First Time PBC Cook - Pork Spare Ribs

[TBoneJack]

I bought a new PBC back in February, and today I'm cooking with it for the first time. Wish me luck.

Details:

• Swift Premium brand St. Louis pork spare ribs, from Costco
• Removed membrane
• Dry brined for 3 hours with 1/4 tsp/lb kosher salt
• Made a somewhat standard pork rub, using dark brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and a bit of kosher salt (reduced to account for salt used in dry brining).
• Using Kingsford blue bag charcoal with red oak and cherry wood chunks.

• 

[lschweig]

Love how your dog seems to be staring at the PBC as if he knows what's going to happen.

[Danjohnston949]

All I Know about PBC's Is What fzxdoc (Kathryn), Spinaker, MBMorgan and others have Posted❓ I do Know You Have Purchased 👍👍 Good Ribs 👍👍 IMHOP!! But I really want to Compliment You on Your Choice in Dogs!
🍀Good Luck🍀 On The First Cook!
Eat Well and Prosper! From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan and His S--t Bird Mutts!

[rat88]

I have a dog like that. She isnt much of a BBQ critic (she likes everything) but she is a damn good paint inspector.

[fzxdoc]

Let us know how your rib cook turns out, TBoneJack . Those ribs are not in a salt solution, are they? I don't know about Swifts Premium, but around where I live the Smithfield ribs are often in brine, so I always check regardless of the brand. When Smithfield says "natural ingredients" they of course count a salt brine as one of those.

Cute dog, BTW.

Kathryn

[Spinaker]

Better late than never!!!! Let is know how it goes. I cook Swifts quite a bit. They have a good product. Meaty ribs for sure. The PBC will cook s these up right for you.

[TBoneJack]

Thanks all.

fzxdoc , it's my understanding that Swift Premium ribs are not injected or pre-brined. Unlike the ribs I saw at Wal Mart yesterday, which had a label that read like a graduate organic chemistry book. They were so flimsy it was obvious they had been over-tenderized.

The PBC is holding a very steady temperature. It varies, but slowly. I'm monitoring with a Thermoworks Smoke.

And thanks for the dog compliment. It's my son's duck hunting lab. He knows an amazing number of voice commands and hand signals. But my wife is more partial to this one, Miesha, teacup poodle, 8 weeks old:

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[hogdog6]

I cook swift all the time no pre-brine and they are always meaty and turn out great on the PBC. They will be delicious. Enjoy!

[fzxdoc]

I'm going to start looking harder for Swift Premium meats, then. Where I live, Smithfield has a huge presence. I refuse to buy pre-brined ribs. I get good ribs at Sam's Club, but it's a bit of a drive to get there.

TBoneJack , if you can, try posting the photo of little Miesha again. An 8 week old teacup poodle must be really cute!

Kathryn

[HawkerXP]

I agree, good looking dog. Good luck on your maiden PBC cook!

[TBoneJack]

Sorry for not posting the results last night. Storms knocked out my internet.

The ribs were excellent. I've got finished pics to upload. I love this PBC.

But the cook was not perfect.

When I hung the ribs, they actually touched the coals. I would have thought the PBC would have been designed to handle standard St. Louis length ribs. I cut the bottom bone off each rib, but when it was all over, the low end of all the ribs were still overcooked. However, from there up was excellent eating.

The PBC holds temps more steady than my WSM 18.5". Way more steady. I didn't have to make a single adjustment during the cook. Not one. I used a Thermoworks Smoke to monitor the grate temp, and it stayed 240-250 the entire cook. The probe was positioned in the very center of the PBC (centered horizontally and vertically).

Maintenance is also easier than with my WSM.

If I had bought this PBC before I bought my WSM (and I almost did), I would never have bought the WSM. But I'll keep the WSM as a dedicated fish smoker.

The PBC seems like it would be a turkey smoking machine.

[lschweig]

Turkey on the PBC rocks.

[hogdog6]

Just cut long ribs in 1/2. A lot of research went into the size of that magical cooker, for it to work as it does. Looking forward to your pics.

[j_keegan]

Glad to know Swift is a good brand. I've been doing some recon and have found it at two places locally (Food Lion and Costco). Now I know where to go to get some good pork ribs and butt.

[John Henry]

Mr. TBoneJ: Thanks for your post and info. Two questions, please: How long did you go with your ribs on the PBC, please; and did you wrap the ribs, please? Thank you and may you always buy low and sell high.

[TBoneJack]

Mr. TBoneJ: Thanks for your post and info. Two questions, please: How long did you go with your ribs on the PBC, please; and did you wrap the ribs, please? Thank you and may you always buy low and sell high.

I smoked the ribs for 4.5 hours. And I did not wrap, which is opposite of what you see on the "BBQ Pit Masters" TV show, I know. But the PBC seems to write its own set of general rules. I sit and watch its temperature swing tendencies, which are not so steady, and yet I follow the advice of the experienced members here, and it produces great-tasting food every time. Just follow the lighting directions to a T, and the PBC will produce great-tasting food.

I still have not gotten rib smoking times down pat on the PBC. They seem to come out a bit "falling off the bone" tender, which is a bit too tender for my preference, but they are still great in the taste department, which is perfect for backyard purposes.

[doctorak]

Yeah I just did some Swift Premium baby backs this weekend that I got at Stop and Shop, and they turned out great. Far cheaper than the alternatives around me, which are either overpriced "craft" butchers or Whole Foods.