Membrane

Removing the membrave is such a quick process,that I don't picture skipping.

Some volume cooks slash long X s down through the membrane.

Of course they are in it for eat as you walk,volume sales,not quality.

I have never seen the membrane go away after a low and slow cook. You might be able to pull it off easier after the cooking process, but it looks terrible on the backside of the rack after you do it.

One trick I have found is to grab the meaty end of the rack and roll it up meat side in as tight as possible. After you unroll, the membrane should be easier to remove at the point. Heck, I have been able to grab the membrane and start pulling with just my finger nails after rolling it.

This works especially well on BBs as opposed to spares. On spares you get some maniacal meatcutter slashing the membrane trying to take the flap off. That always makes it fun.

quote:

Originally posted by RibDog:
On spares you get some maniacal meatcutter slashing the membrane trying to take the flap off. That always makes it fun.

LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!

As I read your post I was thinking "Man I must get really different spares". Then that last bit brung it all together with "Nope...same stuff". LOL!!

I calls em like I sees em. Glad you got a chuckle out of it.

quote:

Originally posted by rt64:
I was surfing the net last week & came across a meat web site (dont remember which one now) tha said if you are cooking ribs "low & slow"the membrane need not be removed first. It stated that the membrane is porus enough for the flavor of rub & smoke to penetrate & the membrane will break down after a few hours & be gone at the end of the cooking cycle.
RR

You lost the site? How can we torment them if you don't keep the site. LOL

Would love to see the site, because he is plain wrong (what, Information on the Internet WRONG?) say it isn't so

It's still there at the end, that paper thick substance that does not disappear.

Take it off. Unless I'm doing lots of ribs and don't have the time to take them off, I always do. I find that membrane just is waste anyway, but most people don't notice, they just throw it away.

I notice.

Me, I do think it's too porous to allow smoke and flavor to penetrate, but shoot, what do I know.

Well I did a Google search and came up with this person's opinion regarding not needing to remove the membrane.
Here is the website: http://www.bigdaddyskitchen.com/bbq&grilling/ribs.htm

And here is his reasoning:

One battle that rages all the time is what to do with the membrane that covers the "bone side" of the slab. Aficionados will tell you that removing this membrane is necessary to allow the seasonings to properly penetrate the meat. It also is necessary if you are in competition. But my experience, and the experience of friends, is that you really don't notice the difference after the ribs have spent 4+ hours in the smoker, and ignoring it saves a time consuming step. Given that, if you want to be a purist here's what you do: take a strong blunt instrument (a Phillips head screwdriver works well) and begin the separation process. Once you can get your fingers/thumb between the membrane and meat, you can then dispense with the tool and begin to pry the two apart. Once the membrane begins to peel it should come off fairly easily.

And here is his BBQ Spare ribs recipe and his advise about not doing Babyback ribs low & slow.


Big Daddy's Best Barbecued Spare Ribs

This is the real thing! The ribs come out chewy, moist and tender. Use pork spareribs only. The baby backs are fine for grilling but don't have a high enough fat content to be useful for long, low temperature smoking.

Easiest way i find to remove it is to slide a butter or table knife under it and loosen, then grab it with some paper towels and it peels right off. I remove mine, even if I grill them.

Hey, love to see new Q sites. And nothing wrong with giving advice out. I certainly give plenty

My comments here aren't with Big D, just the directions

quote:

Aficionados will tell you that removing this membrane is necessary to allow the seasonings to properly penetrate the meat.

I've been called a LOT of things, what the heck is an aficionados

Here's what I tell people for any of these "he's the only way to do it".

Take 2 racks. Do one with membrane one, one with membrane on. Look at taste the underside of the meat, TASTE if there is a difference. Also, notice when you try to sauce the membrane, it's so slippy, sauce won't stick.

If like "big daddy" you don't notice a difference, then don't waste your time. He could probably boil them and his friends wouldn't notice with those taste buds

Me, I take the membrane off. And with a little practice, they come off just fine.

quote:

The baby backs are fine for grilling but don't have a high enough fat content to be useful for long, low temperature smoking

Hmmmm, he must not know what he's doing, sad to say. Guess us guys on the circuit that win with Loin Back must be doing them wrong.

why would it matter if you saved 2 minutes, when you're going to spend 4-6 hours smoking those ribs, anyways? Take it off.

Better yet, some butchers sell their ribs w/ it already removed (ex Byerly's in MN)

I have to agree with SmokinOkie. I do Lion Backs all the time in my AmeriQue with the membrane pulled, and everyone that has eaten them loves them. I never have leftovers!!!My friends are always asking me do do some for them. To each his own!!!

Even if this guy's right, who wants to take a bite of a rib and get a mouthful of rubbery membrane? Not at my table!

Seems like a likable sort of fella.

He did say that his recipes were family tested for the last 25 years in New England.

It's nice that your cooking suits you ,and your family.

I've never done ribs with the membrane on. I like Russ' idea of trying both ways on the same cook.. maybe only half a slab w/membrane on and the other 1 1/2 w/o. Give it a taste test.

That said. I was reading an article by, as I remember, Texas BBQ. In his latest blurb he was talking about this same thing.. In comps or cooks he considers important.. he removes the membrane. Otherwise he leaves it on.. saves time. He said that as the ribs cook the membrane splits up and is hardly noticable.. He does this mainly because of the time factor which leaves me to believe he doesn't remove the membrane for his commercial cooks.

For me and my home cooks it's a simple thing to remove the membrane.. only takes about two minutes a slab on the outside.

Just the word 'membrane' turns me off. I don't want any membrane on my meat. Sorta like the butt gland!

When I skip this step, my wife whapps me on the back of the head, calls me an old fool, and asks me if I need to go BACK to BBQ school. lol Well... just believe me.. it gets noticed.

bob

I always take the menberane off using a plain old table knife. The "teeth" of the knife grab and lift up the membrane so it can be easily pulled off. Start at either the top or bottom edge, let the knife grip it & then rip it off with your fingers. If the membrane breaks, start again where it broke off. Try it once and you will always use this method - it is very quick & easy. No, I can not take credit for this method - I read it somewhere else and I thank that person each time I prepare my load of 6-8 slabs of ribs at a time for smoking.

One thing that makes it tough for some, is that there are actually 2 membranes (I know, confusing).

If you try to pull both of them, it will be difficult. The first one comes off relatively easy, you just need to separate it from the first one. I start on a corner, with a fingernail, then go from that.

To skin or not to skin that is the question.
I always remove the membrane on baby backs and
never on spares and they come out fine.