# First Time Smoking!!



## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

Good afternoon SMF community,

First time smoking. First time using my Masterbuilt smoker, that my wife got me for my birthday. Bless her soul.

I got 2 racks of spare ribs,  one st Louis, And some Portuguese sausage.

The ribs I lathered with a mustard base , and some McCormick's steak seasoning. 

I went with oak chunks. I'm not to sure if its a rookie mistake. 

Any tips?
Much oblige!


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## normanaj (Feb 9, 2019)

Desperado smoker said:


> I got 2 racks of spare ribs, one st Louis, And some Portuguese sausage.



Can't go wrong with the 3-2-1 method on the ribs,3 hours in smoke,2 hours wrapped in foil/parchment with a little apple juice(your choice of liquid) and 1 hour unwrapped either naked or sauced(again your choice).There are many variations on this method,search it here on SMF.

I'm a stones throw away from Fall River MA so Chourico/Linguica is a staple around here.I just smoke it till "looks" smoked.

What wood you use is a personal choice.I like apple and or/cherry mixed with a little hickory for pork.


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## TomKnollRFV (Feb 9, 2019)

I run an electric so smoker specific tips I can't offer, but I do say go with 3-2-1 as a base line. It's never a bad starting point and I'm glad to see you aren't using baby backs! St Louis is really the better of the two!


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## 73saint (Feb 9, 2019)

I think your off to a great start!  Points for getting your pup to pose for the camera!  I can never make that happen.


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## Braz (Feb 9, 2019)

Oak is not a mistake. Here in Hoosierland a lot of BBQ places use oak - most likely because we have a good bit growing here. It works well with pork.


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

Thanks to everyone!
Heres a spare rib that I cut off for my best dog. The full rack wouldn't fit.  So I cut off a couple. I was excited to see that smoke ring on the rib, and y'all are right, oak is good choice.


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## HalfSmoked (Feb 9, 2019)

Welcome glad to have you on board.
As always I say how you smoke something is a personal preference and mind is I never wrap anything.
Keep records of how you do something that way it will be sassier to repeat what you did.

Warren


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

I've seen a few who wrap through the whole process.  Mines a dual fuel, so after 3 hours, I wrap, and then switch to using propane/charcoal, no wood to keep it up to heat


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## tbrtt1 (Feb 9, 2019)

Oak is not only *not* a rookie mistake but the choice of many a pro. It is the dominant smoking wood for real Texas BBQ so that oughtta tell ya something.

How, when and if to wrap is among the most debated topics in smoking. Try things out til you find what you and yours like.
*
In my most humble opinion and my opinion only,* the absolute tenets to making good Q are:

*Know what the temp of your cooker is. That means forget that thermometer that came with your smoker and get one that you can put the probe in the smoke chamber for the duration of the smoke. Not knowing the actual temp of your cook chamber is like driving blindfolded.
*Learn when your meat (or whatever you are cooking) is done. Mastering when to pull your Q out of the smoker will put you 1/2 to 3/4 the way to pitmaster status. This will be a bit of a learning curve, but there is lots of advise on this forum. Use the search function and invest a couple hours a week here. It will pay dividends.
*Know the temp of your meats. This helps with the second tenet. You won't necessarily use the internal temp (IT) of the meat to make final judgement on when it is done and ready to pull off, but it keeps you from over cooking and undercooking (the latter can be dangerous). It provides a window for you. Of course, some things you will not check the meat's IT, like ribs or chicken wings, but for most things it is important and useful. Get a dual probe thermo that you can leave one probe in the cook chamber and one in the meat and has remote capability so you can go back inside and watch the football game or cricket match or take a nap or whatever.

Everything else, like wrapping, rubs, sauces, wood choices, heat sources are secondary to the above.

Welcome to your new addiction.


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

Spare ribs


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

St. Louis


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

I messed up, I  totally forgot to rip out the membrane.  

So I wrapped for 2 hours. Then 1 hour of quick layer of sauce. And back in.

I've heard of others putting putting the 2 hour wrap in the oven.


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## TomKnollRFV (Feb 9, 2019)

Desperado smoker said:


> I messed up, I  totally forgot to rip out the membrane.
> 
> So I wrapped for 2 hours. Then 1 hour of quick layer of sauce. And back in.
> 
> I've heard of others putting putting the 2 hour wrap in the oven.



SmokingAl never tears off the membrane, he does the whole cook with it on, then uses a high heat grill to scorch it off. I haven't tried this yet my self.


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## indaswamp (Feb 9, 2019)

Desperado smoker said:


> I messed up, I  totally forgot to rip out the membrane.
> 
> So I wrapped for 2 hours. Then 1 hour of quick layer of sauce. And back in.
> 
> I've heard of others putting putting the 2 hour wrap in the oven.


Not a mistake...I leave it on now thanks to Al. He crisps up the membrane on the grill, I use a torch.
That membrane holds in a lot of juice in the meat so you end up with really juicy ribs. I don't wrap mine either, still juicy, juicy, juicy!!!


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## Desperado smoker (Feb 9, 2019)

Thank you everyone for your help! I appreciate everything!!


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