Beef Spare Ribs - Smoked on a Gas Grill?!


Question: I have smoked ribs many times on the gas grill using chips soaked then wrapped in foil. However, I recently heard that you smoke like this, but that you also add a pan of water for moisture / tenderness? Anyone heard of this? Anyone have a tried and true method.. I want fall off the bone ribs WITHOUT pre-boiling... I have all day and a full tank of gas..


Answers: I have smoked ribs many times on the gas grill using chips soaked then wrapped in foil. However, I recently heard that you smoke like this, but that you also add a pan of water for moisture / tenderness? Anyone heard of this? Anyone have a tried and true method.. I want fall off the bone ribs WITHOUT pre-boiling... I have all day and a full tank of gas..

When I smoke my ribs on a gas grill I always use a pan of water it makes them tender and they do fall off the bone
and no pre-boiling needed .
Place the ribs on a higher shelf and a shallow pan of water on the regular cooking surface. LOW and SLOW mine usually take about 90-120 minutes keep an eye on the water level and rotate the ribs every 30 minutes.

my husband usually does the grilling.
But he puts a pan of water or white wine in with the meat. He says this does make the meat more juicy and tender.

Grill the ribs on the grill without any wrapping in foil or putting in a pan.....and good golly dont boil them.....YUCK
Don't use a high flame but low-medium and take your time for the flavor and cooking to do it's job....
When the ribs are almost done....dip or brush your BBQ Sauce on (if you use that)....put the lid down let them smoke about 15 minutes with the sauce on.....Remove them...place in a good baking pan....stainless if possible...or enameled...add about 1 cup water to the pan....cover with foil and bake for at least 20 minutes on the short side and 30 on the long side....THIS WILL MAKE the meat on the ribs TENDER OUT....and not be DRIED OUT and hard from too high heat on the grill......or too long on the grill.
Gah- Rohn -Teee-D.....best ribs ever....make sure you get a good sauce.....that makes them yummier.....

You want to use a indirect cooking method...

There is a membrane with a fair amount of fat that runs along the backside of the ribs, and we tested the effects of removing it, scoring it, and leaving it alone. The best results--the juiciest meat with the most flavor--were had by means of the easiest route: simply leaving the membrane in place. The fat not only bastes the ribs as they cook but also renders to a crisp, baconlike texture. Using a simple mixture of salt, pepper, cayenne, and chili powder, we found that a mere 2 teaspoons rubbed into each rack were all that it took to bring out the flavor of the meat. The next question was how to turn our kettle grill into a backyard smoker. Hardwood charcoal was out; briquettes burn cooler and longer, making them perfect for barbecue. A single pile of coals on one side of the grill worked best, providing a slow, even fire that was easy to stoke with fresh coals and left more room for the ribs. The ideal temperature was a range of 250 to 300 degrees, and the ideal time was about 2 1?2 hours, which causes some, but not all, of the fat to render and makes the ribs juicy, tender, and slightly toothy. When cooked any longer, as is the case with pork ribs, the meat disintegrates into messy shreds, taking on a sticky, pot-roasted sort of texture that any real Texan would immediately reject.

Brine the ribs in a salt/brown sugar solution first...1-2 hours depending on the thickness of the ribs.

(Americas Test Kitchen and foodtv.com has many, many brine options)

Then dry rub and marinate (if you prefer) overnight.

Then cook like you have (gas grill, foil, chips, etc). but DO NOT let the grill temp get above 250F (for my gas grill...Weber 3 burner grill) this is Low, off, Low...with the ribs on a vertical rack in the center of the grill (indirect-heat)

The brine will bound the water molecules with salt (obviously) and bring their boiling point higher than just water alone. Cooking at a 225-250 will keep the temp lower than the boiling point for a longer time, thus retaining the moisture and tenderness.

I usually do 2-4 racks with this method and it takes about 4 hours...very tender and moist.

Good luck.





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