# Frozen spare rib racks.  Quality and thaw time



## viper (May 7, 2011)

Found a decent deal on frozen spares and curious how long it will take to thaw them?  need them tomorrow so rubbed down this evening. 

Also, is there any degragation of them when frozen?  Price is 1.88/lb which is not a steal but decent around here.


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## bmudd14474 (May 8, 2011)

I havent noticed much difference in frozen ribs. Enjoy them


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## SmokinAl (May 8, 2011)

If the're in a vacuum pack, you can quickly thaw them in cold water.


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## pops6927 (May 8, 2011)

Just about all pork is frozen prior to sale; shoulders, butts, spares, loins, hams, etc.; if held at below freezing temperature for 30 days, it will kill the trich worm.  This is called "Certified Pork", and is now standard practice.  You've eaten previously frozen pork all your life and didn't know it unless you butchered your own; and if you did it would be advisable to freeze it anyways, lol!  Give them a cold water bath and let unthaw in the fridge and they'll be fine, just keep 'em cold until ready to smoke!


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## viper (May 8, 2011)

So is it a fair bet that "fresh" ribs would still have been frozen at one point or another?  IE, fresh just means thawed and ready to cook?  Obviously if I do a big, multi slab cook for a large group, saving 75cents/lb would start to add up!  However, I am not sure I would want to sacrifice flavor and such. 

From what I read, the moisture in the meat turns to ice and ruptures small vessels in the meat causing rapid moisture loss when thawed.  I honestly don't know but this sounds like a GREAT question for Alton Brown!! lol


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## pit 4 brains (May 8, 2011)

I've had no problem thawing ribs in a an hour with a water bath. Although I do like to have them rubbed over night, I have gone to the store and bought them frozen in the morning and had them on the drum by 10AM..

1.88 / Lb !.. I rarely get them for less than 2.50 here and i won't pay more than 3.00. We get a lot of buy one get one free deals but the base price will be 7.99 / lb for back ribs..


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## ryeguy45 (Aug 25, 2014)

When ribs are on sale near me i always stock up and freeze them. I dont care if anyone says dont do that. I have a huge chest freezer full of spare ribs and a couple racks ofvbaby backs. I usually put them in the fridge to thaw for 24-26 hours. If they are still a little frozen i will soak them in room temp water still in cryo-vac.


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## oldschoolbbq (Aug 26, 2014)

You can also ( if time is no restriction) place then in a pan and place them in the warmest part of the Reefer , the top... and let for a couple days . I don't like water on my meat(besides a rinse) before cooking; they get too soft on me when cooked .

I know , 'anal' , but look :













bbq shots 001.JPG



__ oldschoolbbq
__ Nov 1, 2012






Have fun and . . .


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