need a little help with my ribs

[sluggo]

been trying to learn on my new Traeger. Did a Turkey came out okay, so I tried some ribs.

Bought some spare ribs from the Sam's, 3 in a pack.
Took them out & cut them St.Louis style (learned that from yoUtube). so far so good. I put some rub on that a friend gave me. He does a lot of ribs, that's what he used, & I have eaten his ribs, which I thought were prett good.

So I let me ribs sit in the refrig for about 24 hours, with the rub on. After I pulled the turkey, I put the ribs on. I had the Traeger set on 'smoke' which keeps the dome temp between 200-250 (the ambient temp that night was around 35f) I left them on for about 3-31/2 hrs. took them off & put on some sauce.

1) they were very salty
2) they were not very tender- I think I need to leave them on the Traeger longer.

any ideas are greatl appreciated!! thanks- Pete

 

[surfinsapo]

The rub probably gave the salt taste. Try leaving them on a little bit longer...

 

[Bruce B]

1. There was a lot of salt in the rub and when you let it sit for 24 hours it actually began to cure the meat. Giving it a salty taste and I would hazard a guess a little hammy taste to it.

2. They need to cook longer. Spares on my WSM at 250º will take about 6 hours maybe 6 1/2. If you hold the rack with tongs at one end and they bend almost 90º and look like they want to tear in the middle they are done.

 

[Nick Prochilo]

What everybody said! Try the 3-2-1 method.

 

[sluggo]

3-2-1

3-2-1 method?
3hrs on smoke
2rs foiled
1hr on smoke? on the grill
thanks for your help!!!!

 

[Nick Prochilo]

Re: 3-2-1

3-2-1 method?
3hrs on smoke
2rs foiled
1hr on smoke? on the grill
thanks for your help!!!!

Yup! Don't put the rub on overnight. Rub them down just prior to putting them on the smoker.

 

[Captain Morgan]

also, make sure you're not buying enhanced ribs. The salt injection turns good ribs into ham on a stick.

 

[SoEzzy]

also, make sure you're not buying enhanced ribs. The salt injection turns good ribs into ham on a stick.

Sam's round here are good non-enhanced ribs. Can't talk about them in the rest of the country though!

I wouldn't go more than 4 hours with a rub in the fridge, I prefer rubbing down meat as the pit warms up, then it goes straight on inside an hour or so!

 

[Greg Rempe]

Also remember that the 3-2-1 method is a guideline...you can adjust the foil time to meet your needs...the longer you leave them in the foil the more "fall off the bone" they will become (mushyness factor)

 

[Gomer1]

Yea I agree with Greg on playing w/ the foil time, I know the next time I do baby backs I will foil for less time.

 

[cleglue]

I foil only about 45 minutes. And as other have said 6 hours for spare ribs.

 

[Ratman]

Here's a link to a yahoo group for pellet heads

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/traegergrills/

I've got a traeger and also use the 3-2-1 method as a guideline but like others make adjustments as I cook.

 

[Christopher1]

What everyone else said.

1. I don't rub overnight.
2. Look for meat shrinking up the ends of the bones a good 3/4-1 inch, it's a good first indicator your ribs are getting close.
3. The bend test works well as Bruce stated.
4. The Traeger on the Smoke setting cooks a little lower than I usually do on my other cookers. I believe the temperature range on smoke is more like 180°F-220°F. You'll need to adjust timing for this slightly lower temperature range.