total newbie question

[snokid]

I just bought the digital Bradley and I found a recipe online for baby back ribs they turned out great but I have a dumb question.
when I go to Friday's tony roma's, or like and I get baby back ribs I get a much smaller and more tender rib then what I got when I bought ribs at my meat market I got 3 racks vacuum sealed they said baby back, but the were much meatier and bigger then the restaurants ribs...
So what do I ask for if I want the smaller ribs?
Do I use the same times to cook them as the bigger one?
thanks
Bob

[KyNola]

In the industry there is a cut of baby back ribs called baby baby back ribs.  They are typically under a pound for the rack.  That is most likely what you are getting at your favorite restaurants.  As for a more tender rib, that's because they are over cooking them to begin with and most likely steaming them in the process.  You can accomplish the same thing with those larger ribs you purchased by wrapping them in foil with a little liquid after the smoking period.  Leave them in there long enough and they will fall right off the bone.

[snokid]

ok thank you...
I did a 3-2-1 at 220 degrees.
my ribs didn't pull back from the bone as much as the pictures I see, so I think they were undercooked a little...
I will go over what I did, maybe some goofed something up...
I let the ribs come to room temp for about 1/2 hour then I coated them with rub.  after they glazed up I put them in the smoker for 3 hours with jim beam oak.
after that I foil rapped them with apple juice cooked them for 2 more hours, then I unfoiled them and coated them with bbq sauce and let them cook 1 last hour.

next time I fire up the smoker I'm going to check to see if it's really 220 when I set it for that, a buddy of mine says he does his at 205 and they almost fall off the bone.
thanks again Bob

[Quarlow]

Snokid don't go by the thermometer on the door. go get yourself a probe style thermo and drop the probe down threw the vent. The door thermo is not accurate. Some folks (myself included) like to hang a couple of paperclips from the bottom of the rack we are smoking on and sling the probe under the rack which gives the best reading of what your food is getting for temps.

[KyNola]

You can't rely on the meat pulling back from the bone as an indicator of whether or not they are properly cooked.  Take a skewer or toothpick and insert it in the thickest part of the meat between the rib bones.  If the skewer/toothpick goes in and comes out of the meat with little resistance, the ribs are done.

Q has pointed you in the right direction with a probe style thermometer.  Many here use either the Maverick ET-732 or ET-733.  Both have a meat probe and an oven probe wired to a transmitter.  The transmitter then wirelessly sends the temp readings to a remote receiver so you don't have to open the door to monitor the respective temperatures.  Quite accurate too.  I run the wires through the door rather than down through the vent.  Makes rack rotation easier and you don't lose any smoke.  Just close the doors on the wires.

One other thing, you're being too hard on yourself.  Ribs are one of the more difficult things to get dialed in.

[snokid]

thanks guys.
just bought a wireless probe
I have the digital Bradley so I just set it on the control box for 220.  going to be smoking next Sunday so I will see if it's accurate.
thanks again
Bob