Rib Newbie

[mag1]

I am finally ready to do some ribs. My question is how to do so? I have checked some of the threads, but would like some recommendations, or can someone steer me to the right threads to read up on more? My center feed RF is typically fired with all wood (apple so far). Any recommendations on wood, rubs, glaze, etc.... My wife likes the typical ribs with a sauce, I have never made them before, so this is uncharted territory for me. Thanks in advance.

[Rodcrafter]

I think a fail safe method for you would be the old 3.2.1 method cooking at 225* during the 1 portion mix 50-50 water and your favorite sauce. Use this as a glaze and you will be the hero. You can watch YouTube for examples of 3.2.1

[Pete Mazz]

Do you want "fall off the bone" ribs or do you like them with a little bite? I always wound up with FOTB when I did the 3-2-1 method. I then switched to 3-1-1 and had better success.Then I stopped wrapping tightly and now smoke for 3 hours, slice them and put them in a covered foil pan with some glaze for an hour and then start checking them for final tenderness.

[mag1]

I'm not sure how j want them. Hmmmmm. I will have to experiment with both methods. Thanks

[forty_creek]

3-2-1 or 3-1-1 is a safe cook. The 3 means 3hrs uncovered 2 means 2hrs covered and the 1 is uncovered.
I prefer not to wrap but it all depends on my time and cooker temp if I'm cooking something else. I do not glaze for personal reasons. I prefer my ribs dry (w/o sauce). Serve sauce on the side. I also prefer a tugg vs FOTB. But I've had my share of FOTB and I sure didn't let em go to waste.
Prep:
1. Pull the membrane on the bone side. Watch youtubes videos.
2. Trim excess fat (not all but excess)
3. Slather them all over with mustard
4. Either buy a rib rub or make up your own. Brown sugar, 1/3 salt to 2/3 pepper as a baseline to start with add anything else you think of. It's your Q. Apply the rub then wrap in Saran Wrap or in a pan. Set in fridge overnight.
5. Set ribs out of fridge for about an hour before putting on pit.
6. Reapply some rub before putting em on the pit
7. Don't mess em up!!! Heheee
That's just what I do. That's what's so fun about Q cook it the way you like it!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Puff]

They are all great tips....the only thing I might add is look into the added ingredients if you do wrap AND I am not a fan of HOT so, keep an eye on even black pepper....it builds up heat more than I am comfortable with. I make two sauces. One mild, one spicy.

I too like them dry rubbed but fall of the bone.....yummy!

[Pennywise]

3-2-1 or 3-1-1 is a safe cook. The 3 means 3hrs uncovered 2 means 2hrs covered and the 1 is uncovered.
I prefer not to wrap but it all depends on my time and cooker temp if I'm cooking something else. I do not glaze for personal reasons. I prefer my ribs dry (w/o sauce). Serve sauce on the side. I also prefer a tugg vs FOTB. But I've had my share of FOTB and I sure didn't let em go to waste.
Prep:
1. Pull the membrane on the bone side. Watch youtubes videos.
2. Trim excess fat (not all but excess)
3. Slather them all over with mustard
4. Either buy a rib rub or make up your own. Brown sugar, 1/3 salt to 2/3 pepper as a baseline to start with add anything else you think of. It's your Q. Apply the rub then wrap in Saran Wrap or in a pan. Set in fridge overnight.
5. Set ribs out of fridge for about an hour before putting on pit.
6. Reapply some rub before putting em on the pit
7. Don't mess em up!!! Heheee
That's just what I do. That's what's so fun about Q cook it the way you like it!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This right here. I wouldn't worry about trimming the fat the first time you do them, but the rest of the instructions are legit. I like to pull the membrane, rub em down in mustard, then (for quick and tasty family ribs) sprinkle a healthy portion of Fast Eddie's on all of em. Wrap em in plastic wrap and throw em in the fridge overnight.

If you do the 3-2-1, your ribs will be falling apart before the last hour. That last hour is to help them firm back up, but if you don't want that (my family likes em falling off the bone) then just pull em off after the second hour of being wrapped and let em sit on the pan for an hour. Unwrap and serve.

If you do it right, you won't even want sauce on em. Good luck!

[Puff]

Great, now I'm hungry again! Like reading one of those magazines...but stimulates my appetite instead

[mag1]

Thanks for all the info. Now to pick a weekend when I'm not busy.

[Pennywise]

Thanks for all the info. Now to pick a weekend when I'm not busy.

Ahh buddy. You know you can make this sound like the most difficult thing ever done by a man; requiring you to sit outside by your smoker for the next 6 hours....suffering....dedicating your time for your families pleasure right? Its literally an excuse to drink beer and relax. Just don't buy a Maverick or Igrill2 right away...makes em think you don't need to babysit the smoker..hehe.

[mag1]

Got to find some oak as well. Don't want to use up all my apple wood at once. I'm waiting on a buddy, there is a road construction project nearby that is going to be taking out a portion of an apple orchard, trying to see if we can get some of the trees, might be a bit before that comes about. But if so, what a score.

[THEFERMANATOR]

For ribs I have found my secret weapon to be cherry wood. The absolute best ribs I have ever done were all done over cherry wood. Last ones I did were pretty basic. Pulled the membrane, trimmed the excess fat, covered in a thick layer of my sweet rub(I have ulcers, so I can't do anything spicy, so I go with a nice sweet rub cooked to a carmalized coating), put em on the smoker uncovered for about 3 hours flipping every hour or so, then sauced them and left em in for another 30 minutes. Came out of the smoker AWESOME! They took just the slightest of bite to get the meat off the bone, and the cherry wood gives the ribs and the meat a nice red coloring you just can't get any other way that I have found. My neighbor goes nuts for chicken, but even he passed up the chicken I did for him and chomped down on the ribs.