I bought a small Traeger wood pellet automated smoker/grill and on the first run smoked and cooked 3 racks of pork ribs at the apparent gospel of 4 hours at 250 degrees. I was happy with the smoke ring and they were plenty juicy while also being properly cooked. However, though not dry they were a little tougher than I would like. So a solid B effort.
My goal, the perfection of ribs as I know them, is to have them tender enough to come clean off the bone when you bite into them and yet the meat stays on the bone where you did not (fall of the bone is overcooked IMHO).
So. In the second attempt what do I do? Cook hotter? Longer? I’d rather not slow cook them first (both because of hassle and I suspect prevents proper smoking), and I am hesitant to use chemicals…somehow I just think this could and should be done with proper cooking.
Lower temp, probably longer as a result. You’ll get toughness if the fat runs too quickly. Who told you 250F? 225 is the highest I’ve seen recommended and I stay below that.
I have found that if I go too low, from experience appears to be below the boiling point of water (212F), something about it doesn’t turn out right. 225F seems about right.
250 is fine. I do ribs at 275 or so. I prefer barbecue done at these temps. What kind of ribs were they? Spares generally take me about 4-5 hours. Baby backs about 3-4. If you want them real soft, foil them for about 30 minutes max towards the end. Longer if you want fall-off the bone (which some people like and some consider overcooking. I’m in the latter camp.) Foiling is definitely not necessary for ribs, but one easy way of softening them up a bit relatively quickly if you want.
For me, the ideal texture is a meaty, with “tooth” to it, but tender. It should require a little effort (not much) to pull off the bone. I tend to like my spares slightly softer, and my baby backs a bit more “steaky” in texture.
As always, @pulykamell has beaten me to the punch. Mine take a little bit longer, but it depends on how low I can keep the temp. You might hear some people talk about 3-2-1 for spare ribs, but ignore them. That means 3 hours smoke, 2 hours wrapped, 1 hour open. You’ll have shredded ribs if you do that. I do 3-4 hours anywhere between 225° and 275°, lightly spritzing with an equal mix of apple juice and apple cider vinegar every 45-60 minutes. Then about 45 minutes wrapped tightly with about 1/4 cup of the spritzing liquid at around 275°. Finally, sauce and finish at around 325° to set the sauce, about 20 minutes per side (alternately, if you want a well-caramelized sauce, kick the heat up high and just grill (or broil in the oven) for a few minutes per side. Be careful not to let the sauce burn.
Bonus - the juices in the foil wrap can be added to any sauce one is using for a pork-flavor punch. Add to one’s sauce and let it reduce and thicken for a few minutes. Your ribs won’t mind the wait!
ETA: IMSNHO, wrapping > brining ribs for juiciness, though there is nothing wrong with an overnight DRY brine.
Sounds like D_Odds knows his ribs! Was going to say, similar to him and pulykamell, that if you want falling off the bone ribs, foiling is the way to go. But don’t take the 3-2-1 method as literal hours or you will have rib jerky, which is still not bad actually (speaking from long experience of trial and error). But there is definitely a school of thought that the ribs should have some bite to them. My brother-in-law and I have a friendly rivalry on that point- he like his ribs chewy and I like to render out that collagen.
I tried 3-2-1 early in my smoking education. I never even got to the final hour. I pretty much ended up with a foil pouch of rib soup. Not only was the meat mush, the rack had totally disintegrated. That’s not to say I didn’t eat it and found it tasty though not toothsome. In barbecue, we eat our mistakes.
Yes, whoever came up with 3-2-1 needs to be publicly flogged.
As for rendering, yes, I like my ribs with the collagen rendered, but not falling apart. Toothy but tender, especially with spare ribs. Baby backs are better for a firmer treatment, but spares, I feel, so benefit from a more rendered approach. Baby backs are more “loin like” and spares are more “shoulder like” in my head, though that’s not quite exact.