First Smoke done and over...

[standles]

Well this weekend I got to christen the DBS into service.

I decided to get some baby backs (3 racks) / half a pork loin  from Sams and give it a whirl.

Made up a rub that next time will use less Crushed red pepper and Chipotle powder.

Rubbed em down and fridged for the night.

Preheated the smoker to 250 degrees and brought the meat to room temp.

Loaded the DBS and set for 3 hours of hickory. also set to temp back to 210deg f

After the smoke was done I rotated the racks and sprayed each item with a 5-1 mixture of apple juice and makers mark.

The rotate spritz occured every hour for 4 more hours.

Total time 7 hours and then heavy spritx and FTC for 2 hours

Results:
   Ribs had a good smoke taste and were done.  The rub was a little overpowering so I will adjust next time around.   The ribs were not as tender as I had hoped.  They were ok but still had to gnaw the bone some.  The ribs and loin were a little dry.  Thought the spritzing would have helped that.   Maybe next time brine/inject the loin and sop the ribs instead of spritzing.     The FTC did not work as well as I had hoped.  Maybe longer next time or go to Ice's method and pop them in the convection oven.

Suggestion and/or comments are welcome.   I want to start tweaking now so I can get the "perfect rib"  I would psot pics but then there are none left.

Steven

[Habanero Smoker]

What internal temperature did you bring the loin up to. I only take mine to 145°F, and it always comes out moist.

[SKSmoker]

For me, I ditched the 210F awhile ago and started cooking everything at 250F. My last bactch of ribs <9 lbs>, took 8 hours at 250F and they were just right, and that was the only thing I was cooking. Your ribs will be tough if you do not cook them long enough. I did this the first time I cooked with my 6 rack DBS, and I was thinking "what the hell is wrong with these ribs?!?!". I then cooked them for another 2 hours in the oven and they were melty good!

You went 7 hours, which might not have been enough especially with a half loin in there. I know at 210F for me, nothing really got done in any amount of reasonable time, so I kicked it up, and haven't looked back.

here are my ribs at 250F to give you an idea.

[standles]

Internal tempeerature of the loin was 155 when I pulled it.    :'(

Definately some nice looking ribs there.   Mine were not that dark and I didn't see any meat pulling away from the bone ends.   I hope it is just a matter of longer next time.   

I will also limit mixing types until I get a better feel for it.   

This weekend I will kick it up to 250 and try a little longer.   I guess I can start twisting a bone here and there checking for doneness when I spritz and rotate racks.    My issue with this batch was I had to have them ready at a specific time for company.   I am startin to see specific times and smoking are not related  ;D    When its done its done and not before.

Steven

[SKSmoker]

The one thing I have learned is that to start earlier than you think you will be done, then you can always FTC. I FTC'd those ribs, and they were terrific! Nothing better than cleaning the smoker up at 1pm and lazing around the rest of the day knowing your supper is in your cooler just waiting to be eaten :)

I'll give you some times from my experience when doing ribs.

1st try - 3 racks ribs, ~6lbs - 2 racks done first @ 6 hrs, last rack needed oven for 2hrs. Total time 8hrs for last rack. (Temp start at 210F, kicked it up to 240 for last 3hrs to "get them going" <no rotation>

2nd try  - 3 racks ribs ~9lbs - Rotated racks front to back, up and down every hour on the hour for full cook. Sprayed with 50/50 apple juice maple syrup combo, every 30 mins, after the first 1.5hrs of cooking. I hosed them down really good too. Total time for all ribs was 8hrs, no oven needed. Temp 250F.


Pork loin might be better suited to the grill, but that is just me. Pretty lean peice of meat for a long cook. Pork loin does have a different texture. your IT on the loin is spot on. I cook all my pork tenderloin to 155F on the grill and they are juicy.

[icerat4]

The only reason i put my smoked food in the oven after the smoke is .Its a convection and has nice even heat.Other wise most stuff i smoke stays in til finish.Except for the chicken and ribs.To the grille or oven.Even convection heat is awesome.

[wicz]

SKSmoker,  Have you done a Brisket at 250 yet?  I tried a brisket at 200 and I had to bump it up to 230 to get it done.  It took forever (20 Hrs) for the brisket to hit 185 int temp.  If so, how offen do you spray your brisket?

Your apple juice and maple syrup sounds great.  I will need to try that with my next baby backs.

[standles]

Thanks for the timings and temps for the ribs.     

I will try and follow suit on the next set this weekend.    I was scared aboutthe loin for the very reason of it being a lean cut.    I may try to inject it next time or just smoke and finish another method.

And yep Ice the oven in covect.   I tried one of them one time at a friends house and bought one for my house as well.   The even controllable heat is awsome for baking and such.


Steven

PS.

Maybe I can get pictures next time before we eat and are all to lazy to get the camera.   I mean that would entail getting up and having to rebutton your pants for goodness sake.

[SKSmoker]

wicz: here is my brisket post:
http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=5180.0

In my experience, as I have outlined here, 210F for me has been just too low to get anything cooked. Once I started turning it up, you can see the meat sizzle and cook in the smoker, then the goodness starts to happen. I only sprayed my brisket once, as it never really needed it. I used straight apple juice back then. If you are using maple syrup, of course by pure maple syrup.. the other stuff isn't that good :P heat the syrup so it blends with the apple juice and put it in a spritzer. Works marvelous.

Ok, enough of hijacking a thread :)

[standles]

Hijack nothing... ;D

I am finding out that some of the techniques are common to all the meats.   Looks like a good brisket.  I will definately reference back to this when I start that episode of my smoker career.  LOL

First tough I have to master the rib...... :-\

[SKSmoker]

2nd attempt I am completley confident that you will *nail* the ribs. The first try is a learning experience!