Wrapping ribs in foil???

[newbbqsmoker]

Do you rap ribs in foil when you cook them? I'm saying no, Husband is saying yes. What do you do?

[texasbill]

I personally never wrap ribs during cooking.

If you are going to wrap the ribs there is the 3-2-1 method that some follow for cooking ribs with a wapping time. The 3-2-1 method is start with 3 hours on the pit unwrapped, wrap the next two hours, then unwrap and put back on the pit for 1 hour to tighten up the ribs again as they will almost fall off the bone after being wrapped for 2 hours.

Wrapping ribs for the whole cook will keep them from getting good smoke flavor and they will just fall all off the bone. They basically will be steamed ribs and not smoked ribs.

Bill Cannon
Texas BBQ Rub

[Buckeye]

Whoever is doin tha cookin makes that decision :shock: ...Ifn' yer cookin em'..no foil....ifn' he's cookin em' ...foil........that should cut out the fussin :roll:...that's where tha married part comes in..."give an take" :wink: ...now ifn' ya'll ever git inta tha competition circut, it's best ya find out which method produces tha best result an use that method...Buckeye

[farmboy]

I agree with buckeye on that one, me personally i never use foil on my ribs. Colin

[Paul Taylor]

I did use foil on my ribs 1 time for the wedding reception in March. This was after they smoked for about 6-7 hours.I pulled them, double wrapped them while they were stacked together.& put them in a 200 degree oven for another 3.5 hours. Man, they were tender as your mother's love. 8) :D


Paul Taylor

[Dirty Ron]

I have wrapped before, and only on spares. 3/2/1 is more like a 4/1/.5 to me, as 3/2/1 way overcooks. I wrap on very cold or rainy days when heat control is a bit of an issue. I do keep a very close eye on 'em when I do though - easy to overcook.

babys would be a pile of bones & meat.

BTW, this is the exception, not the rule for me 8) 8) 8)

[Steve]

I don't foil my ribs. It makes them overly tender and too moist for my taste. For me, it's a little mustard slather, some dry rub, hickory wood, 5 hours at 240-250, no sauce, and an icy cold beverage. Jeez, how long 'till lunch?

[Woodman]

Are you getting the feeling that there really aren't rules when it comes to this stuff? The one constant here is that you musn't wrap the ribs for the first three hours (or shorter if you like less smoke flavor.) If you wrap the whole time, you'll get no smoke flavor and , hence, might just as well use your oven! I like the 3/2/1 idea, but it'll be dependant on the smoker temp, the cut of rib you're cooking, the position of venus and mars and so on! The best way to find out what you like is to take a couple of racks and do them each way. Some folks like them "fallin off the bone tender." Some folks like them with a little "pull to the bone." Hell, my daughter doesn't even like em smoked. Some like em dry only. Some like em dry rubbed , then sauced a little., some like em sauced alot. My father in law basically stews them in sauce in the oven then grill finishes them. Some people would rather [i]chew on the aluminum foil than wrap their meat in it! Hell darlin' (hope I don't sound patronizing, but we all talk like that up here in Ohio!) ,do whatever produces the flavor you like! Alot of the foil debate arises from what produces ribs that'll win contests. Those are based on a standardized set of criteria under which you and I will not be judged. The bottom line is, if you foil a hunk of meat, it'll stew, or steam, in its own juices; making it more tender.This works for brisket, pork shoulder, ribs, chickens and, that Tejas favorite, armadillo! I smoked a couple of large salmon (that's a fish ,Texana) fillets last week and then foiled them and held them in a cooler for another hour and they were still moist and tender. If you like a crisp finish, you can omit the last hour when you take your ribs back out of the foil to firm em up, and finish them off on the grill with sauce. I find that most people up north where I'm from prefer that method. Just don't undercook the darned things! Give yourself a good 6 hours the first time. Seven if you're checking them alot.An overcooked rib is a hell of alot more palletable than an undercooked one. Just take it easy and have fun! Let us know how it goes!-Woodman

[Smooth Operator]

newbbqsmoker, don't know where you're from but I believe here in Texas it is illegal to wrap ribs in foil :D Just kiddin' of course......personally the only things I use foil for are #1 Brisket (after 6 hours or so) and #2, I put heavy duty foil under fish (with a little olive oil on the foil to keep skin from sticking)