settle in around 275ish.
I planned on taking them off around 6 which would be a 4 hour cook, but with the slow start, that may not work. Any tips for testing doneness? I've heard of the flop test, but that's generally with them on the rack.. should I just take a sample at 6?
I usually go by the bend test, bark formation, looks and time. It’s a little harder to judge with BB’s on the bend test though. Take a sample? Sure….Slice one off after about 4 hours and see whatcha think.
n00b indeed. 
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