Beef rib prep question

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bbqnoob
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2015 8:40 pm

Beef rib prep question

Post by bbqnoob »

Hi all,

Saw some great beef ribs at a local butcher today and picked up a few to chucked on the BBQ for low and slow tomorrow.
Question I have is should I or do I need to remove the top layer (fat/skin?/not really sure...) of the ribs?

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beachbums
Posts: 1278
Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2010 5:51 pm
Location: Smokefireandfood.com

Re: Beef rib prep question

Post by beachbums »

They look pretty good and for mine, I'd leave it on. That bit of meat on top might be a bit chewier and drier than the rest but if you don't rate it you can leave it on the plate. Slather whatever rub you're using up the sides as well as the top. And post some pics, we looooove pics!


Cheers, wayne
Nath
Posts: 2095
Joined: Wed Mar 13, 2013 1:15 am
Location: Perth WA

Beef rib prep question

Post by Nath »

Wayne's nailed it. There is no point in cutting it off. It won't hurt it :) what would you do with the off it anyway.
It might be a good midway snack for the chef.
Leave the fat cap, it will keep the meat moist and you can always remove it later


Nath
Nath
bbqnoob
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2015 8:40 pm

Re: Beef rib prep question

Post by bbqnoob »

Hey guys,

Went 1/2 and 1/2 with the removal (2 on 2 off) - guess i'll check to see what my preference is as these ribs have a good amount of meat on them.

Had checked the amazingribs.com resource - but when I trimmed it the last time I tried beef ribs I was left with very little meat off the bone. Doesn't seem like it's going to be a problem this time though. About 3 hours into the cook now and looking decent.

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bbqnoob
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2015 8:40 pm

Re: Beef rib prep question

Post by bbqnoob »

Hi all,

Ribs were on the cooker for about 8 hours in total, cooked to temperature internal temp 203F - was sitting at 165F for ages!!

Learnt that I should definitely be stripping the skin layer off the top, it was so hard by the time the ribs came off the cooker that I felt it could have been classed as a small hand held weapon. :D

One last question I had was the top part of my ribs really dried out. In the photos I posted previously where the ribs are on the grill, you can see the really moist areas where (i think) the fat is rendering and making it moist, those parts of the ribs were incredibly good - tender, juicy and full of flavour!! But those sections where it looks dry in the photo finished off tasting and had the texture of overdone steak. In the photo below the left rib had about half the meat really dry, and half good.

Do you need to typically strip off the sections that don't show good marbling on the ribs before I put it on?

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PS i fail at taking photos :cry:
Sjcampbell
Posts: 95
Joined: Fri May 01, 2015 10:40 am
Location: Armidale, NSW, Australia

Re: Beef rib prep question

Post by Sjcampbell »

No expert here but I do two things. Firstly I scored the top and underside to make sure the rub gets into the meat. Secondly I place the rib meat side down for the first three hours so the juices run into the drier meat layer. 6-7 hours at 120C and they are yummy!!!!! The top layer is still coarser but not dry.
Cheers
Steve

Jackaroo 6 burner gasser, Dragon Kamado,
QMaster Junior and Maverick 735
wedwards
Posts: 258
Joined: Sun Dec 28, 2014 2:38 pm

Beef rib prep question

Post by wedwards »

I usually put mine on semi frozen so as to absorb as much smoke as I can get. After a few hours they go in a foil covered pan or wrapped in foil with orange juice or some other liquid to continue cooking, essentially steaming to keep moisture in, then last hour or so they come back out. Because of how long you want to cook them, even at low temps like 65-100 degrees Celsius they dry out too much for my liking. This might be an effect of the fan in the pellet grill, but I had similar experience when using the WSM as well.


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Muppet
Posts: 405
Joined: Thu Oct 02, 2014 4:50 pm
Location: Wild West

Beef rib prep question

Post by Muppet »

There's a lot of different ideas here for shorties wow. I'm closer to what Urbangriller states in his shortie thread. I also remove the top leaner layer and think it makes a huge difference. Each to there own but the only fails I've had were more due to a thick top layer of meat...
Only ever cooked individual ones once (usually cook racks) and that time I crutched them. I can't see a waterpan in your pic, do you use one?
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Current Weaponry - Saffire Kamado, Treager Junior, Outdoorchef 57, Performer 46, 'Fooseball' Grill, Hibachi
bbqnoob
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2015 8:40 pm

Re: Beef rib prep question

Post by bbqnoob »

No, didn't use a water pan this time - from what I've read the water pan helps with stabilising temperatures, but with snake method I hardly had to crack the lid open.

Will try to get them in a full rack the next time and see if that does better! Will also try using a water pan
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