How to Smoke Spare Ribs

Smoking spare ribs is a fairly straightforward process involving three ideas: (1) slow cooking, (2) using a low temperature and (3) using smoke for flavoring and heat. Amazing things happen to meat products while slow cooking. The meat remains tender and juicy. Fast cooking causes moisture and natural juices to escape quickly, flavor-enhancing fats to cook off and muscle fibers to become hard. Pork spare ribs are an excellent choice for this cooking technique. The meat is prepared before it is cooked using a variety of techniques, spices or other flavorings. Smoking provides an enhanced flavoring that adds to the preparation and flavorings.

Things You'll Need

• Smoker
• Long tongs
• Long-bladed knife
• Baster brush
• Wood selection (for example, oak, apple, cherry, plumb, paean, hickory)

Instructions

1. Pre-flavor the spare ribs using an overnight flavoring or a rub applied on cooking day.

2. Clear the smoker grid on which the meat will rest. Remove any residue.

3. Open the wood chamber of the smoker and remove any ashes.

4. Load the wood chamber, placing a few starter logs or other kindling into the bottom with larger pieces of wood on the top. Various woods produce different aromas and flavors.

5. Close the cooking grid lid side of the smoker. This creates a chimney effect, pulling air up from the wood chamber all the way through the cooking compartment to the exhaust pipe.

6. Light the contents of the wood chamber with the wood chamber door open, and allow enough time for the wood to become hot and fully lit.

7. Close the wood chamber door when there is a significant amount of red coals in the chamber.

8. Observe the temperature gauge of the cooking chamber until it reaches between 225 and 250 degrees F. This is preheating the smoker.

9. Place the rack of spare ribs onto the cooking grid bone side down into the cooking chamber. Cook in this position for two hours. Baste the up side as desired during this step, adding flavoring spices, paste or rub with a basting brush.

10. Turn the rack over, bone side up. Let cook for one hour more. Baste the bone side during this step as needed.

11. Test for tenderness. The meat is done when it comes from the bone easily and the ribs separate easily. Cooking time can vary among slabs even when they are the same size. Keep a watchful eye on the process to prevent burning.

12. Wrap the rack with aluminum foil just after removing the ribs from the smoker.

13. Cut the rack into either individual ribs or sections.

14. Serve, eat and enjoy a delicious food experience. Pass the napkins. Large linen towels work well, too.

Tips & Warnings

• Some sauces can burn more easily than others.

• Watch the temperature gauge consistently. This minimizes burning.

• A breeze or stronger wind can produce more heat in the smoker than wanted. Adjust the dampers accordingly to prevent overheating.

References

• All about pork spare ribs