Smoking Ribs for Beginners

Step 1

Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees F.

Step 2

Trim the ribs and remove the membrane fron the back side of the rack.Brush a light coat of mustard on both sides and season liberally with dry rub. Refrigerate for 30 minutes placing ribs on the pit.

Step 3

Place ribs on the smoker and don’t open the door for two hours. This is the time when the ribs will absorb the most smoke

Step 4

Check the ribs to see if a bark has developed. If your rub has adhered to the meat gently mop or spray your ribs for the first time. Cook for another hour.

Step 5

Mop ribs for a second time and check temperature. If you’re happy with the color and the meat has an internal temperature of 160-170 degrees F. Then you can wrap in foil or butcher paper.

Step 6

Lay the ribs down on the foil or butcher paper bone side up. Place a few pats of butter on the rack then drizzle about a tablespoon of honey and a light sprinkle of additional dry rub. Wrap the ribs up tight and return them to the smoker. Continue smoking for another hour. If you would like you can raise the temperature as high as 275 degrees F. To speed up the cooking process because the meat is protected by the foil or butcher paper

Step 7

Gently unwrap and probe the meat. Generally, ribs are ready to eat at an internal temperature of 200-210 degrees F depending on personal preference. More important than the temperature, use the probe thermometer to test for tenderness. Poke the meat in between the bones to see if the ribs are tender. The probe should go into the meat with very little tension. If the meat still seems tough wrap the ribs back up and continue cooking for another 30-60 minutes and check again.

Step 8

Once the ribs are tender you may serve them dry or sauce them. If saucing unwrap the foil and fold over to create a tray to hold the juices so you can sauce the top.  Brush on a thin layer of sauce and smoke for another 30 minutes. You can sauce a few times depending on how saucy you like your ribs. Allow time for the sauce to adhere to the meat before slicing the ribs

Step 9

When cutting the ribs, it’s easier to turn the rack upside down so you can see the bones better and make clean cuts. You may lose a little sauce, but you can always baste a little extra on top when you turn them over.

Step 10

A perfect bite of ribs should be taken right in the center of the rib holding it like you would an ear of corn. The bite should leave a half moon bite mark and expose clean meat off the bone. If the whole rib falls off or doesn’t leave a clean bite, it’s likely over cooked. It may have been wrapped too long. Still tasty and delicious but you may want to reduce your wrap time in the future. If the bite seems tough or the meat doesn’t come off the bone clean you probably didn’t cook the meat long enough. In the future adjust the time accordingly