Well, today was experiment day. Had 2 racks of baby backs and was going to experiment with different glazes -- peanut butter/honey (a request from my daughter ) and a cherry/chipotle.
Here are the ribs after two hours on the drum, right before going into the foil. Used Cowboy lump today with some hickory chunks.
When I have to do time-consuming things like foiling with the drum, I just take the rack out and set it on a table. That way I can put the lid back on the drum which helps keep the temps stable.
The top rack was spritzed with apple juice/Jack Daniels and the bottom rack was spritzed with Cherry Dr. Pepper.
Now that the ribs were in the foil, it was time to make the glazes. I planned on using a Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce recipe that I found an another forum, but could not find cherry preserves or cherry juice at my local Safeway. So, I improvised. I mixed some Cherry Dr. Pepper, some marachino cherry juice, a couple of shots of Chipotle Tobasco sauce, and some Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce and went with that.
For the peanut butter/honey glaze I just put about 1/3 cup of honey in a pot and added some peanut butter heating them on low. I dumped in the rest of the AJ/JD spritz that was left over and just started stirring, tasting, and adding until it was the consistency I wanted.
After 1.5 hours in the foil, I took them out of the foil and put them back on the grate. As is often the case, I tipped the foil on the table and much of the spritz/juice got all over the place. But my trusty helper, Tina had me covered.
I started glazing about every 15 minutes. I let the temp creep up a bit for Phase 3. Well, that's usually what happens anyways when I start lifting the lid a lot but it works out okay.
Here they are after the last coat of glaze.
And on a tray.
And finally sliced.
My son had a friend over so we had an extra crash test dummy, er, um, taste tester for dinner. The cherry chipotle ones were a big hit although I am sure when I find the cherry preserve and cherry juice, they will be better. My daughter LOVED the peanut butter/honey glaze. She liked the glaze better than the ribs. My wife, my son and his friend thought that they were a little to peanut-buttery. I must say, even though I really liked the taste, I would have to agree. I think if I do them again, I'll have to make the glaze much thinner. I like peanut butter as much as the next person but I'm not sure that ribs are supposed to stick to the roof of your mouth.
All in all, some pretty tasty experimentation and a fun way to spend a Saturday. Thanks for checking out my pics.
Dave
Here are the ribs after two hours on the drum, right before going into the foil. Used Cowboy lump today with some hickory chunks.
When I have to do time-consuming things like foiling with the drum, I just take the rack out and set it on a table. That way I can put the lid back on the drum which helps keep the temps stable.
The top rack was spritzed with apple juice/Jack Daniels and the bottom rack was spritzed with Cherry Dr. Pepper.
Now that the ribs were in the foil, it was time to make the glazes. I planned on using a Cherry Chipotle Barbecue Sauce recipe that I found an another forum, but could not find cherry preserves or cherry juice at my local Safeway. So, I improvised. I mixed some Cherry Dr. Pepper, some marachino cherry juice, a couple of shots of Chipotle Tobasco sauce, and some Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce and went with that.
For the peanut butter/honey glaze I just put about 1/3 cup of honey in a pot and added some peanut butter heating them on low. I dumped in the rest of the AJ/JD spritz that was left over and just started stirring, tasting, and adding until it was the consistency I wanted.
After 1.5 hours in the foil, I took them out of the foil and put them back on the grate. As is often the case, I tipped the foil on the table and much of the spritz/juice got all over the place. But my trusty helper, Tina had me covered.
I started glazing about every 15 minutes. I let the temp creep up a bit for Phase 3. Well, that's usually what happens anyways when I start lifting the lid a lot but it works out okay.
Here they are after the last coat of glaze.
And on a tray.
And finally sliced.
My son had a friend over so we had an extra crash test dummy, er, um, taste tester for dinner. The cherry chipotle ones were a big hit although I am sure when I find the cherry preserve and cherry juice, they will be better. My daughter LOVED the peanut butter/honey glaze. She liked the glaze better than the ribs. My wife, my son and his friend thought that they were a little to peanut-buttery. I must say, even though I really liked the taste, I would have to agree. I think if I do them again, I'll have to make the glaze much thinner. I like peanut butter as much as the next person but I'm not sure that ribs are supposed to stick to the roof of your mouth.
All in all, some pretty tasty experimentation and a fun way to spend a Saturday. Thanks for checking out my pics.
Dave