Question about my first smoke in process (with Pics)

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indygreg

Smoke Blower
Original poster
Apr 30, 2011
89
54
i have started smoking some ribs on my traeger texas.  i have been reading here for a while and did jeff's course.  we are testing some spare ribs and some baby backs and i have two questions:

 - i am using jeff's 3-2-1 directions and also looking at the 3-2-1 recipe on the traeger website.  the traeger recipe says to do babyback 3-2-1 and jeff says 2-2-1.  i am guessing because the traeger runs 180 or so on smoke and they say to do the babybacks for 3 hours on smoke then raise the temp to 225 for the 2-1.  i will watch for them to pull back from the bone 1/4" but is it safe to assume that i will run a little longer on the traeger because of the lower temp?  i am thinking i will be doing something like 4-2-1 for the spares and 3-2-1 for the babybacks.  does that make sense?

 - the traeger recipe says to add applejuice, honey and brown sugar when it is in foil.  my wife is already worried that we are combining the traeger mustard/applejuice/worcestershire mix under jeff's rib rub (what of these don't go together:)).  now we are deciding if we should also do their suggestion of honey/brown sugar/applejuice in the foil for the second 2 hours. 

any input would be appreciated. 

greg
 
I do a 2-2-1 for BB's @ 250º, You could do a 3-2-1 at a lower temp.

The 4-2-1, and 3-2-1 sounds like it would work.

I hav'nt tried the worsty sauce in my ribs, I use the honey, brown sugar, and apple juice for the 2hrs in the foil.

Good luck and don't forget the Qveiw.
 
I don't think combining the two will be a problem. 
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As for the directions (3-2-1 or 2-2-1) I would go with the Traegers instructions the first time and then the standard 2-2-1 for babybacks next time, just to see which one works best for you. You may even want to try a straight 5 hour smoke with no foil also. Remember every smoker is different in how it cooks so you should experiment until you find what works for you and what you like best. 
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The good part is you get to eat your mistakes. 
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Don't forget to take lots of pictures (Q-View) of your process and the final money shots of the finished Q. Post them to the forum so we can all drool over them. 
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Happy smoking!
 
Apple juice or dark beer works great in the foil. Also lately the BB's I have been getting have been really thick & meaty. I smoke them at 210 & use a 3-2-1, sometimes even a 3-2-2, because they are so thick. They are done when you can grab two bones & pull them apart like paper. Good luck & don't forget the Q-view.
 
Ok, the first smoke was a success and i am hooked.  the kids sat around tonight looking at pictures of all the stuff you guys cook on this forum.  i see fatties in our future:) 

we did the brown sugar, applejuice and honey.  maybe a little too much brown sugar but really good.  Jeff's rub was great although we left out the cayenne and part of the pepper to tone it down.  my family is a sweet rib crowd.  we just used a little sweet baby ray's sauce and although i am usually a dry rib person i think i liked these with some sauce.  the ribs had enough flavor that a little sauce complimented it rather than covering it up. 

i did half of each rack with sauce and did part of each type of rib with mustard under the rub and part without.  i cut the slabs and lined up plates in the kitchen with each of the 8 combo's we had.  with/without mustard, with/without sauce, st louis/bb.  the winner for my family was mustard base, bb with sauce.  i could easily do the st louis if i were trying to save money - they were pretty close but just a little more work to eat. i am also glad i did the traeger.  i actually ordered an MS40 but changed direction at the last minute after eating at the salt lick in austin and admiring the smoke ring on their brisket.

thanks for the help and for a great forum.  there are so few well run forums without trollers, etc and this seems like a really friendly crowd.  Thanks for having me over to "your place"!

greg

79031d1e_FirstRibs.jpg


4e6d7079_FirstRibsSmokeRing.jpg
 
it occurs to me that jeff's rub is brown sugar based.  are most?  maybe having a heavy coating of his rub on them then adding another layer of it during the time in the foil was overkill.  i might try the next batch with just a little honey and applejuice in the foil. 

greg
 
Those look great, really like that color on the outside.  Gotta try Jeff's sauce, you thought you were hooked already just you wait!
 
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