Yesterday was a tough one!
Deb had brought home what I thought was a big rack of spares....turns out there were 3 big 'uns in that pack...I double checked and saw she paid about $37 for 'em. Okay, I've done trips before. How do I get a small hot fire without lots of smoke? Sent a PM to Smokeasaurus and he sent me a rapid response. I was looking to do 2 racks in the Old Country Pecos and one in the Weber Kettle with the new SMOKENATOR Deb also brought home...yes, the SMOKENATOR!!!!! That'll take a whole nuther post, but let me say, it works as advertised and I'm gonna be usin' it a LOT! Thank you, Deb!
SO...I was cookin' along real steady following Smoke's instructions until the 15 to 20 mph winds kicked in. After that, there wasn't much I could do to keep the fire. The backdraft kept pushing the fire and smoke back into the chamber and even back thru the firebox. By the time, I foiled the ribs, they already has that creosote taste. I finished 'em off in foil, etc and they LOOKED real good. However, I took 'em off too soon and they were still tough. PLUS...That taste was awful and I was sick knowing that was $37 in the trash. Well, I didn't want to tell Deb they were trash, so I wrapped 'em and put 'em in the fridge thinking I would save 'em till Dee and Don came back ( they'll eat any of my food and tell me how great it is). I was still burned about it when I went to bed.
As I was thinkin' about it, the idea came to me..."rinse of all the rub and see if that makes a difference." So, this morning, I rinsed them thoroughly in hot water, removing as much of the rub as I could. Then I put them on a rack inside a large foil pan and added enough apple cider so as not to get 'em wet. Then I sealed the pan and put it in the over @ 275 for a couple of hours.
Well, well, well... when I took 'em out they were tender as my heart AND there was NONE of the creosote taste whatsoever. Deb was ecstatic and I was very thankful that we had saved, not only $37, but all those ribs which now taste so good.
The reason I'm sharing this is not because I am so schmart, but I had this idea come to me and I figgered, "if it doesn't work, what the heck...they're gone anyway." But it DID work.
This cook also opens a can or two of worms...
1. If rinsing off all the rub took away the creosote taste, does that mean none of it penetrated the meat? If the Creosote didn't' penetrate, does the smoke? OR, is it contained in the layer of rub? I don't know the answer. Y'all know I'm no rocket surgeon when it comes to smokin'.
2. If finishing them off in that big foil pan in the oven worked so well...why am I killin' myself keepin' the smoker goin' for an extra 2 hours to finish them therein?
