SLC Last Meal Ribs on WSM

[josht138]

Tried some SLCs for the first time today. Have done back ribs several times before. Did a little over 6 hours mostly at 225 but dropped down to 215 and up to 250 throughout. Was closer to 250 the last hour plus due to opening up that WSM to check doneness. Sauced and then Finished them on the gas grill. Real happy customers tonight. Definitely my best so far.

Some questions...
1. When opening the WSM to check I was closing the vents to prevent a bigger heat up but it still took quite a while to bring temperature down back to 225. I bought the SS door with latch so I don't have much leakage out the door but I still have leakage around the top. Any suggestions to better control temperature?

2. I used a rib rack as I have the 18.5 WSM. The ribs weren't touching each other so there was an air gap between them. Does a rack add cooking time or is it just when they are stacked close together and there isn't much air gap? I was in a hurry so I bought the Weber rack at home depot for $12 and I noticed that it would not keep the ribs upright and they sort of fall over on the ends. I assume this is normal but curious of anyone else is less than impressed with this product.

3. I've now made last meal ribs twice on the WSM in addition to a pork shoulder, a pork tenderloin, and chicken 3 times. I feel like I've done a good job keeping temps at 225 and 325. With that being the case I feel like I am always on the long end for recommended cooking times. Any ideas here or is this pretty common?

[richinlbrg]

I use a WSM 22 1/2. When I open it, I do not change the vents. I do get a bit of a temp spike, but not for too long, so NBD for me. I've put a gasket on top of the middle section to better control my temps.

1). I didn't see a temp probe in your first pic, so if you are relying on the dome temp, it may not be as big a spike as your dome temp indicates.
2). My ribs flop over a bit when I use racks. I just try to position them to leave a gap. The more meat on the grate, the longer your cook time will likely be.
3). Pork is really forgiving, so to me, spikes to 325 is not a worry. I always TRY to leave extra time in my cooks. Q is done when it decides to be done, or so it seems.

Sounds like you are doing well! CONGRATS!!

[josht138]

Thanks! I have an ET-733, plus I have an older model WSM so no thermometer on the dome anyway.