smoking baby back ribs

Welcome aboard.

The crucial piece of missing information is the weight of the ribs. What kind of ribs did you smoke?

220o is fine, if not a bit low. My guess is the rub extracted too much moisture. Salt will do that if left on too long a time. An hour or two of resting after a rub application is sufficient for penetration.

i had about 8lbs of ribs

Was it one 8lb rack? 2 4lb racks? 4 2lb racks? Baby backs? Spares?

it was two 4lb racks cut in half

Sounds like St. Louis cut spares, so 4 hrs shouldn't have been overcooking them. Like MaxQue says, the rub with salt in it was probably on too long before the cook and may have extracted some moisture from the meat.

Another thought for your consideration, 4 lb racks sound more like full spares. They may have been way underdone. Underdone ribs will be chewy and (seemingly) dry.

Here's the best way to test for doneness. Ye Ole Toothpick Test. Insert a toothpick in the center of the rack, top to bottom right between the bones. If you can slide in and out with ease, you're ribs are done.

4lb racks sound more like spares than baby backs. Most of the BB's I've seen are in the 2.5lb - 2.75lb range. I'd probably agree with MaxQue that they were underdone.

My BB's take about 4:15 at 235, spares I'm still working on perfecting, but they usually take around 5.5hrs or so.

Toothpick test works everytime! Thanks Smokin'!!!

They could have been prefrozen,which will take longer to come done.What brand ribs.If not current market hogs,they could be 10 yr old sausage sows.If 15% salt solution and overnight in a salty rub,could sure have an effect.

Not real sure what a babyback is,unless you get down in the 16 to 20 oz, really small.Loinbacks could go up to 3.5 to 4 lbs lbs,have seen old spares run up around eight lbs,or more.

Sounds like Smokin' needs to write a Ribs 101 ,so folks don't get confused by Bobby Flay and the rest of those TV stars.

I agree with the thought that the rub was on too long.

My favorite method is to coat babybacks liberally with cheap yellow mustard, then dry rub. Toss em straight in at 225 for about 6 hours with hickory.

The mustard color and taste cooks away, and just becomes a nice bark, which I think keeps the moisture in too.

i came across a tip of rubbing turbinado sugar on ribs overnight and tried it this past weekend. had 3lb st louis slabs rubbed liberally with the sugar, wrapped in foil overnight. rubbed them the next day and into the smoker at 225 for 4 hrs with 2oz cherrywood. did the toothpick test and put on my favorite sauce and they were fantastic. the sauce had a little heat to it but with the sugar in the ribs it made for a teriffic sweet/heat contrast.

does anybody have a good recipe for a sweet rub for ribs?

Courtesy of Chris Lilly's "Big Bob Gibson's BBQ Book" This recipe works great on anything pork and can be scaled up.

1 tbsp dark brown sugar
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 ½ tbsp garlic salt
1 ½ tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp paprika
2 tsp chili powder
¼ tsp oregano
¼ tsp cumin
¼ tsp blk pepper

Here's one from Paul Kirk's Championship Sauces book. I've made it regularly, and it is "supreme for ribs" (per the book) but I've used it with all pork product. It's called "Andy's Rub", my son's name.

1 cup cane sugar
1/2 cup season salt
1/3 cup paprika
3 Tbl garlic salt
3 Tbl celery salt
2 Tbl onion salt
2 Tbl black pepper
1 Tbl lemon pepper
1 tsp celery seed
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp dried chives (crumble)

Makes about 2.5 cups. Cook ribs indirectly if using a grill.

Everyones taste is just a little different, so good notes will be required on personal tastes and a little practice.

I would just add some sugar or honey to any rub for added sweetness. Here is a FEW to pick from...

That's a good list Cal. Thx. Bookmarked.

I like a good Memphis Rub for ribs, but that's not a sweet rub.

well if you cant find something that you like in that list from cal then you are hard to please .

I have been having the same issue. I did 6 racks yesterday in the rib rack along with 3 chickens that I halved. 220 degrees for 4 hours. I placed a half pan of water on the bottom rack because in the past they came out dry. Same thing this time. the ribs were dry and tough. The chicken breast meat was dry. The Baby Backs were on the top slot of the smoker and the chickens were below. I dropped a digital thermometer with a remote prob into the smoker after I removed the checked the temp and it seemed to be accurate. I rub them down and get them in the smoker after about an hour. I came off a masterbuilt that made them perfect after 4 hours at 225. What else can I be doing wrong? This is an SM 160.

I can already hear the fine cook that taught me how to smoke ribs...he would say," How much did the ribs weigh, you'll never become a fine rib cook if you don't have any idea of the weight of each rack".

Smokin' was sooo right, 1/4 lb difference could mean 20-30 minutes of cook time!

I'd try 2.75 lb rack of BBs for 4hrs at 250* and see what they feel like by running a toothpick down between the bones, it should slid in easily, if not cook another 20 minutes.

Oh, if it was me I'd leave the pan of water on the counter, instead of in the smoker...that's just the way I was taught though.

I'd guess you're not getting them done.

Moto,

Have you verified the internal temp?

And Call is right, I don't know what wise old man told him to ask about weight but that guy is one smart rib cookin' SOB...

FYI, let's talk "dry". Adding moisture on the outside won't make them more moist inside. The CS line is so well made you don't need to add moisture because the humidity is so high from the escaping moisture from the meat. Me? I actually open the door to dump some moisture because I like a good bark.

Dryness is "usually" overcooking so you likely are cooking them too long.

For your chicken breast. Brine them and pull them when they are done (155 to 160) NEVER pull them on time alone.

I will take your advice! Thanks! I'm just frustrated that my other smoker never had this issue. I never had to worry about weight of the product I was cooking. It was just as easy as load and program. I have had perfect results since 2007. They are one of my biggest sellers and an item I'm known for. Now with the Sm 160 its changed into a new ball game! I have been using the same time and temp for baseline with the new unit.Thank you for your info! I shall be getting another case of ribs this week!

quote:

Originally posted by cal:

I'd try 2.75 lb rack of BBs for 4hrs at 250* and see what they feel like by running a toothpick down between the bones, it should slid in easily, if not cook another 20 minutes.

@Cal Thanks for the temp tip that seems to have gotten me in the ball park. 250 @ 3.5 hours worked out well. Thanks!

You're welcome! I guess I should have stated that I check the ribs at 3hrs and then sauce at around 3:40 minutes. I'm sure dumping the moisture twice and the adding of sauce would probably have my timing a little different.

I'm glad it is working out for you.

I did a check at 3 hours because of the smaller rack. I wind up chilling them down whole and then grilling them at another time with sauce or cut,sauce and reheat in the oven or chafer at an event.