Ribs, for a good cause

[wilburpan]

One of our friends unfortunately had a fire in their house over the holidays. The family is okay, but they are going to be living in an apartment for at least 6 months while their house is renovated. We decided to have a surprise potluck lunch for them, and my wife volunteered me to make ribs.
 
Of course, I was more than happy to do this. That’s when she told me that the potluck was to start at 1 pm. Counting backwards, that meant starting cooking at 7 am, which meant starting prep work at 6 am. On a weekend. And I like to sleep in. So I dutifully set my alarm.
 
I didn’t do anything different from my usual ribs. I made a rib rub à la Aaron Franklin’s approach, and applied it to six racks of ribs. I rubbed the ribs with some olive oil before putting the rub on.



I loaded up Smaug with the ribs. He was stabilized at 225ºF.


 
About 5-1/2 hours later, this was the result.

I impressed myself by managing to get all six racks into the house all on one plate.

 
I had to try out one of the ribs to make sure they came out okay, of course.

 
The potluck was a great time. Folks there seemed to like the ribs. I know they all were gone by the time we had to leave for my son’s basketball game.

[Rak]

Great job on those ribs Wilbur!  how many did you have to test before you realized they were good

[Geo]

Those look incredible, wilburpan! Gotta ask one question... And this might show how new I am... Did you have to rotate the bottom and top racks of ribs in order to get them all to finish at the same time? Thanks for the info.

[Jon B.]

Nice looking ribs.....and a really nice cause to be a part of!!!

[MacKenzie]

Wilbur, those ribs couldn't have looked or I'm sure tasted better, beautiful cook. 

[tony b]

What a nice thing to do for your neighbors. I am sure that it was appreciated.

 

And, nice pile of meat, too!! 

[wilburpan]

Those look incredible, wilburpan! Gotta ask one question... And this might show how new I am... Did you have to rotate the bottom and top racks of ribs in order to get them all to finish at the same time? Thanks for the info.

 

Don’t worry about asking questions. It wasn’t that long ago that I was a newbie as well.

 

When I make ribs, I generally let the cook go for about 5 hours at 225-250ºF, then check the ribs with the bend test. If I need to use multiple grates, I don’t rotate the ribs at all. I’ve done a number of rib cooks where I needed two grates, and one where I used all three grates, and I never rotated the ribs. I couldn’t tell any difference in terms of doneness between them.

[Geo]

When I make ribs, I generally let the cook go for about 5 hours at 225-250ºF, then check the ribs with the bend test. If I need to use multiple grates, I don’t rotate the ribs at all. I’ve done a number of rib cooks where I needed two grates, and one where I used all three grates, and I never rotated the ribs. I couldn’t tell any difference in terms of doneness between them.

In order for all 3 levels to finish at the same time, they must be at virtually the same temperature! I'm presuming you are cooking indirect with the diffuser in place. That sorta blows my mind. It would follow that even with the smallest KK, one would have a lot of interchangeable cooking area. Maybe I don't need as large a KK as I was thinking. If I get a KK that is large enough to cook the largest thing I would ever cook, then I would have the capacity to cook 3 of 'em.

[ckreef]

In order for all 3 levels to finish at the same time, they must be at virtually the same temperature! I'm presuming you are cooking indirect with the diffuser in place. That sorta blows my mind. It would follow that even with the smallest KK, one would have a lot of interchangeable cooking area. Maybe I don't need as large a KK as I was thinking. If I get a KK that is large enough to cook the largest thing I would ever cook, then I would have the capacity to cook 3 of 'em.

I know most people take the stance bigger is better. I am not one of those people. I have a 3 person family and very seldom cook for a lot of guests. My two KK's (19" and 16.5") definitely get the job done better then if I had one large KK since I can simultaneously cook at 2 different temps. After seeing Jon B's 4 butt cook on a 19" that would easily feed twice as many people as I'll ever invite over for dinner.

My two KK's cost the same as a really big one but I have a lot more flexibility and they heat soak much faster. Even after getting the 19" I still use my 16.5 more.

