Finally shoveled the snow off my deck

[digger]

After searching every place I could think of local for a thermometer, I just picked up a "universal" one from Lowes. Was held in with a 5/16 nut. Hole in the top of the grill was about 2". I welded a pc of 16ga to the inside, drilled a 5/16 hole and a little paint. Doesn't look bad and now I have something besides "warm, ideal, hot."

First time I had the royal oak wood charcoal, the kind that looks like burnt wood, not the briquettes. Is that what you are using Beason?
I was able to keep the temp between 200 and 250.

Next time using Kingsford briquettes and starting with a full chimney of charcoal, I had to add charcoal to the grill side before I could get past 160 after an hour or so. Seems like the wood stuff burnt hotter. I never cared for it and picked it up by mistake. Think I'll try it again though.

Couple of questions on ribs. What cut are you guys getting and what should I look for on them?
Last few I got had a lot of fat on them.

Neobart, after re-reading this post, tell me more about your ribs.
I know a brine is water and salt to start. What else?
What's in the "tomato/rum flavored sauce?"
That sounds good.

Anybody else got recipes?

 

[beason]

yes i use the royal oak, i made the mistake of buying heb brand natural wood charcoal a few weekends ago. ill never do that again.

you can play with the damper and get more heat. leave the stack wide open, but close the damper 1/4 to 1/2. this will cause the air to be sucked it and the stuff will burn hotter.

i just get reg pork ribs, look for some without a ton of fat. you want to trim the fat on the back side (the no meat side) so there is about 1/4in of fat only. i mix my dry seasoning with olive oil and make a paste, then smear that on it. let it sit overnight in the fridge. take it out of the fridge about an hour before i want to start cooking so it comes up to room temp.

I've heard of the brine soak and stuff, but my ribbs have always been really juicy and fall off the bone, so i havent tried it. if it aint broke...

good luck man!

 

[neobart]

Digger, we used a 15% salt brine as simple as that. As for the sauce, I have no clue what was in it besides the basic ingredients. As time went by we moved from making everything from scratch to getting marinades and stuff like that ready made.
It's a sad development IMO, but I don't know how we can reverse it. Hell I used to cut 2 cows a week and 20 pigs or so, plus all the sausages and smoked goods we made. Now, we are less but have more work......... it's kinda hard to get things done without a little help.

I don't think the sauce was the real secret to our ribs, it's the 2 hours in the brine and overnight curing that does the trick. Hmmm come to think of it, I suggest you adjust the brine to 9%. I seem to remember them being just a bit to salty for my taste....then again I use very little salt as it is, so it may just be me.

 

[digger]

Beason, never did like the wood. But I could get the smoker up to temp with it. And it is cheaper than the Kingsford. Gonna pick up a few bags next time I'm out. Best thing I've done is put another temp gauge on. I bought it last spring. Tried to use it for a smoker twice. The rest of the time I just used it like a grill. You've helped me a lot.
Oh yeah, I got "country style spare ribs," last week. I think?
Was on sale. 9 bucks got a lot of meat, just had to pick through the fat. It was damn good. Still is. Got some in the fridge for later.

Main thing I need to do now is to get an earlier start if I'm gonna smoke...
If I grill I gotta have a beer. Just something about the smell of charcoal.

Neobart, Just salt in the water? Pickling salt?
Was wondering about the rub ya used. Said there was a lot of brown sugar in it.
I've got several things in the cabinet. Never mix them, just sprinkle everything on the night before. Brown sugar is one of them.

Thanks guys. I'm getting hungry now.