Cooking temp for butts,etc

[watchdog56]

I have always cooked my pork butts at 225 and I do a couple at a time. This takes anywhere from 16-20 hours meaning I get up in middle of night to change out water. Well after talking to my wife's
cousin he said he does his at 275 and when it usually goes through the stall around 160 it will only be about an hour and then goes right through it. It tried it and it only took me 7 1/2 hours to do an 8 pound butt. Bark was same, tenderness was same, and flavor was same so this may be the new way for me. Beats getting up at night. I will try 2 or more butts later in the year but I like this way. he says he does the same for brisket, not sure about ribs though I will have to ask him.

[Habanero Smoker]

On the competition circuit, many cooks will smoke/cook their ribs, butts, and brisket at 275° or higher. I know of some competitors that are cooking baby backs at 325°F. I use these temps in my charcoal cookers, but haven't tried in the Bradley. Now that I have the P10, I may experiment with higher temperatures with that smoker.

I do my spare ribs at 275°, and they come out great. It takes about 4 to 4.5 hours total (3-1-done). When I smoke/cook my briskets I use one of my charcoal cookers and cook at 325°F to 350°F; Myron Mixon hot and fast style. For this I will inject the brisket first. It comes out fine every time. Depending on the size, it's smoke/cooked naked for about 2.5 hours, when bark is set, wrap and continue cooking for about 1.5 hours (brisket should be about 205°F), then remove from smoker, wrap in a blanket and set aside at room temperature for 2 - 4 hours.

But for butts I still like to cook mine in the Bradley at 200°F, until it reaches an IT of 175°F. Naked all the way. It takes a long time. :)

[gizy-CA]

Habanero Smoker...Sir.
"I do my spare ribs at 275°, and they come out great. It takes about 4 to 4.5 hours total (3-1-done)"...
Can you explain what means 3-2-1 done Please.Thank you.

[TedEbear]

Habanero Smoker...Sir.
"I do my spare ribs at 275°, and they come out great. It takes about 4 to 4.5 hours total (3-1-done)"...
Can you explain what means 3-2-1 done Please.Thank you.

3-2-1 Rib Method

[Habanero Smoker]

It's 3-1-done. It may not be possible to do this in a Bradley other than the P10. I use this method with my charcoal cookers. In a modified Bradley, you may be able to cook at 250°, and adjust the times. This method is for bite off the bone spare ribs.

Step 1 - At 275°F cabinet temperature you smoke/roast your ribs for 3 hours naked. The smoke is being applied and the bark should set. At the end of 3 hours check your ribs. If the ribs are very flexible, lower your cabinet temperature to 225°F - 250°F. If they are still stiff stay at 275°F. I'm able to get fairly meaty spare ribs, so I've never had to adjust my cabinet temperature.

Step 2 - At the end of 3 hours, wrap your ribs. I use foil. I use Johnny Triggg's Method; steps 12 - 24 in the recipe listed. Make sure the foil doesn't tear, or you will loose a lot of juices that are produced during this period of the cook, and make a mess in your smoker. To be safe you can double foil. There are two theories of wrapping, one is to foil very tightly - this will prevent steam from building up inside the foil. The other theory is the foil loosely - this allows the steam to escape, and not build up. At this time I wrap tightly. After they are wrapped, cook for an additional hour. NOTE: You can use soft butter or margarine instead of a squeezable margarine. Instead of apple juice, you can use a couple of table spoons of either honey, maple syrup or agave syrup. The mixing and spreading of the ingredients on the foil can be skipped, if you spread all the ingredients evenly on the foil for the length of the ribs.

Step 3 - After 1 hour wrapped, remove from the smoker. Unwrap the ribs. You should notice that a few bones are now expose on the backside of the ribs. If  not wrap them back up and place in the smoker for about another 30 minutes. At this time I also use a bamboo skewer. When the skewer slides in and out with a little resistance, they are bite off the bone done. If you like them fall off the bone, put them back in the smoker.  Once the ribs are at the desired doness, remove them from the foil. Be careful when removing the foil. Steam will escape, and there is a lot of hot liquid. Baste the bone side with some warm sauce or glaze. Flip them over and baste the meat side. Then sprinkle about a tablespoon of rub over the meat side. Cover loosely with foil, and let rest for 30 minutes. Alternately, you can turn the smoker down to 250°F, and put them back into the smoker to set the sauce. I find letting them just rest works well. To make a glaze; if you have a thick sauce like Kraft, Sweet Baby Rays or Bulls Eye; use 2 parts sauce to 1 part apple juice (or other liquid).

One other tip. For Step 2, instead of brown sugar, if you can find it; use Domino's Granulated Brown Sugar. It make that step easier, and faster.

[Habanero Smoker]

watchdog56;
Sorry if I've highjacked this thread.

After rethinking this, you should be able to smoke/roast the ribs at 275°F in the P10. I should have mentioned when you unwrap the ribs be care of the steam releasing, and not spilling the liquid.

The below video is very similar to how I smoke my ribs. This is for competition style so you don't have to trim the ribs as much as he did; though to fit on a Bradley rack you may have to trim off one or two bones, or lay the ribs diagonally across the rack. Layering seasonings is optional. If you find a good commercial rub, or rub recipe one good layer works great.

At the 9:50 minute mark, it gives a good example of how the bone exposure should be. He also takes the temperature. I may start doing that also; along with testing with a bamboo skewer.

Competition Spare Ribs Recipe

[lauragorf]

My preferred way to cook pork is using a Polder with an internal temperature of 205°F. The temperature can be lower if the pork is small. Anyway, you should keep an eye on the pork during its cooking process and adjust the temperature accordingly. The pork won't taste delicious if it will be overcooked.

Generally speaking, cooking meat is a complex process that requires maximum attention and care. One of my favorite dishes is honey garlic chicken wings and cooking them without Polder makes the task harder.