Ribs on the PIC -- I continue to learn

[jasonwilliams14]

Hey Folks! I know I have started several threads on PBC and shared my experiences and have another one, plus a few questions.

I did spare ribs on my PBC last week and it was my first time doing spare ribs ever (always did babyback).
First, must say, I think spare ribs are my new favorite. Good Lord! They are tasty. Quick hits before I get the details.
They seemed very moist, compared to my previous rib cooking experience. (also only my 2nd or 3rd time doing ribs on my PBC, so I am still learning!)


These ribs turned out really well. i continue to get the lighting of the PBC down and makes a huge difference.
I tried something a little different this time (to try new things and learn), but basically I hung the ribs for about 2.5 hours, then I tried wrapping them for another 90ish minutes (back on the PBC grate). They started to probe nicely and I pulled them around 200-203ish range, then let them rest in the foil for another 15mins....nice and juicy.

Couple of observations and questions I had.
The end rib bones, top and bottom, seemed SUPER tender, fall off the bone and very moist. tons of flavor.
However, it seemed some of the inner bones had a bit more "toughness" (but not tough, just not as tender as the end bones).
I was wondering if that is normal and can be expected? I was kind of expecting all the ribs to be of the same tenderness.

Is there something I should differently? I bought another 3 racks and they are going on tomorrow and want to duplicate how tender and juicy those end bones were.
Not all the inner bones were slightly tougher (hate that work)....some were also quite tender as well.

Lastly, I am tinkering with ways to see if I can control my temps a bit better with the PBC. I'd like to "pin" the PBC to as close to 275 as possible, reduce sways if possible.
might start another thread but was thinking of putting on like a Kamado control vent (saw someone do it).
Might give me a bit more control


Anyways! I am off again! Loving my PBC and learning as i go! It is awesome!

TY!
Jason

[HawkerXP]

PBJ, PBC, PBX!

[dpearce]

I get very predictable (and delicious!) results with spare ribs on the PBC. For the last 4-5 cooks, I have been trimming spare ribs down to a St. Louis cut, and cooking the off-cuts on the grate. Since they tend to get up to temp faster than the rest of the rack, I feel like this is helpful against drying the smaller trimmings out.

Since you're wrapping, I assume that's helping keep those ends and trimmed pieces moist enough. But if you're still seeing some tougher meat in the middle, it's possible you're A) Getting the smaller ends perfect but the rest of the rack could use a little more time. Or B) You just happened to get a slightly tougher rib than usual, which case, I think your wrap method could help with that but may be fussy to get them where you want.

Maybe trim the smaller cuts off, before you wrap, wrap those separate, so you can leave just the main rack in the wrap (with some apple juice or white grape juice) as long as you feel necessary?

There's certainly a couple ways to approach it. Sounds like you're on the right track, though! Good luck!

[jasonwilliams14]

That is good to know. I forgot to mention, the spareribs were already trimmed for St. Louis style (was a great deal I think.....3 racks for $28....i think thats good?)

I will keep plugging away and testing.
Would it be better to NOT wrap and just cook til 200-203ish temp? I usually probe all different spots on the rib, get a feel where it is at.
TY!

[dpearce]

jasonwilliams14 I think you're fine either way. Like was mentioned above, I think most people's big complaint with wrapping is softening the bark too much for their liking, but definitely would help it tenderize. I don't wrap ribs, but I do prefer a little more bite. But I sure do (usually) wrap Pork Shoulder! That's the great thing about BBQ is you can experiment and see which way you like it best!

[Oak Smoke]

As far as what to expect from your ribs it depends on what you and your family like. I like bite off the bone ribs, moist, with just a bit of chew. My family likes ribs that are very close to fall off the bone tender. To get the ribs I like in a kamado I don’t wrap at all and cook at 250 F. I start watching my ribs at about 4 hours into the cook. Sometime soon after that they will be probe tender and ready to bring in. I do wrap and rest mine for about an hour. The purpose being to let the temp come down some so that they wont dry out as soon as I cut them. For near fall off the bone tender l wrap at the 3 hours into mark and expect them to be done at the 4 hour mark because wrapping speeds up the cooking process. At that point you can open the foil to put some sauce on and set it or bring them in. I’ve wondered why no one had put a control on a PBC. Installing a short pipe and flange that would hold a Smobot would be easy. I’m a huge Smobot proponent. No fan needed and works great. Please let us know if you adapt yours to a controller of some kind. I think a barrel smoker will be my next addition to the lineup.

[jasonwilliams14]

Very helpful. My family to likes the 'fall of the bone' rib.
I would love to explore more options on how to control the temp a bit more. I have seen some folks mod the PBC to give them more control. Being able to just set it to 250 or 275, keep it stable would be awesome.
I will post a few items I found in this thread, see what people think.
TY!

[DumpsterFireBBQ]

As they always say - trust the barrel. Let it chug at whatever temp it decides is best.

Well, I did that for a year or so. I learned a lot about how the barrel cooks with different meats, amounts, outside temp and fuel.

Then I went to the dark side and installed a Fireboard controller and Pit Viper fan. It's a whole different game. I can set temps wherever I want and I don't need to fiddle with aluminum foil in the rebar holes or cracking the lid.

I don't always run the fan. I still enjoy the simple genius of the barrel when it's left to do it's thing. But if you want 200 F for three hours to smoke bacon, the fan is the way to go.

[jasonwilliams14]

O that is interesting. How did you add the controller and viper to the PBC? that sounds pretty darn cool!

[jayjordan]

On the PBC I like to swap which end is hanging after hour to hour and a half. Also will move them around to different places on the rebar.

[Richard Chrz]

If you are hoping for more uniform eating experience from bite to bite, you really should consider trimming them down to a rack that more symmetrical. For me I find that makes every bite a great experience.

[WI Bubba]

It's great to hear things are going well, and you're learning along the way! A picture or two never hurts...
I've never really noticed a difference in tenderness from one end to the other of a rack of rib, unless I got one end too close to the heat and turned it crispy, but that doesn't sound like what you are describing, so I'm afraid I don't have much to offer you on that.

The one thing that stood out to me in your post is the idea of "pinning a temp". I'm sure it can be done, but I wonder if the juice will be worth the squeeze. The PBC is well known for running hotter that a lot of other cookers and still having fantastic results. I have to wonder if you aren't asking something of the PBC that it isn't designed to deliver. I don't own a PBC, so take my thoughts with an appropriate pinch of salt.

Early on in my BBQ journey I would chase what I thought was the "ideal" temp all the way through a cook. It was frustrating, time consuming, and in the end not worth the effort. As long as your +/- 25° of your target, just let it run, and use internal temp as a guide for when to check for probe tenderness.

With pork ribs, your visual clues are going to be your best indicators. When they start to pull back on the bone, give them the bend test. You will learn over a few racks what "done" looks like to match your preference.

Keep on cooking. Keep having fun, and keep learning. And toss us poor folks with no lives a picture every now and again, so we can live through your experiences.



Will.

[DennyWoo]

As I posted in another thread:

"That's awesome! I've always been a baby back rib guy myself, but the last time I did ribs, I picked up a nice 3-pack of St Louis ribs at The Costco. Just seasoned them with coarse salt and pepper, and went old school on the PBC: just charcoal and no wood chunks. Best dang ribs I've ever done. Sometimes the simplest way is the best way, maybe?"

Pics from that cook: