chicken drums&ribs

I would let those ribs smoke in the cooker another hour and then try them. You are opening that door 2 times in the last 30 min so you arent cooking the ribs then. And that hour would be at a minimum. Some folks consider "falling off the bone" a bit overdone, but to each their own. I cant help you with the chicken question. I always cook them at 250. They usually take on come of the color of the rub.

bob

Rob,

Tell us more about your chicken cooking process so we can possibly help you.

On the ribs, Bob made a good suggestion. Something else you might want to try is wrapping the ribs in foil for the last hour. If you wrap them, I would not sauce them when wrapping. Cook them for three hours, then wrap in foil for an hour. Take them out of the foil, sauce them and put them back in for 15-20 minutes to set the sauce. This might also help you get to where you want to be.

Please come back and tell us how the ribs turned out with the change.

I agree with Cadillic, I would let the Ribs go for another hour or a hour and 15 mins. more.

You might also move your FEC posts/questions down to the FEC forums,as many FEC cooks do not read the traditional Cookshack forums.

I would also go to the FIND tab at page top,input ribs and check FEC forums.

This will give you more FEC tips.

Forget the bowl of water !

Tell us a little more about your St Louis ribs,i.e.,size,weight,prefrozen,injected.

My teammate,Ribdog, has some state championship wins on St Louis cut ribs, on FEC s, under his belt,so he knows of which he speaks.

As to jerk chicken,we cook a lot of it around our island communities,here, and the marinades,pastes,rubs tend not to have a lot of ?bbq? color.

As said above,let us know a little more about your procedure and check the FIND for Jerk Chicken-all forums.

Fall off the bone ribs, by definition, are over cooked. If they're not done enough, just cook longer. RibDog/Tom/I have all placed well with Ribs in an FE, so it's a good rib cooker.

For the ribs, although they're St. Louis, the weight matters too, so try to weigh each rack and keep good notes.

3.5 @ 230 just wasn't long enough. IN a class, FE teaches 275 for 4 hours for St. Louis.

quote:

would it it help improve the tenderness if I put a small bowl of water in the smoker??

I think a lot of people feel that way, but adding water won't make them more moist. The meat itself and it's fat marbling are the number one determinant. 2nd would be to not overcook to the point of dryness

I've never heard anyone mention a "sooty" taste with an FE. It burns the wood to efficiently. Tell me more exactly what you're doing. Time, temp, wood flavor, any extra steps. Maybe we can help out there.

This think cooks AWESOME chicken. I would do them on a higher setting, say 325. If you're wanting more smoke, cook them on a lower temp but finish on a higher temp.

Hi everyone. I did not realize that I need to weigh each rack. I will do so today. As far as my jerk chicken..I marinade them in a jerk seasoning for 24hrs. The seasoning includes finely chopped green peppers,an onion and a tomato with the jerk seasoning. I make sure that the chicken is dried before smoking. I do not used any rub or sauce on the chicken.If I did it would take away the jerk flavour and mask it with whatever I used. The chicken looks sooty and grey but the flavour is great.I just wanted a prettier chicken any suggestions?? I will cook the 4 racks today @275 for 4hrs.I will keep in touch.R

What temp and what wood did you use for the chicken. I've never had anything come out sooty and gray in an FE. Need more info?

If there are no sugars in that jerk, smoke them a 325 and see what you think.

The idea behind weighing is to know how close they are in weight. a 1/2 pd different in a 3lb rib can mean an extra 45 min of cooking. That's why two racks, in the same smoker may take extra time. Also the thickness of the meat can make a difference.

The key is learning how to tell when they are done, regardless of time.

Some will pick up a rack by tongs, and see how it bends. When it starts to crack, they're ready.

Others will take a bone and pull/twist it to test.

I don't know what to say about sooty,unless that is part of the color.

Have you cooked jerk on other cookers and gotten good color?

Without knowing what kind of marinade you are using,that could still be the color.

Allspice doesn't give great color,and limited use of cayenne doesn't add much.

The island folks,here,don't dry the marinade off the chicken/pork/fish.

They may also baste with it.

The meats are usually medium grilled kinda high,over direct coals,in closed grills.

The dripping creates its own flavor and some color.

If they use molasses,raw sugar, and soy sauce in the marinade,it gives more color and sorta burnt,places on the chicken.

They tend to use dry jerk seasoning as a final touch,before cooking.

I've never seen jerk that has the color we try to have on comp chicken.

Let us know.

Hi Everyone..I DID IT!!! I cooked 5 slaps of ribs at 250 degrees for 3.45 hrs. They were wonderful!! I cooked 4 slabs again St.Louis style at 275 for 4hrs and they were over cooked. As suggested by smokin okie,Tom, Cadillac,Ribdog,and willies..I took notes and took my time to listen and hear what you guys are saying. I realized that like all men we do not take direction all that well. So I want to say to all of you thank-you for walking a newbee through his paces. I have a new respect and appreciate your help. I am not going away yet..now ya gotta help me with my chicken..stayed tuned.Rob

Try dusting your chicken with sweet paprika, or cherry jello. You will get a red finish. I used some cherry jello in my rub. Also made up some jello mixed with water to spray the chicken and ribs. Beautiful color before being sauced.

Hey FF, interesting concept with the kool aid thing.
Have you got any pics of the reddish chicken?
Thanks
Mop

I made a mistake. I used jello instead of kool aid.
I didn't take any pics, but I will the next time I do this.

quote:

Originally posted by Fast Freddie/Love Shack BBQ:
I made a mistake. I used jello instead of kool aid.
I didn't take any pics, but I will the next time I do this.

So you should use Kool Aid?

I heard about Kool Aid, but for some reason I used cherry jello. I am getting old. lol.
The jello worked fine. You have to keep the spritz mixture warm, or else you will have jello in a spray bottle.

Ha, first Pellet Crete, now Jello Crete (if it cools off) LOL