Anyone soak or brine ribs ever to get rid of bad taste?

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rbranstner

Smoking Guru
Original poster
OTBS Member
Oct 18, 2007
5,698
39
West Fargo, ND / Northern MN
I recently picked up a case of ribs through my buddy at his discount price ($1 lb) but for some reason they smell kind of funny. They came all frozen together in a box and all of them were in one big plastic bag. I removed them and froze them two per pack with my vacuum sealer. Right when I opened them they had a strange smell that I have never smelled before. I was hoping that with my rub and smoking and mopping BBQ sauce on them that I wouldn't taste that flavor but some of the bites you can taste that strange flavor. My question is have anyone of you tried or heard of any type of solution or brine if you want to call it that I could soak the ribs in to try and get rid or hide some of that flavor. I have 10 more racks that I need to use up so I have to figure out some way to eat them. To most people they would probably taste fine but to us spoiled guys who are use to good quality Q they just were not up to par. And to top it off I was smelling that before I cooked them so I knew where that strange flavor was coming from.
 
Eww, don't know if I would eat them to be honest rbranstner. Strange odors coming from meat is usually a sign of things going rancid. Maybe they were thawed at one point and refroze. As far as a brine for ribs I have never heard of one but I am sure any brine concoction would work but like I said I would be leary of them if they smell bad.
 
I agree meat smelling bad is typically a bad sign.

However if you are talking of that basic funk smell ribs have coming out of a cryo pack you can use vinegar. Acutally I rub all my ribs with either vinegar after rinsing in water, and before applying the rub.
 
I should clarify they don't smell like rancid or rotten meat its a smell I can't explain. The meat looks good but the fat on them looks different my guess they have been frozen and thawed a few times and maybe frozen too long without proper packaging and they are a bit freezer burnt. That is my guess.
 
i think i know wha you might me talking about.........i would use a salt brine with vinegar for an hour and then see what ya get.
 
I just rinse, hold the rib over the sink, pour the vinegar over the rib, and kind of rub it into the meat & pat dry.
 
I have found a few recipes on different sites where people are actually putting their ribs in a brine ever time they smoke them. One is a Beer based brine and the other is a salt water spice bases brine. They call for anywhere from 6 hours to 24 hours in the brine. They say its suppose to take on moisture and make the meat more juicy and have more flavor. I have never heard of putting your ribs in a brine before. I am going to try this out and see if it helps. I will keep looking and see if I find anything else.
 
Make sure you have 911 on the speed dial.....just in case
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Well the wife and I ate them for supper lastnight and so far so good. No trips to the emergency room yet. haha No I am not worried about the meat being bad it's a freezer burnt or packaging flavor or something like that.
 
Ok it looks like a lot of people do brine their ribs before smoking them. So are any of you currious and going to try this out? I am going to try it because I want to see how my funky ribs turn out but if any of you try this on normal ribs please let us know what you think.
 
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