Barbecue…Two
I posted earlier about my efforts to learn to barbecue. I do well with some things, but I continue to struggle with ribs.
Dave gave me a hint, so I decided to try it out this weekend. First, I applied some over the counter rib rub the night before and put the babybacks in the fridge.
The next morning, I put the ribs in a rib rack for about 30 minutes at 325 deg.
I then turned it down to about 190 deg. on a smoke setting for six hours. I pulled the ribs off, so far so good, they looked delicious. I wrapped them in tin foil with 3 tablespoons of apple juice and put them back on at about 200-240 (my barbecue will not settle in at 220, which is Dave’s preferred temperature).
After two hours, I remove the ribs from the foil. They were black. I painted on some barbecue sauce and gave them another 20 minutes on low heat.
The results were mixed. First, they were really black. I didn’t think they were burned, but my wife did. She was concerned about carcinogens.
The first little slabs we pulled off were good. As Dave promised, the meat fell off the bones and was quite tender. The ’skin’ had really toughened up, though, and was chewy to the point of almost being hard to eat.
The second helping, after sitting for a couple minutes, had really dried out. They were dry and tough.
While I made progress, I am still a long ways from a final product. Anyone?
Was there a lot of sugar in the rub? Secondly, did you remove the membrane on the inside of the ribs.
The only reason that they would turn black, I think, is that the rub caramelized from too much sugar. After they go into the foil there is no reason for them get any darker unless there is a lot of burnable carbons. If that’s not the case turn down the heat to between 180 and 200. Also, I wouldn’t start the ribs at above 220 degrees. The protein will set at such high temperatures and make them tough on the outside.
As for “burned meat” as a carcinogen – my mother has the same worry. But as I understand it, the issue is with burned protein and not with burned carbs.
You might also want to test your thermometer to see if it’s correct. If you’re cooking at even +20 degrees higher the ribs won’t be as tender as lower temps.
You might want to try to reduce the heat to 200 degrees too, it will add to the cooking time which should work to dissolve the connective tissue.
Keep trying.
Can i ask what the rub was comprised of? I do ribs quite frequently, and think that i am pretty decent at it. And, are we talking about gas or charcoal here?
Colby, the rub was over the counter. According to the ingredient list, it contained sage, coriander, thyme, pepper, salt, sugar, paprika, tumeric, onion, cornstarch, garlic, tricalcium phosphate, natural flavor and ground parsely. I also used a second rub (lightly) containing salt, sugar, dextrose, propyline glycol, carmel color, and smoke flavor. The grill was a wood chip smoker from http://www.traegergrills.com/grills/long_horn.cfm.
Geeguy;
Actually, I am always looking for that black, caramelized coating as part of my indication that my bbq is done.
For obvious reasons, I am not the best source for tips on baby back ribs. However, I will be posting my smoked brisket recipe here in short order …
Aaron
Put the ribs on a high walled cookie sheet, add only salt and pepper to the ribs. Add 2 cups broth, tent well with foil and cook on your grill’s lowest setting for two hours. You’ll likely need to add broth about an hour in.
Take them off at 2 hours, add all the rub you’d like to in whatever flavors you’d like. Let the ribs stand this way for at least 30 minutes, you can easily do it overnite at this point or before a tailgate. My favorite rub has paprika, chili powder, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, b. sugar.
When you’re ready to eat, cook them on low heat directly on the grill, adding BBQ sauce as you like. I prefer 5 minutes / side, first without sauce, then with sauce, for a total of 20 minutes.
Soft, tender, tasty, I have never had any better eating out.