Mistakes and Flat-out Screw-ups

[luhnlaw]

A while back, I watched a YouTube video about smoking beef short ribs. The recipe for the rub was incredibly simple: 40/40/20 mix of coarse kosher salt, ground black pepper, and paprika, with a thin later of mustard to hold the rub to the ribs. Yesterday I briefly (2 hrs) brined a rack of baby backs, rinsed thoroughly, then applied the mustard and rub. After 5 hrs on the smoker, I brushed the rack down with some of the fabulous sauce from the Iron Works in Austin (truly exceptional i9f you don't have the time or patience to make your own from scratch). The ribs, alas, we almost inedible -- way too salty. Curiously, used the very same process with some bone-in short ribs without the wet brining) and they were spectacularly good. I'm guessing that the wet/soaking brine made the ribs just way too salty given the amount of salt in the rub I used. Any thoughts?

[BFlynn]

I either brine my ribs OR use a rub with salt.
I don't do both.
You've just double salted your meat.


Most have us have done that once.

[Jerod Broussard]

Just think, the saturation rate of meat is only 1/2%(aka 0.5%), saturation rate of water is between 26% and 27%.

[luhnlaw]

Yup. I should have known better. Indeed, about 1-1/2 hrs. after I dunked the ribs into the brine, I got to thinking about it as immediately pulled them out and thoroughly rinsed them off. I should have taken the next step and simply rubbed with a no-salt concoction. I too am now a "never again!" believer.

[Alabama Smoke]

Next time you do beef short ribs, take a look on the free side for Meathead's (I think it was Meathead's) recipe including the Texas sauce recipe he mentions. I have done that recipe once and will do so again. Took quite a while, did not wrap. Incredible black bark and very pink and juicy on the inside! Best beef ribs we have ever eaten. And yes, look for his rub suggestions. If brining with salt do not use a rub with salt in it!

[Jerod Broussard]

If they were already injected with up to 8-13% Na containing solution, ya might have gotten your salt for the rest of the year.

[smokin fool]

I over brined a turkey so badly I used the gravy as ice melter on the driveway

[Alabama Smoke]

Yes BFlynn Texas Mop Sauce, I had forgotten the name of it. Have to give credit to my wife for insisting on using it (frankly it sounded terrible to me as compared to the BBQ sauces I normally go for) but she was very much right! That sauce made a good meal great.

[jfmorris]

You also said you did this with baby backs, using a recipe for beef short ribs. There is a huge difference in thickness between the two, with the baby back pork ribs being much thinner. With the beef short ribs, the same amount of time brining may not have penetrated to the center, but with the baby backs, it likely did.

Also - did you say wet brine, or was this a dry brine? Either way, if you brine, you don't need to also rub with salt. Your rub had a 40% salt content, which is high. IF you want to do that, do a dry brine using the rub, or else dry brine with salt, then do a salt less rub.

[Sweaty Paul]

I have also dry brined with salt only, however, I use less salt in the dry brine process and then use rubs that have some salt to make up the difference when I have been to lazy to make a salt-less rub. However, like everyone else I too have been way too vigorous with brining/salting. Then - out comes the peanut butter.

[Bumby]

Nuts! I've salted ribs and then used a rub that (lo and behold) had salt in it before. Made for a nice chili (which I didn't add salt to).

[HouseHomey]

I wish I had half the money back that I have spent trying to “fix” things i salted terribly or otherwise screwed up. Jeeze even a nickel a pound for that waste would be a fortune.

[Abom]

I did a pair of pork butts over the weekend, and lost track of the time. I pulled them off the smoker at 209 degrees! I've never done that in 20 years of smoking. Luckily, they were still great, with possibly the best bark I've ever managed.