Look at dem ribs

Sometimes a man gets a crazy notion and no matter how cold it is outside, the idea must come to pass. Today, i celebrate one of those days. This marks a historic time stamp in my life. It was freezing cold outside, some what snowy and just a bitter wind chill. I packed up the welder and headed outback to the patio.

As i stepped out, i felt the bitter chill of winter strike my face with its cruel, limitless intentions. I sat and stared at my homemade smoker. I knew it needed some serious work done but was it worth it in this ferocious weather? yes, yes it is!

I uncovered the smoker and opened it up for the first time this season. I pulled out the two 22.5 inch cooking grates and then the fire basket. I continued through the night welding and clamping. FINALLY, it was finished. Now my smoker has enough room to cook 12 whole chickens.

As i slept the night away, i had a grand idea of smoking some Saint Louis cut ribs. I woke up in a panic because i was sooo excited. I ran to the store and picked up the best marbled cut of spares i could find. What follows is my adventures in my first voyage on my completely finished competition smoker. Oh and a few pics of my homebrewed ginger ale and rootbeer. I do not drink(religious and personal) so i must go with the soft stuff. It tastes better to me. haha

This is not a full tutorial but rather a following of the ordeal:

First off, i bought some gorgeous lookin spares for a dang good price. I trimmed them with my new kiwi brand knife. By the way, those are a dang good knife for only $6.  If you want to learn to trim spares, let me know. it aint to bad. You basically flip the spares over, trim the flap off, remove the shinny skin, and then find the knuckle that is closest to the top of the ribs and insert knife. Trim parallel( straight across) and trim until the ribs look like baby backs.

The next step is to rinse them dry and then pat down with your favorite rub: I used a rub from a friend of mine that has pecans in it.

Once rubbed, i let them rest as i start the smoker. I use 100% natural lump or charcoal briquetts. If needs be, i will use the gasser as well. I love my gas grill. I havea awesome product called grillgrate. http://www.grillgrate.com/ for more info

I smoke the ribs at 275*F for 3 hours and spritzed with olive oil. I then wrapped in foil with some butter, turbinado sugar and some homemade cherry chipotle sauce i made on the fly. Once wrapped, i cooked an additional 1 hour and 45 minutes. I removed from foil and smoked another 45 minutes and glazed the last 10. Here is a shot of the pig candy moving to the surface.

The homemade sauce and the ribs right before they are foiled.

The final product is sauced and ready to serve. Look at dem ribs and how they fall of DA BONE!

 

Here is the shot of the homemade ginger ale brewed with hops and yeast. I let it carb for 3 days so that no alcohol is produced. 

Well, i hope you have enjoyed this post. There will be more to come. Thanks for lookin and feel free to comment.