St. Louis ribs, no rub. Fantastic and easy. Followed Mad Scientist directions.
Very little trimming as you all know.
1.Ribs are Costco St. Louis by Swift and Co. Just pat dry, no mustard or oil. Do not remove membrane, just score it with knife. It will essentially disappear during the cook.
2. SP 50/50 mix. Use sea salt and coarse ground chefs pepper. Go less than a rub, or you will over salt. Just 30 min. before cook.
3. Temp 225* for 4 hours.
4. Check at 2.5 -3 hrs for dryness. (I went 3 hrs)
5. Apple cider vinegar/water 50/50 and sprits at around 3 hrs and then every 20 or so minutes from then.
6. At 3.5-4 (I went 3:45)hrs or when you like color and fat is rendering, crank temp up to 275* and leave ribs where they are, but spritz q 15 minutes. Leave them on for about 1 hour at 275*.
7. Pull ribs and place in foil meat side down with extra sprits added, and place back on pit for 20-30 min. Still 275*
8. Pull and paint just the top with favorite sauce (Sweet Baby Ray for me) back on pit naked for 20-30 min.
Mine were 208*, with a little pull and clean bone when done.
IMO the claim that using heavy rub blocks smoke absorption is true. These ribs had great smoke smell and taste. Also, SP was apparent and not overdone. We did have a little pepper bite, as intended. Texture a little firmer on surface but butter soft inside.
My wife said not to experiment anymore as this is now her favorite. I agree.