Charles - Prometheus 16.5", Cassiopeia 19" TT

Edited February 1, 2016 by ckreef

[croadie]

I know most people take the stance bigger is better. I am not one of those people. I have a 3 person family and very seldom cook for a lot of guests. My two KK's (19" and 16.5") definitely get the job done better then if I had one large KK since I can simultaneously cook at 2 different temps. After seeing Jon B's 4 butt cook on a 19" that would easily feed twice as many people as I'll ever invite over for dinner. My two KK's cost the same as a really big one but I have a lot more flexibility and they heat soak much faster. Even after getting the 19" I still use my 16.5 more. Charles - Prometheus 16.5", Cassiopeia 19" TT

Yes - I wonder whether mine is more than i need, too late now, and of course happy with what I have...of course none of us thought size would be a problem :0

[wilburpan]

In order for all 3 levels to finish at the same time, they must be at virtually the same temperature! I'm presuming you are cooking indirect with the diffuser in place. That sorta blows my mind. It would follow that even with the smallest KK, one would have a lot of interchangeable cooking area. Maybe I don't need as large a KK as I was thinking. If I get a KK that is large enough to cook the largest thing I would ever cook, then I would have the capacity to cook 3 of 'em.

 

The rib cooks are done indirect with the deflector sitting on the charcoal basket. That does allow for a lot of area when doing low and slow cooks.

 

For direct grilling, however, you’re kind of stuck with how many burgers/steaks/whatever you can fit on one grate. That’s where the larger KK grills come in handy.

 

If you’re looking for input on what size KK grill to get, we’re a family of four, and we often have one or two families over for cookouts. I’ve found the KK 23†to be perfect for this amount of people. A KK 32†would be nicer for cooking lots of burgers at once, but we wouldn’t hit that capacity often enough for the step up to be worthwhile.

 

I would also make sure that whatever size you get has a rotisserie big enough for whatever you plan on cooking. I got the rotisserie, thinking that I wouldn’t use it that much, and instead I’ve found that I use it much more than I thought I would.

[wilburpan]

Yes - I wonder whether mine is more than i need, too late now, and of course happy with what I have...of course none of us thought size would be a problem :0

 

You have a KK 23†like me, right? Like I mentioned above, I really really like this size, even for routine cooks. I can get Smaug from unlit charcoal to burger grilling temperatures in 15 minutes or less, and when I’m done, shut down happens so fast that I never have thought I was wasting charcoal. Even for ridiculously small cooks like this:

 

 

[Geo]

Thanks so much, Wilbur. I was only thinking about the space required for bbq cooking, and not thinking about the space required for grilling. Sure do appreciate the expertise of everyone on this forum. 

[tinyfish]

Fantastic rib cook Wilbur. The ribs got a very nice smoke ring and look tender too.

[bosco]

Yes - I wonder whether mine is more than i need, too late now, and of course happy with what I have...of course none of us thought size would be a problem :0

Croadie it is funny that you brought this up.

I came from a 22 kettle and 22.5 WSM. Size was the debate when I bought them and I went bigger and was happy that I did.

I then switched to a Kamado Joe after a year of research. I spent months agonizing over the size. I went with the big joe 24". I thought it was perfect, everything that I needed in one grill.... Then figured that a second would be needed for multi heat cooks and picked up a 13" jr and then a week later got the 18" classic.

I kind of became known for cooking on the trifecta. I love having multiple Kamado's. I essentially stopped using the big joe and was using the classic and jr. Exclusively.

The big joe was heavy on fuel consumption and took a while to heat and stabilize.

Fast forward to my KK purchase. With the love of multiple

Cookers I was once again face with what to order.

Initially I thought one 23". Then toyed with a 19" and 23". Then I was settled on 2 23" kks.

Placed my order and then after a conversation with Dennis I went with the 23 and 32 combo.

I was very nervous because I figured I hardly used the big joe anymore and worried that I went too big.

The reality was that the 23" KK heats faster than my classic 18". It is super fuel efficient and responds like a smaller Kamado. The 23" has become my everyday cooker and the 32" is my weekend and larger parties cooker.

Never regret the size you get as the 23" is an amazing grill. I have learned that the 23kk has all the benefits of a larger grill with all the convince of that of a smaller Kamado.

With all of that said, I am starting to see that you are a BBQ hobbiest like all of us here. You will see over time where there is the need for a second grill.

The reality is that the 23" will satisfy you 95% of the time but you may run into times where a second grill will help.

Consider over time the addition of a 19" TT to you're setup.

I have learned over the years that a third grill is definitely not needed for me. I love my two KKs and have finally hit the perfect combo for my lifestyle and cooking habits!!!