Smoking Pork Ribs — Tips & Technique
Grilling never makes smoked ribs. Let's talk about why.
Modern cooking can be so sterile — microwaves and electric ovens, convenience and speed. But when we smoke meat, we connect to something older. We smoke meat today for enhanced flavor and tenderness, but the same technique was used centuries ago to preserve meat in smokehouses. Smoking ribs will always produce a superior product. How many microwave rib cook-offs have you heard of? Exactly.
The Smoke Ring — Acid Rain & Smoked Ribs
Believe it or not, when we smoke properly and get that sought-after smoke ring, we are witnessing the same chemical reaction as in acid rain. Nitrogen dioxide from the smoking wood combines with water (moisture) and pigments in the meat to form that pink color — the smoke ring that says "Dive in." Acid and trees? Disaster. Acid and ribs? Great food.
The Water Pan — What It Actually Does
Notice that the smoke ring forms in part from moisture in the meat itself — not from the water pan. The water pan doesn't actually add moisture to meat. What it can do is help keep the humidity level in the smoker within a range that slows the evaporation of the meat's own juices.
But water is a rogue element in your smoker. It's a hassle to replenish, it can make a nasty soot fall onto your ribs from condensation, and worse — it can contribute to the formation of creosote. Which brings us to the one thing you absolutely must avoid.
Tip for your water pan: If you're tired of trying to frequently add HOT water without losing your heat — and avoiding condensation problems — wrap your water pan in heavy duty foil before filling it, and put a foil layer over the top with a few small slits. You'll control moisture better and stop opening the smoker so often. (Every time you open the lid, your thermal mass weeps.)
Creosote — For Power Poles and Railroad Ties, Not Ribs
Creosote is an oily, gooey, greasy mess that can form on your meat and the inside of your smoker. It will kill good meat every time. Moisture and incomplete combustion — caused by any number of factors — leads to creosote condensing out of the smoke onto your ribs. Control these three factors and you can avoid it entirely:
Combustion factors: green or wet unseasoned wood; a smoldering fire with few coals; adding too much cold fuel to a low fire; too much wood added to too few coals.
Moisture factors: green or wet wood; too much cold meat cooling the smoke; cold outside temperatures; water pans; adding cold water to water pans.
Ventilation factors: low oxygen choking the fire; fire temperature too low for swift exhaust; no exhaust vents; poor air circulation giving smoke time to condense; controlling temperature with the exhaust vent instead of the intake.
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