I have been watching some BBQ shows like BBQ Pitmasters etc... (maybe a mistake, I have not decided just yet) and I have a couple of questions for the pros on this site:
1) I noticed most of the dudes on there smoke a rack of ribs at 275 for about 4 hours - any thoughts on that?
2) Many of them wrap the ribs for the last hour meat side down on a bed of different mixtures - it seems rather common to put it on brown sugar and honey - some use a little apple juice - what are some thoughts on that? I really like a smokier rib and not so sweet so I am wondering if anyone uses that method and how to cut down on the sweetness with different products during the foil wrap.
3) I watched them cut up some ribs in a St. Louis style that looked outstanding - for those of you who like the St. Louis style over the Baby Backs - what is the reason for your preference? (I don't know that I have ever had St. Louis style ribs so I have nothing to compare - other than I prefer BB's to beef ribs)
Thanks for any input!
I think your questions have been thoroughly answered but I'm chiming in from a competitor's point of view. My comments:
1. Pitmasters is engineered by the producer to draw ratings. It bears very little to no resemblance to how barbeque contests work or how the people in them behave.
2. 275 is a pretty common temperature for rib smoking. Most smokers that use wood based fuels produce good flavors in this range. Most of the rib recipes I've ever seen ran between 235 and 275 degrees.
3. Wrapping ribs in foil speeds tenderness and helps retain moisture -- very beneficial in competition. Sugars, honey, apple juice, and other stuff is commonly added during the foil stage to both amplify flavor and create an outer flavor "shell". A few purists do not use foil and condemn it as the "Texas crutch". Excellent ribs can be produced with and without it and the argument is useless. As to sweetness, cook what you like to eat -- sweet sauces and rub flavors are popular right now.
4. in competition, St Louis style ribs dominate heavily. They are easier to cut evenly, usually contain more meat between the bones, and have a more uniform appearance than backs. Backs taste just fine but aren't as judge-friendly when it comes to meat uniformity and bone formation.
Probably the most common way to cook ribs is the 3-2-1 method. This doesn't actually mean 3 hours bare, 2 hours in foil, and 1 hour bare again (but makes a useful illustration of the time usage parameters. Cookers, rib meat thickness, temperatures and other things vary but the basic structure of starting out with the ribs open on the grids for a while to gain smokiness, then wrapping to keep moisture and hasten tenderness, then "finishing" with a little more open time at the end. You use the method and adapt the time to your taste and equipment -- see the article on it in my section.
Hub