Short Rib Question

[easternsmoker]

First time cooking 3 bone short rib - did them around 280-290 at almost 5 hours they are probing pretty soft I plan on checking them in about 10 (5.5 hrs) minutes but the IT is only about 174, they were dry aged could this be why? Should I pull? They are pulled way up the bones and the drip pan has plenty of fat in it so they are rendering..

[jark87]

I smoked dino ribs earlier this year and it took 10 hours to reach 200°. I hit the stall around 160° or 170° for at least 2 hours. I had never cooked beef ribs before so I wanted to get them to at least 190° to make sure they would be tender. They turned out great, but man, I was surprised they took as long as they did.

[philpom]

1 hour ago, easternsmoker said:

First time cooking 3 bone short rib - did them around 280-290 at almost 5 hours they are probing pretty soft I plan on checking them in about 10 (5.5 hrs) minutes but the IT is only about 174, they were dry aged could this be why? Should I pull? They are pulled way up the bones and the drip pan has plenty of fat in it so they are rendering..

If they probe tender and look good then pull them.

[easternsmoker]

I decided to risk it and let them keep going....more tender went from peanut butter to warm regular butter. IT around ~189. I think the low moisture content skipped the first stall and had a long time at the second stall because all the fat was rendering out but that's just my guess.

[easternsmoker]

So ribs are consumed, no complaints, rested 30 minutes.

 

I think there was almost too much bark, glad I pulled them, it was hard to cut through, the thickest portions could take even more cooking but they were in no way bad or undercooked.

 

The thinnest portions were crispy but not burnt, maybe could have benefitted from a wrap given the asymmetry of my cut.

 

Cook from around 9 to 4, pretty surprised that they took that much cooking and could have probably take more.

[jark87]

Glad they worked out! I had to wrap mine just to get them up to 200°. 
 

[CentralTexBBQ]

18 hours ago, philpom said:

If they probe tender and look good then pull them.

 +1

 

15 hours ago, jark87 said:

Glad they worked out! I had to wrap mine just to get them up to 200°. 
 

 

why the need to get to 200°?

[keeperovdeflame]

I really like short ribs and have found that  I like them best when I braze them in an aromatic brazing liquid, rather than cooking them directly on my grill  grate. You bring the liquid about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way up the sides of the ribs, and turn them every hour. I use a  red wine, beef broth, 10 cloves of garlic, kosher salt, cracked pepper, and a 1/2 cup apple cider, and Simon and Garfunkel herbs mixture.  About 6 hours at 300 to 350* is the longest I have gone using this technique I usually go 4 to 5 hours. I don't measure the IT of the ribs, I  just use a probe to check tenderness. I pretty much always  toss in some thick cut carrots, celery, Spanish onion, and red potatoes during the last 2 hours. Comes out pretty amazing and is a one pot meal fit for a special occasion. I do it over indirect heat in my Egg uncovered.(cooking uncovered the liquid will reduce so you will need to add a little wine/broth mixture during the cook Let the liquid reduce at the end to thicken the braze liquid into a sauce). I often add  a chunk of pecan or cherry wrapped tightly in foil with a few tiny holes (one of John's smoking techniques) produces a gentle smoke and lasts a long time. The over all flavor is a blend of rich, savory, and smokey. Pick out a nice bottle of  Oaked Pinot or Zinfandel, goes perfect. 

 

I use this pan which is perfect for brazing in a kamado, I clean the inside only and let the outside develop a smokey patina. 

https://www.walmart.com/ip/tramontina-enameled-cast-iron-4-qt-covered-braiser/22848443

[jark87]

22 hours ago, CentralTexBBQ said:

why the need to get to 200°?

I had never cooked beef ribs before. Everything I had read said target temp was similar to brisket, but yes, I was also probing for tenderness. Probing was still meeting resistance in the middle, probably similar to easternsmoker’s comments about the thickest part of his ribs being a little tough. The longer I let them go, the more tender they got, so I wrapped at about 190°. They hit 200° in less than 30 minutes after that. Prior to wrapping, temp was climbing much more slowly.

 

I tend to use Meathead’s amazingribs.com site as a reference point, especially for new cooks, because he thoroughly describes the “why” behind the method. (My dad used to say “why” was my favorite word as a kid.) There’s actually quite a bit of science about the magical 200°-205° target temp for tough beef cuts like ribs and brisket, but it’s not just temp, it’s a combo of time and temp. Per the research on that site, there are connective tissues that will not melt until they’ve hit a certain temp after cooking over a long period of time. So, if not done correctly, you can hit 200° but still not achieve good results. I’ve not researched it, but maybe that also means you can get good results at lower temps, but I’d rather not risk it. If you’re not familiar with Meathead’s stuff, check it out. Great material!

 

I was cooking for guests and wanted to make sure everything turned out good, so yes, I also paid attention to IT instead of just feel. Meal was excellent!

[jark87]

20 hours ago, keeperovdeflame said:

I like them best when I braze them in an aromatic brazing liquid

My daughter and son-in-law will be visiting from South Korea soon and I’m planning braised beef ribs. He’s a big beef eater, so it will be fun to have them home for a few months!

[CentralTexBBQ]

On 1/11/2022 at 9:55 AM, jark87 said:

I had never cooked beef ribs before. Everything I had read said target temp was similar to brisket, but yes, I was also probing for tenderness. Probing was still meeting resistance in the middle, probably similar to easternsmoker’s comments about the thickest part of his ribs being a little tough. The longer I let them go, the more tender they got, so I wrapped at about 190°. They hit 200° in less than 30 minutes after that. Prior to wrapping, temp was climbing much more slowly.

 

I tend to use Meathead’s amazingribs.com site as a reference point, especially for new cooks, because he thoroughly describes the “why” behind the method. (My dad used to say “why” was my favorite word as a kid.) There’s actually quite a bit of science about the magical 200°-205° target temp for tough beef cuts like ribs and brisket, but it’s not just temp, it’s a combo of time and temp. Per the research on that site, there are connective tissues that will not melt until they’ve hit a certain temp after cooking over a long period of time. So, if not done correctly, you can hit 200° but still not achieve good results. I’ve not researched it, but maybe that also means you can get good results at lower temps, but I’d rather not risk it. If you’re not familiar with Meathead’s stuff, check it out. Great material!

 

I was cooking for guests and wanted to make sure everything turned out good, so yes, I also paid attention to IT instead of just feel. Meal was excellent!

 

Thanks, I understand. IT is almost always an also ran for me. A very distanct also ran. Exception being poultry and I check IT for that simply because my wife bought a Thermoworks for me a few years ago. Other than that, I infrequently check a temp only to get an a rough idea of how much longer a cook might take. Or, out of curiousity to see what the temp was after I've pulled it. I understand there are different kinds of cooks and methodolgies but I subscribe to @philpom's philosophy

 

On 1/9/2022 at 4:19 PM, philpom said:

If they probe tender and look good then pull them.