2nd smoke... Ribs; why don't they fall off the bone???

You didn't cook it long enough.

Fall off the bone is actually an overcooked rib. the perfect rib for me is tug off the bone, where you bite it and it comes off easy and it's tender. Fall off is hard to cut.

And we'll forgive you the boiling comment. REAL Q'ers never boil. It boils away the flavor.

Smokin'

Thanks Smokin'

So, how long do I need to smoke them without foil and how much longer with foil to achieve a non-dry "tug" off the bone done?

Form this newbee point of view fall off the bone for me was 6.5hr at 225 deg I have done them both ways and ( fall off and tug off the bone ) and I like the tug better because it was a pain to get them to the fall off point. Because after 4.5 hr I was checking them every hour. Another suggestion that I would make if you want fall off tender is to smoke them 4hours at 225 deg then put them in double foil and put the ribs in a crock pot and cook until fall off this is how I would do them before I had my 08

rocky - when you "think" your ribs should be done, take a look at em and make sure they are pulling up on the bone. About 1/2 inch of the bone should be bare. This is a pretty good indicator of "done ribs." Remember, thhis is all a learning experience. Take good notes and learn from your mistakes. You'll get it down. Itt's just a matter of time. Once you gett in a groove, start experimenting. That's when the fun begins!!!!

Rocky what I do is put them in when I go home for lunch, 225 degrees. When I get home around 5:00 I baste them with some sauce, wrap in foil, back in for an hour. This gives me almost fall off the bone which I like.

I smoked three slabs of baby backs yesterday. Since I had room on the top shelf, I also threw in a fatty. The fatty was done after about threee hours, so I opened the door and pulled it out. I took that opportunity to flip the ribs over (they started bone side up) and rotate the shelves. I also sprayed them with apple cider. I let them go another two hours and them I opened the door and sauced them. I left them for another hour and checked them. They looked and felt done so I did FTC for an hour. They were a perfect tug off the bone as Smokin' described.

taco,

Can't give you a specific answer. The reason is that the size of the rib (1.5, 2, 2.25) can make a difference in being done. That's why with ribs, I try to know my weight of the slab so I can keep my notes specific. That 1/2 or 1/4 lb difference, as well as the actual rib itself, fat, amount of meat, can make a difference. Two 2 lb slabs can cook up different if one has lots of meat and one has lots of fat.

Just cook them longer. How much longer. Try and hour.

The thing to learn is how to tell when they're done.

You can take a bone and try to twist it. If you pull the bone and it comes out, there's you're fall off the bone

You can also pick up the slab. Take a pair of tongs, and from the long end, pick them up, looking at the middle of the rack. As you pick it up, look at the flex. As they start to get to where you want, they'll crack (fall apart) as you take them out.

Just can't give a recipe. The key is to learn some tricks. that's why....

it's done when it's done

Like Ron_L, did 3 racks of baby backs yesterday (normally due spares but wife wanted baby backs - wife won). Each rack was about 2.25 lbs. Marinaded overnight in a mix of apple cider, maple syrup, garlic, soy, star anise, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and crushed hot pepper.

Was getting ready to start the smoke when a contractor showed up to do a repair to the sliding door to my deck (translation - Could not get to the smoker while he was working). So, with time marching on, I put the racks in a large enameled cast iron dutch oven with a 4-5 tablespoons of the marinade, foiled and covered the DO, and ran the oven @ 225 for 1 hour. Figured I was pretty much simulating the environment of my 008 minus the smoke. Pulled from the oven, patted dry, and air dried for 30 minutes.

Into the 008 @ 225 and 2.5 oz. of hickory for 3 hours. Pulled, brushed with the marinade (which I had strained and reduced by half), double foiled, and back into the smoker for 1.5 hours. Pulled the smoker's plug and let them rest for 30 minutes. Total cook time, including the rest in the smoker was 6 hours.

The ribs were perfect. Dark mahogany color with a little bark. Nice glaze from the brushed on marinade so we did not need or use any sauce. Nice little pull from the bone.

I got 3 racks in my 08 (cut in half - 2 half racks on the bottom rack, 3 on the middle, and 3 on the top).. I put them in at 630 am (PST) - I will check them at 1030 am -- my experience with my smoker is that for baby backs - they need at least 5 hours at 225. I normally just put a nice rub on them -- cook them till i see a nice pull back, and they past the bend test. I will let you guys know how they come out.. - for me -- usually 5 - 6 hours with baby back to get them falling off the bone. DLS -- Can I get that Marinade??

quote:

Originally posted by JW:
DLS -- Can I get that Marinade?? [/QB]

JW - Certainly. I'll post it int the recipe forum.