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Ribs taking a long time

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    Ribs taking a long time

    Hello! I'm having trouble lately when making BBRs on my Kettle. Yesterday I tried smoking 2 racks, and they were 6 hours into the cook and still weren't ready! I started at 225f and then took it up to 275f at around the four hour mark because they were far from ready.

    I took them out of the Kettle almost at 6 hours (people were hungry!) and they still didn't pass the bend test, were a little chewy and felt somewhat dry. Also, there wasn't much bark. I don't like to wrap because I prefer the nice bark. I used a the Smoke thermomether with the needle probe on the thickest part and they were at 167f, almost six hours in!

    It's not the first time this has happened, where they're taking way too long to cook. Is it maybe there isn't enough airflow inside the Kettle when it gets so crowded? The only thing I did differently this time was spritzing with apple cider vinegar once in a while. Perhaps that slowed it down?

    I'd much appreciate your expertise!




    #2
    Spritzing will cool the surface some and slow things down.

    I run at least 250 on ribs. Thick back ribs will not pass the bend test at times, even when ready, due to the abundance of loin meat.

    Comment


      #3
      I would turn up the heat a little bit, also don't be afraid to foil if it is going slow. You can knock a good chunk of time off with foil they will tenderize.

      Comment


        #4
        Might seem overly simple but is there a chance the thermometer you are using to temp the grill is off? Only reason I can think of ribs consistently taking that long is too low of temp.

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          #5
          Originally posted by UncleFester View Post
          Might seem overly simple but is there a chance the thermometer you are using to temp the grill is off? Only reason I can think of ribs consistently taking that long is too low of temp.
          I was thinking the same thing.

          Comment


            #6
            How are you measuring pit temperature? You mention a probe in the meat, which may not be that accurate with ribs btw. But if you are using the dome thermometer, you are getting a false reading. The temp at the top of the dome where the supplied thermometer is is much higher than at grate level. It could easily read 50* higher than the temp at grate level.

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              #7
              Thanks everyone. I'm measuring using a Thermoworks Smoke which is fairly new, so I don't think its malfunctioning. I placed one probe on grill level using the clip, and used the needle one to occasionaly measure the thickest part of the meat, even if it isn't a great indicator with ribs, it gives you some idea how they're doing.

              Comment


                #8
                Thinking about it, how far from the side of the Kettle should I place the temp probe? It was fairly close. Maybe the hot metal was giving me a higher reading than was true for the rest of the cooking surface?

                Comment


                • TheCountofQ
                  TheCountofQ commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I keep my probe about an inch or so away from the meat, centered between cuts if there are more than one.

                #9
                In this screenshot you can see where the temp probe was (circled red), near the edge of the Kettle. Would it being that close affect the temperature it reads?

                Click image for larger version

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                Comment


                • kmhfive
                  kmhfive commented
                  Editing a comment
                  You could move the probe a little closer to the ribs, but I'm not sure it's going to make a significant difference in grill temp. I've not done BB's, but I typically bring the kettle with SnS up closer to 250F for pork and it doesn't affect the flavor adversely.

                • Baltassar
                  Baltassar commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I would definitely move it further away from the side of the grill. Not a lot of real estate to work with, I realize.

                #10
                I've had much better luck at 250 with my ribs. I've had quite a few of those unnecessarily long smokes at 225. I'm also usually doing full untrimmed racks.

                Comment


                • Lowjiber
                  Lowjiber commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I find the 3-2-1 method at 250 works great for me, regardless of any loin meat attached.

                  I tried quitting the wrap step a while back and had very erratic total cook times.

                • gijsveltman
                  gijsveltman commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Lowjiber I will try wrapping next time. I tried it once but preferred unwrapped because of the great bark.

                • Lowjiber
                  Lowjiber commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I think my methods pretty much put all the bark on in the first three hours. I put my wood only on the first half of the charcoal. After three hours uncovered, the true wood-related bark/flavoring is done.

                  I'll add that if you leave 'em unwrapped, spritzing is a good idea..

                #11
                I agree that higher temps work best for ribs. I typically look for somewhere between 270 and 290 F in my PBC. If there is a lot of loin meat on the ribs, you can forget about the bend test (that's the bad news). The good news is that you've got enough meat to use your instant-read thermometer to make sure you get the IT up above 190 F (the temp at which all the collagen and connective tissue will begin to render).

                Comment


                • gijsveltman
                  gijsveltman commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Yeah, I tried taking the temp at the extra loin meat but it was barely around 165f after 6 hours!

                #12
                Mine take 7 more often than not, especially (as mentioned) if they're thick.

                Comment


                • gijsveltman
                  gijsveltman commented
                  Editing a comment
                  7 hours? You don't wrap either I assume. Is this for BBRs at 225f?

                • Huskee
                  Huskee commented
                  Editing a comment
                  gijsveltman Yeah, 225-240 typically. Thick BBs, say 3lbs+

                • gijsveltman
                  gijsveltman commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Huskee wow, guess I'm not alone then! Thanks for the help!

                #13
                Holy smoke. That's incredible. My babybacks are fully cooked and maybe a little tough at 3 hours, 4 hours and they are perfect and pull off the bone easily 5 hours and you can't cut them because they just fall apart. This is on a pellet grill, fluxuates from 210-270 or so.

                Comment


                  #14
                  Not at all meaning to be a smart ass - but I'd say first start earlier - I run mine at 180* for 1-2 hours if I have the time before I kick them up to 225* for a couple hours before foiling them for another hour or so depending on how "attached" to the bone you want them . And second consider some sort of BBQ Guru type device if you are going to continue to use your current set up for better and hopefully more consistent temperature control. Third save you money and get a pellet grill/smoker I couldn't go back to my big Kamado unless I put a Guru on it, just lazy now that I'm used to a digital controller. I'm even too lazy to crank it up for steaks.

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