To cut or not to cut

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

dalmorloson

Smoke Blower
Original poster
Dec 27, 2007
88
12
St. Clairsville OH.
I have some people coming over for a card party tonight and am planning ribs, ABTs, and Fatties. Do you think it will make a difference if I cut the ribs (babybacks) to portion size before I smoke or is that something that should be done post-smoke? Thanks in advance.
 
I like to leave the slabs as large as my smoker grate space will allow. This means less rib ends or cross sections will be exposed to heat, thereby reducing the the amount of drying as you will notice on the end ribs of the slab. I find it easier to determine the "doneness" of a full slab by judging bone pull-back & using the bend-test

The larger pieces look more impressive to guests as well, and can generate more interest in your prep & cooking process, making for a more enjoyable dining experience...
PDT_Armataz_01_34.gif


Eric
 
FS perty much covered it. I'll add, it increases the surface area an there gonna cook faster, so I'd leave em in full racks an cut afterwards.

I've cut racks in half before an didn't like the way they turned out. Plus, like FS says, ya gotta give em the bend test to see ifin there done er not! Also, I use a wood scewer to stab some meat to see ifin it's done er not to.
 
I cut them up once , never again. Now you have to move all those little pieces around back and forth . Some of them get stuck in the grid of the rack. Harder to spritz etc etc. Just a major pain in the aspidestra.

Another case of bigger is better. I cut them into doubles ( two bones ) to serve them.
 
for me small pieces tend to get nibbled on right out of the smoker so if you want some for others leave them in slabs and/or don't invite me over.........
 
I leave them as whole as I can to smoke. If I'm gonna be servin them to a lot of people I will cut them into single ribs and slap them on the grill for a few minutes especially if I'm gonna put any sauce on them. For just me... I leave them whole. I also cut them up when I vacuum pack them with some sauce. They are really good heated back up with a hot grill.
 
I always leave mine whole atleast during the smoke and then cut them. I see your haveing a card party so I would cut them and serve them in singes theat way when your buds can pick one up and eat the whole thing bang your done with it. Back to the cards after all who like a long drawn out game. Don't forget the Qview and the napkins.
 
I was going to go with the concensus and leave them whole, but my vertical smoker would not allow it (size matters). I compromised and cut them in half with plans to cut each of those in half when done. That will leave 1/4 rack portion sizes. I also made ABTs and 2 fatties. One is Italian sausage with green peppers, onions, mushrooms, and cheddar. The other is JD sausage with red peppers, spinach, and feta cheese. Qview will follow when finished.
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Hot Threads

Clicky