Not the results I hoped for!

[BobT]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
Didn‘t have rub called for in recipe so I tried “Butt Rub” which I’ve used many times before but not on Traeger.
For the spritz I used apple juice every 45 minutes.
On the grill for 6 hours at 225 and in the last hour I basted with BBQ sauce.
Temperatures before putting the BBQ on were 196 to 205 depending on what the thickness of the ribs was. BBQ on and 30 minutes later read temps of 180 - 200.
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

 

[Wayne55]

I used the 3-2-1 method on my first baby back ribs and they were phenomenal!

 

[M.Wong]

Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.

Hi Bob!

I am still new but I had a similar experience and got some good suggestions here:

Pork - My first attempt 3-2-1 pork ribs... a question

Hello everyone! New to Traeger... I have completed my first cook! I would like to know the easiest modification to get a more tender (but not overcooked ‘fall off the bone’) result? The flavor was good, the meat was moist, and overall I would call it successful, but I think a little less...

www.traegerforum.com

 

[BobT]

Thanks for the replies guys, I will be trying again but won’t be for awhile.
I’m going to keep a close eye on suggestions in this thread before I try again.
When I do try again I will be sure to post results.
Here is a photo of yesterday’s attempt.

 

[Slimpicker]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
.....
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
.....
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

All you needed was to foil wrap during the cook, at least 2 hours, and they would have softened up and not been so "rub strong".

You could have actually foiled for 2 hours after you taste tested them and found them to be dry... it would not have hurt them on a lower heat, like 225ish

 

[BobT]

All you needed was to foil wrap during the cook, at least 2 hours, and they would have softened up and not been so "rub strong".

You could have actually foiled for 2 hours after you taste tested them and found them to be dry... it would not have hurt them on a lower heat, like 225ish

Interesting.
Read your reply and started thinking, what if I try to reheat in microwave with apple juice in the container.
Figured what the heck because they are only in the fridge until garbage day so I gave it a try.
Three ribs, couple ounces apple juice into microwave for 2 minutes.
Well, sure is better than it was, meat will easily come off the bone, certainly not as dry and the overpowering taste of the rub is gone.
Still not the way I would like it but better than just tossing in the garbage.
Thanks for ideas!

 

[M.Wong]

Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.

And now I am thinking, does this guy have the best Caesar salad recipe on the planet?

 

[BobT]

Not the best but sure was better than Thursday’s ribs!

 

[YYCRed]

Late on this, @BobT , but were you using the built-in temperature probe or another one (like InkBird or FireBoard)? I'm not sure if the tailgater has the same issues as the Timberline, but maybe you weren't cooking at the 225 you thought?

 

[Houseboater]

I just tried a couple of methods yesterday with two racks of baby backs on my Pro575. Temp was at 250 for the duration of 5 hours. Both racks I used a combination of Meat Church Honey hog and Plowboys Yardbird rub. Smoked for 3 hours and then wrapped one rack in foil, meat side down in honey, brown sugar, butter and cider vinegar for the next two hours. Spritzed the non-wrapped rack hourly, meat side up and kept it on the smoker for the same additional two hours. At 5 hours total, I unwrapped the foiled rack, lightly sauced it with Sweet Baby rays and returned to the smoker for about 20 minutes to set the sauce. The non-wrapped, un-sauced rack was done at 5.5 hours so both were out. Let rest and cut both and found the following: Wrapped 3-2-1 version was preferred by all for texture as we like fall off the bone. Flavor was also preferred as the rub had mellowed out a bit but was still prevalent. The unwrapped rack had a great bark but was certainly tougher to the bite and had a stronger rub flavor. Perhaps because I did not sauce it but this was just an experiment trying different techniques. I am no pit master but am really enjoying the entire smoking process and just thought I would share some results...

