re: What did I do wrong? - Smoking Pork St. Louis Ribs

It was the hickory. It can produce a nasty bitter undertone. There is nothing wrong with dirty smoke otherwise and can actually help you get amazing color on some meat. (Turkey) Ditch the hickory for anything else.

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I had gray smoke the whole time.

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Doesn’t sound good then. But I smoke on an offset and I know sixth does too. Gray smoke means you are just smoldering your coals and wood. You want an active fire so may need to adjust your vents or coal and wood placement to get that

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proper chew

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:rollseyes:

Why did you wrap anyway?. Only wrap if they are cooking dry. There is no set time line for ribs. I cook until they feel and look done then test with the last little rib on the end if it come clean on a bite then 20 to 30 minutes more after I paint with a sauce like Saltlick BBQ sauce. (IMHO is the best for glazing and let’s the rub come through.) I cook on a big green egg at 250-275 always less than five hours.

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This is wrong, dumb and offensive.

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Seems to me the ones triggered here standing on top of the wrap mountain screaming and cursing really don’t know why they are wrapping or explaining it outside of I want fall off the bone.

Want fall off the bone? Great, enjoy. Boiling them in foil will accomplish that.

Only thing else I would say, again, is try butcher paper instead.

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I stopped doing the 3,2,1 method

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Right. I haven't used 3,2,1 in years because it results in ribs that are too mushy soft, as in the bone falls out as you pick up the rib and I don't like mushy rib meat, preferring some slight resistance as the meat pulls away from the bone.

Cooking ribs is really easy.

I pull the membrane from the back side, season and cook with indirect heat from charcoal with water-soaked wood chips at 225 - 250 degrees for maybe 90 minutes, then increase the heat to 250-300 for 20-30 minutes, watching them as they dry out. If anyone wants sauce on their ribs, I will add it during the last 20 minutes, so that it dries out before pulling the ribs.

I also monitor the bones at the edges as the ribs cook. When the rib meat pulls back, exposing the bone ends, they are done and the ribs need to be pulled.

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You've lost it. Maybe take a break, re-read the thread and count your downvotes

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Jesus who gives a frick about that.

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Jesus who gives a frick about that.

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This attitude isn't going to help with your issues.

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everyone seems to want the "fall off the bone" ribs

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My dearly departed mother was an excellent cook, except for ribs. She would simply grill them over direct heat and then sauce them. They were terribly tough and filled every crevice between your teeth. I was in college before I ever had a tender rib and it blew my mind that ribs could be tender. When those BBQ competition shows started airing in the mid 2000's I learned about the wrap technique and I started making ribs on my own again because now I knew how to make them tender. This eureka moment and my childhood experience with ribs is perhaps why I like the wrap technique so much.


ETA- regarding the bbq competition shows, there was always a People's Choice award for all the categories and the winner was never the same as the judge's. I'd rather win a people's choice, I would take more pride in that than the judge's choice.