Baby Back cook time / temp question

[jamiedolan]

So I pulled out the 2 racks that were in the longest about 2:15 til just after 7.  They looked done and the piece I tried on the end was very tasty.

I brought these over to my parents house for dinner and when I cut them apart I found they were medium to medium rare at best.  We put them in the oven at 350 wrapped in foil for over an hour, they are well done now, but are still not tender, so those 2 racks are still in the oven at my parents.

Now I have 3 racks still in the smoker, we just checked them after another 1.5 hours and they are fairly tough / leathery.

My feeling as to what happened here is that I really set myself back a lot when i had to open the smoker to add the 2nd ribs that I didn't have thawed in time.  It's only 18 degrees here tonight.

For both the wrapped ribs in the oven currently and the unwrapped ribs in the smoker, will they both get more tender if I give them more time?

Thank You,

Jamie

[jamiedolan]

Hey Jamie, lots of opinions on ribs here - all good!  For what it's worth, a lot of us are into the "no peeky" method.  Just rub 'em and smoke 'em.  I smoke baby backs for 5 1/2 - 5 3/4 hours without looking.  I don't add sauce, as my family likes to add their own, so I go dry.

A good way to test for "fall off the bone" done is to use a wooden toothpick.  Stick it in close to a bone, and pull away.  If it breaks, they're not done.  If the meat gently pulls away - they're ready!  Good luck!

Thanks for the tip.  I fully agree with just leaving them and feel like this is ideal based on all I've read and all the suggestions.  I just make a mistake today of trying to add to the smoker because the ribs were not all thawed at once.  I would have otherwise just left it alone.

I guess this is a good lesson for me to make sure I leave enough time.  I'm hoping my ribs can still be saved (made more tender) with more time.

[DivotMaker]

We all have learned lots of lessons about this hobby (addiction) we call BBQ, Jamie!  Next time, make sure the ribs are thawed, but leave them cold (fridge temp), then don't open the door once they're on!  I don't even break out the Maverick thermo during rib smokes - just time.  Never fails me!

[benjammn]

Do yourself a favor and get the Maverick 732 or 733, they are amazing at how well they work. Indispensable to say the least.
I normally don't smoke my meat right over the element since it is the hottest area and the thermometer is over that area. Can give a false reading since the cold meat will slightly cool the air around it. I know there is a graphic out there that I saw about the "field of cold" around the meat, just don't know where I found it. This would cause the thermostat to think it isn't as hot as it is and cook the meat more than you want.

[jamiedolan]

I will get one of the better thermometers very soon.  I did get one of the cheap taylor ones delivered today, so at least I have something that I can leave in the meat if I try to smoke this weekend.

I took the ribs off last night, maybe at 11:00 or so, they were done, but not tender.  So this afternoon, around 12:00 - 12:30 I put them in the oven at around 225-250 and have had them going for about 3 hours now.  I checked them about 20 minutes ago and they were getting fairly tender, I'm going to just leave them in the oven till dinner time, which is just about 2 hours at this point. 

Thanks everyone for the help.  I'll definatly just leave them in longer next time.

Jamie

Here is a video of the ribs in the oven with my explaining what is going on at this point.  I'll update again once we take the ribs out in a little bit.

http://jamiedolan.com/2013/12/27/smoked-ribs-update-12272013/

[benjammn]

definitely need to let them sit in smoker for longer next time. also I think that taking them and putting in fridge partially would have slowed the whole process down and made it take much longer overall.

[jamiedolan]

Just finished eating and it all worked out well in the end.  Both sets of ribs were finished up in the oven and both turned out well.  I will plan to leave them in the smoker longer untouched next time.  I do have the cheap Taylor in smoker thermometer now, but will plan to get a better one soon (such as the ones suggested here).

Here's my final video, a shot of them out of the oven, falling apart.

http://jamiedolan.com/2013/12/27/bbq-ribs-final-wrap-up-view-12272013/

We have leftover ribs, but I have a butt roast that I'm working on to make pulled pork, I think I'm going to put it in the smoker overnight. 

[benjammn]

Try DM's brine on the pork, it is damn good and made for some of the best pulled pork I ever had and everyone at work/family loved it.

[jamiedolan]

Try DM's brine on the pork, it is damn good and made for some of the best pulled pork I ever had and everyone at work/family loved it.

Thanks.  Maybe I missed it, is DM's brine a recipe here or is this a mix you can purchase?

I just started the pork roast about 20 minutes ago, but I'll have lots more chances to experiment with different seasonings / rubs in the future. 

Jamie

[DivotMaker]

Hey Jamie, this is the brine Ben mentioned (thanks Ben):

http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=1012.0

One recommendation I have about pork roasts for pulled pork:  Go with a "bone in Boston butt."  This is absolutely the best cut of pork for pulled pork!  Check your local Sam's Club meat section; they usually sell 2 packs that are off the rails good!