A few questions about spritzing pork spare ribs

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mythmaster

Master of the Pit
Original poster
SMF Premier Member
Mar 24, 2010
1,256
34
Guthrie, OK
I've only done ribs once, and I did them 3-2-1, but this time I want to try to do it without foiling them.  I plan to trim them St. Loius style, rub on some molasses, sprinkle generously with a Memphis rub, layer on some brown sugar, let the brown sugar caramelize, sprinkle on some more rub, and smoke them with Apple wood for about 6 hours at 225* in my MES.

So, I'm wondering about the following:

(a) do I need to spritz them at all?  (would spritzing help keep them from drying out?)

(b) If so, how often?

(c) Will spritzing affect the bark (for better or worse)?

If I decide to spritz then I was thinking about using Tip's Slaughterhouse spritz, but I don't have any cider or cider vinegar on hand.  So, maybe a combo of apple juice and Jack Daniels might work.  Any suggestions are welcome about this, too.
 
I generally spritz after the first 1.5 hours and do it every 45 minutes to hour. The apple juice/jack daniels will work fine
 
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Thanks, TD!

I'm still answer-less on question (c) -- How is the bark affected by spritzing?

Also, no-one has addressed my sub-question: "would spritzing help keep them from drying out?"

I'm not trying to be a jerk, I'm just asking you for your help.
 
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Thanks, Jax.  I always use a water pan, too.  I guess that I should have mentioned that earlier.

Well, if I can get away without spritzing them then I would love to, because that means that I don't have to lose any heat by opening the door to my MES every so-often.

Thoughts from anyone are appreciated.

Also, I'll be posting some random music videos here shortly because I have a buzz.
tongue.gif
 
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As promised, here's "Joe's Garage" by Frank Zappa...a true classic!  ENJOY!!  (Seriously, this link really works):



Thanks for the help, everyone!  CHEERS!
 
Myth, I use Jim Bean, and by far it is the best tasting AND smelling spritz I've used - abet more expensive then Apple juice, but I love it. I wouldn't mind using any liquor for a spritz. 

On the contrary, I used some Dr. Pepper as a spritz on my last set of ribs. I liked it too! 
 
Hey myth...I just did 6 racks on Sunday with the brown sugar coating.

I did spritz and I can say I really don't think it made much of a difference, especially with the brown sugar on it.

I think you'll be good, especially with the water pan...maybe throw some apple juice in there...
 
Myth, I use Jim Bean, and by far it is the best tasting AND smelling spritz I've used - abet more expensive then Apple juice, but I love it. I wouldn't mind using any liquor for a spritz. 

On the contrary, I used some Dr. Pepper as a spritz on my last set of ribs. I liked it too! 



Hey myth...I just did 6 racks on Sunday with the brown sugar coating.

I did spritz and I can say I really don't think it made much of a difference, especially with the brown sugar on it.

I think you'll be good, especially with the water pan...maybe throw some apple juice in there...
Thank you, both!

I'm  still not sure whether or not I want to spritz.

Maybe I should make a trial run without spritz to see how it comes out, but I can't see how spraying it with JB or JD (and apple juice) could possibly hurt!  No one has commented on how the bark might be affected by spritzing.

I usually put apple juice in the water pan, but I can't honestly say that it makes a difference.

Anyway, thanks for your help, and don't forget to listen to the genius of Frank Zappa posted above.
cool.gif
 
What kind of bark are you looking for? that might be the question, but i think with the brown sugar glaze spritzing wont be necessary? but i havent tried the brown sugar way yet so i always spray with just apple juice and i like that way they have been coming out. To each his own but i have cut way back on the amount of rub and seasonings i put on my ribs now and let the rib flavor come through more. So the more stuff you put on them the more bark your gonna have.
 
What kind of bark are you looking for? that might be the question, but i think with the brown sugar glaze spritzing wont be necessary? but i havent tried the brown sugar way yet so i always spray with just apple juice and i like that way they have been coming out. To each his own but i have cut way back on the amount of rub and seasonings i put on my ribs now and let the rib flavor come through more. So the more stuff you put on them the more bark your gonna have.
I want the ribs to be black.

I agree that with all of that brown sugar (even though there is no sugar in the rub), they should bark up rather nicely.

I just don't want them to be too dry, so (a) will spritzing them help keep them moist, and (b) will it mess up the bark?

I guess that's really what I want to know.
 
How it affects the bark really depends on how often and how much you spray on. Too much or too often you can get bark that is like hard candy. Been there, done that, don't spray ribs to keep them moist anymore. Opening up the cooker to spray ribs will also add time to the length of the cook. Good luck on your rib cook.
 
Hey Myth, I've been wondering about that too .... to spray or not to spray, that is the question. I think I'll do an experiment with two racks side by side spray one and not the other being the only difference. Just for the heck of it. I'll lettya know!
 
Myth, ever since I switched to using a water pan I quit spritzing.

I personally could not tell a difference between the ribs with or without the spritz when a water pan is in use.

But without the water pan, it was a world of difference to spritz.

If you have a water pan, spritzing will not affect the bark negatively.  Or at least not for me.

My memorial day smoke I was lazy and didn't spritz the butts either ( everything was in the water pan ) and they came out as delicious as always.  So in my opinion, if you water pan you don't need to spritz... but then again, I am a greenhorn still.
 
Thanks, everyone!  I really do appreciate all of the input.

I think that I'll try them without spritzing and see how they come out since I'm using the water pan.  I don't want to be opening the door on the MES without good cause.
 
If you spritz, plain ol' apple juice works and if you're worried about loosing heat, just keep the ribs on an extra 1/2 hour.
 
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