Smoking meat advice.

So we ended up with a Masterbuilt GS40 gas smoker. This weekend we put an 8# pork butt and two 3# racks of ribs on the smoker. The rub was great and the flavors turned out awesome.

Here what leads to my question. The “bark” on the ribs seemed a bit tough when we ate the ribs same day.

The left over ribs the next day were much better (bark was softer and flavor was 10X better).

The left over ribs on day three were much much better (bark was very soft and flavor was 100X better).

Question: How do I (or can I) get soft bark on day one? Or do all you guys let your meat rest for a day or so before serving?

I have a feeling my ribs were on the smoker to long (about 10 hours). The pork butt was perfect after that amount of time (about 10 hours).

sounds like you had them on for a bit to long.. I would think you could get the ribs done in 3 or 4 hours depending on temps..

sounds like you dehydrated them a bit and after refrigeration they rehydrate making them softer..

Pan of water or apple juice under the racks will do wonders.Maybe on a little to long.I get mine off at 5 to 6 hours,smoking at about 250.

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Pan of water or apple juice under the racks will do wonders.Maybe on a little to long.I get mine off at 5 to 6 hours,smoking at about 250.

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Damn those look good!!!

It has been my experience that smoked pork is much better after it sits a day or so, I do not know the exact reason but suspect it is due to the fat content.

I do a pan of water under mine, and spray with apple juice every hour or so.

They did have a pan of water/apple juice under them the whole time. 225 degrees cooking temp.

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They did have a pan of water/apple juice under them the whole time. 225 degrees cooking temp.

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Did you remove the membrane?Salty dry rub?Wrap tightly in foil for an hour before serving?
Must not have been to bad,you ate on them three days in a row!

Wade, try doing the meat earlier in the day and then wrapping in foil to cool completely. An hour before you want to eat, slip the meat in a warm oven [250 degrees] with a tray of juice under it making sure the meat is uncovered during this phase. The cooloing in the tent of foil will help to soften that bark but not harm the favor one bit.

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Did you remove the membrane?Salty dry rub?Wrap tightly in foil for an hour before serving?
Must not have been to bad,you ate on them three days in a row!

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Yes, pulled off membrane. I wouldn’t say the Dry rub was “to” salty.

I agree with letting the meat sit for a couple of hours in foil. I usually wait 2-3 hours wrap it up in foil and put it in an empty cooler in the house. This should not effect the temp too much but the rest time re-hydrates the meat and it has turned out awesome. I have only done this with brisket but the bark that 10+ hours in the smoker creates hasn’t been too hard to eat.

I ran into the same thing, as I quit grilling with gas. Too me gas dries the meat out while cooking. Have you ever tried charcoal, thats why I switched.

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Did you remove the membrane?Salty dry rub?Wrap tightly in foil for an hour before serving?
Must not have been to bad,you ate on them three days in a row!

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Yes, pulled off membrane. I wouldn’t say the Dry rub was “to” salty.

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Sounds like your doing it right just need a few more practice runs.Try the foil wrap and see if that’s more to your liking.I always wrap loins or roasts with a little vegetable or chicken broth for an hour or so.

Wade, 2-2-1 or 3-2-1 method depending on baby back or spare ribs.

I thought I had done a wright up for ribs, but it seems to elude me.

Here is a quick run down,,,,

3-2-1 is for Spare Ribs
2-2-1 is for Baby Back Ribs

3-2-1 method is put the ribs in a 225 degree smoker for 3 hours after the 3 hours foil them tight and back in the smoker for 2 hours then take them out of the foil and back into the smoker for 1 hour.

2-2-1 is the same method only change in the times

Many people will spritz (juice)/mop (diluted swauce) the ribs after the first 1-1.5 hours each 45 minutes – 1 hour. Many also add a little of the spritz/mop to the foil before sealing it. If you are going to baste with sauce many do that in the last hour

I typically do a little sauce and foil wrap for the last hour or so, maybe that’s why mine are never dry or tough.

