First PBC Cook - Ribs

[jlhilden]

Wanted to cook chicken for my first PBC cook but because of circumstances beyond my controll, baby backs got the honor. After firing the PBC following the directions posted in this forum, I hung the two racks, placed the lid, and watched. The temp skyrocketed to 385 and smoke was pouring from under the lid.



I checked the lid and it was somewhat seated - at least the best I could get it. With applying pressure down on the lid, smoke still poured out and I could slide it back and forth about a 1/4 ". I plugged the rebar holes with foil and the temp lowered and held around 320.

The ribs were done in around two hours




They looked good and tasted fine.








Also had some good smoke rings

[texastweeter]

Heck, 2 hour ribs that are tasty... GIVE ME THAT RECIPE!!! You didn't mess anything up, you may have just came up with the best high and fast recipe since rendezvous!!!!! The look pretty good! Was the pull good? They don't look hammie at all! NICE!

[AdamJG]

Ribs were my first PBC cook way back when...looks good! The lid will seal up once it gets greasy gunk built up around it. I put a lava lock gasket for a big green egg inside my lid where it contacts the barrel and it worked great too. I probably didn't need to I just like to make things "better" even if it's not necessary.

[RonB]

That's some good lookin' ribs.

[DWCowles]

Beautiful!

[jecucolo]

Buy an extra 20 lb bag of charcoal and place it on the lid while cooking. The weight should seal it. After awhile your lid should have a build up that will seal good.

[kmhfive]

Looks good!

[Obi-Dan]

Looks great from here. I played with the vent a little bit over the first few months and got to point where she settled in around 280-290. Just means you'll have to keep on cooking.

[fzxdoc]

Nice first cook, jlhilden . Those ribs look great!

Setting something heavy on the lid helps for sure for the first couple of cooks. I would tap the lid rim with a rubber mallet or the rubber heel of my shoe. If I still had leaks, I'd foil them with a 3 inch wide strip of aluminum foil, the length of the leak plus a little more.

Plugging those lid leaks will bring the temp down to the 260-280 range pretty quickly.

Kathryn

[Brewmaster]

The lid will definitely seal after a few cooks, I have a hard time getting mine off now

[Mr. Bones]

Man. ya' done jus' Great, especially for first cook!!!
Great pics of delicious ribs!!!

[rototiller78]

Use Pam spray & spray under the lid where it connects to the barrel & that should help seal it up. Great looking ribs!

[jlhilden]

Thanks for the kind words on the cook results; the family gave the ribs 5 stars. For the lid issue, I did a chicken cook yesterday (quarters) and the temp ran up again on me big time - with a 15 lb bag of coals sitting on top.

I lit the PBC exactly as per instructions and when I added the chicken and placed the weighted lid on, all looked great as the temp settled at 280. After 15 minutes and the temp being stable, I grabbed the wireless thermometer remote and proceeded to do some yard work. I checked the temp for the next 15 minutes and it started to creep up a little, stabilize, and then creep up again. Within the next 15, it was up to 350. By the time it reached a bit over 400, the chicken was ready and I removed the lid, grabbed the chicken, and put the lid back on without the bag of charcoal. I would estimate that the lid was off no longer then a minute. When I brought the chicken in and started to work on the side dishes, I still had the thermometer remote on me; the temp was now reading 590. I went back out to check the PBC and it was hot. Even though I was done cooking, I was still tending to it and like my first cook, stuffed the rebar holes (with the rebar still in place) with foil. The temp slowly lowered and hung around 380 for a few hours.

I called the number on the side of the PBC but got their answering machine that said business hours end at 5:00 PM EST, it was just after 5:00 when I called. Before the message could finish, someone was at my front door so I just hung planning to call later and leave a message. After chasing off the "Switch your electric service to us" salesman away, my phone rang with a KY area code; it was PBC. I discussed my issue, we went over the details, and they requested that I email some pictures and a quick video of the smoke escaping the PBC lid. After sending the emails, I got a call back within ten minutes and a was told from what they saw, the amount of escaping smoke from my PBC was more normal then abnormal. I was then told that they will review further and to expect another call.

Around 8:00 PM, my phone rang with a CO area code, it was Noah. We talked about the high heat issue and he recommended a few steps for me to try which I plan to do today. I was told to keep in touch and that no matter what, this issue will be solved. I've read that the PBC customer service was exceptional, but to experience it is amazing. It's great and very refreshing to deal with a company that takes pride in their product and very attentive to a customer who is having issues.

[HawkerXP]

How sweet is that. Congrats and welcome to the PBC club!

[(Bluecat)]

This is outstanding and good to know. Thanks formsharing this experience with us. I hope your issue gets resolved.