 

[2dicksons]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
Didn‘t have rub called for in recipe so I tried “Butt Rub” which I’ve used many times before but not on Traeger.
For the spritz I used apple juice every 45 minutes.
On the grill for 6 hours at 225 and in the last hour I basted with BBQ sauce.
Temperatures before putting the BBQ on were 196 to 205 depending on what the thickness of the ribs was. BBQ on and 30 minutes later read temps of 180 - 200.
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

I know there is some debate about wrapping or not. I typically wrap my ribs in foil about 1/2 of the way through the cooking and I can't think of a time where they came out dry. Another lesson I have learned about pork ribs (and pulled pork) is you have to let it get to at least 202 throughout. From a tenderness standpoint I believe there is actually a big difference in 195 to 202. So I'll make sure its at least in the 200's everywhere before finishing. If its 196 in the meatiest part of the rib, i think you are going to end up with a bit chewier ribs than you'd like and and not that fall off the bone tenderness that you might be aiming for.

 

[Grill Monster]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
Didn‘t have rub called for in recipe so I tried “Butt Rub” which I’ve used many times before but not on Traeger.
For the spritz I used apple juice every 45 minutes.
On the grill for 6 hours at 225 and in the last hour I basted with BBQ sauce.
Temperatures before putting the BBQ on were 196 to 205 depending on what the thickness of the ribs was. BBQ on and 30 minutes later read temps of 180 - 200.
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

Tried and true 3-2-1 method is my best friend when it comes to cooking ribs. Smoke them for about 3 hours (to 160 degrees) at cook temp of 225 degrees, wrap them for two hours with apple juice, butter, and honey…plus add a little more heat to the Traeger depending on the size of the ribs, cooked to 195 degrees. Then about 1/2 hour to 1 hour or so to baste with bbq sauce. I have cooked ribs many different ways but this is the most consistent way for me to get them right every time I use this method.

 

[Lbeberdick]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
Didn‘t have rub called for in recipe so I tried “Butt Rub” which I’ve used many times before but not on Traeger.
For the spritz I used apple juice every 45 minutes.
On the grill for 6 hours at 225 and in the last hour I basted with BBQ sauce.
Temperatures before putting the BBQ on were 196 to 205 depending on what the thickness of the ribs was. BBQ on and 30 minutes later read temps of 180 - 200.
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

3 2 1 is never fail for fall off the bone. For competition type, (stay on bone, with easy bite through) try 3, 1, 30 min

 

[Treater Since 2008]

Well, yesterday I did the first ribs on my tailgater and I sure didn’t get the results I was hoping for.
I was originally going to follow the Traeger St. Louis BBQ ribs recipe but had b doing a lot of reading about not wrapping, just leaving on grill for total cook so we thought that might be the way to go.
Didn‘t have rub called for in recipe so I tried “Butt Rub” which I’ve used many times before but not on Traeger.
For the spritz I used apple juice every 45 minutes.
On the grill for 6 hours at 225 and in the last hour I basted with BBQ sauce.
Temperatures before putting the BBQ on were 196 to 205 depending on what the thickness of the ribs was. BBQ on and 30 minutes later read temps of 180 - 200.
Pulled them off and wrapped in foil to rest for about 45 minutes.
Butt Rub was too strong, I guess I used too much but ribs were dry.
Not pull off the bone like I hoped they would be.
Needless to say neither myself or my better half was impressed. The Caesar salad was the best part of the meal.
Any thoughts from more experienced folks out there?

Bob, sorry to hear your ribs didn’t come out as expected. Sounds,Ike you might be having an issue with the temperature indicator like many Traeger’s these days have. But cooking for 6 hours should have been more than enough to make up for the low temp. I learned that my Traeger runs 20 deg lower than indicated. So I set my temp 20-25 deg higher.
Here’s my recipe for baby backs.
Rub Worcestershire sauce liberally all over the ribs. Put BBQ rub all over the ribs and rub until it forms a paste (might have to add more sauce or rub, maybe both until you get the paste). I use TexasBarBQue Rub (can buy it online - has won awards at the Houston Rodeo bbq cookoff). Place on a preheated and temp balanced smoker at 225 deg. Smoke for 2 hours. Remove from grill and make a tin foil tent that can hold a liquid. Place the ribs onto the tin foil and liberally pour apple juice all over the ribs then fold the foil into a tent with the ends about 1/2 open. Smoke for an additional hour (3hr total cook time).
Remove and enjoy. Hope you find success with your ribs!

 

[DoofusOfTheDay]

Salt and Pepper, 250 degrees about 4 hours or until they look right, have rendered fat and poke like butter.