Denny O is right on. 2-2-1 or 3-2-1 method at 225 degrees and you can’t go wrong. No need to take the temp of the ribs because they are usually done being in that long. I did baby backs with the 2-2-1 method and they turned out great. I added honey, apple juice and a little brown sugar on one rack when I foiled and the other was maple syrup, apple juice and brown sugar on the other. MMMM good

Love this discussion!!!

My question is what kind of temp gauge are you using to determine 225? Mine door/lid temp dial is notoriously off depending on wind and outside ambient air temp, so are you going off a thermometer on the grate itself? I’ve gone to that route, and am having a hard time getting my gas smoker to smoke that low. Might have to shield the burner better, but on all but the calmest days, the breeze usually blows out the burner.

Thanks for all who have provided such great input!

Joel

Joel,

Maverick makes a good wireless one that I really like. My smoker is about 15 degrees off on the digital control so I just adjust the temp to what I want based on the maverick.

Also, regarding the “hard” bark, too much smoke will also produce a hard bark. I don’t like wrapping my meat in foil, or mopping it as it just lets the heat out of the smoker every time you open the door. I put in a pan of water / apple juice, load up one batch of wood chunks, close the door. Depending on what I’m smoking, come back in X hours and eat.

I use an electric most of the time. I do charcoal once in a while when I want to sit around and drink beer and babysit the smoker.

Every smoker is different in some way and everyone’s smoking methods will vary. You’ll be doing this for a long time Wade. Take all the info in and apply it as you go. Sooner or later you’ll find “your own way” for doing pork cuts, beef cuts, poultry and your venisons.

Now that you’re hooked, wait until the sausage bug bites down on ya. lol

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Denny O is right on. 2-2-1 or 3-2-1 method at 225 degrees and you can’t go wrong. No need to take the temp of the ribs because they are usually done being in that long. I did baby backs with the 2-2-1 method and they turned out great. I added honey, apple juice and a little brown sugar on one rack when I foiled and the other was maple syrup, apple juice and brown sugar on the other. MMMM good

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This is exactly right.

What’s happening is that the outer layer of meat is drying out in the smoker. Then when it sits for a few days, it pulls moisture and condensation back in, so it rehydrates and gets more tender again in days 2-3.

Use the foil and you solve the problem.

Grouse

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Love this discussion!!!

My question is what kind of temp gauge are you using to determine 225? Mine door/lid temp dial is notoriously off depending on wind and outside ambient air temp, so are you going off a thermometer on the grate itself? I’ve gone to that route, and am having a hard time getting my gas smoker to smoke that low. Might have to shield the burner better, but on all but the calmest days, the breeze usually blows out the burner.

Thanks for all who have provided such great input!

Joel

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Joel, as John stated, the wireless are great. Much more accurate than the “idiot gauge” that my charcoal smoker came with. I also like having the longer probe to extend down to the first shelf so I can get an accurate reading where the meat is at. 15 degree temp difference is common from the shelf to the top of the lid.

have yet to have seen one in action, but there’s an app for the I phone where you can put a wireless probe into the center of the meat and in your smoker which will monitor the internal temp of your shoulder/breast/ribs whatever. I agree that the first rule is to tear out those temp gauges in the cover/door. There’s so many wired and wireless probes either in the meat or keeping track of the internal temp of the smoker. Makes the learning curve much shorter. I know some who swear by the crutch method, (which will soften the bark)then adding the char again over coals the next day. I think this allows the smoke ring to better penetrate the meat. Gosh, gotta go find those ribs I did over the weekend.

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What’s happening is that the outer layer of meat is drying out in the smoker. Then when it sits for a few days, it pulls moisture and condensation back in, so it rehydrates and gets more tender again in days 2-3.

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exactly. it also softens the bark.

10 hours for ribs is too long. there is no need to let meat cool down and reheat before you serve. sometimes if you have alot of sugars in your sauce and you sauce too early you can get a hard bark that isn’t appetizing.

Here is one I just ordered, the Maverick ET732.
http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-Wireless-BBQ-Thermometer-Set/dp/B004IMA718/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1369914834&sr=8-1&keywords=maverick+et+732