To Be The Resident Pit Master, You Need To Know How To Smoke Pork Ribs

Chad Ward, legendary BBQ competitor, seven-time grand champion, and owner of Whiskey Bent BBQ, is a self-taught BBQ Pro. Throughout the year he competes across the country, runs his BBQ shop in Florida, and teaches BBQ Shop Class where he expounds his wisdom of the BBQ fundamentals. where he expels his wisdom of the BBQ fundamentals.

To be the resident Pit Master, you need to know how to grill pork ribs evenly. Here are a few tips from Chad himself.

How To Buy Ribs

You can buy ribs at the butcher shop, grocery store, or mass market retailers like Costco. Ribs from the butcher will usually be sold individually and pre-trimmed so you know what you are getting. The butcher will usually have their ribs cut down into St. Louis style while the mass market retailers sell spare ribs that you cut down yourself.

When buying ribs, look for marbling and uniformity of the rib so it cooks evenly, and make sure there are no “shimmers”. That is where the butcher got too close to the bone and nicked it with their knife. Look for marbling. Fat provides a lot of flavor but find ribs that have the least amount of fat because you’ll end up trimming it. Look out for blood spots on the meat. This usually means the animal suffered and muscles tensed up.

Trimming Ribs

Look for pork ribs that are cut evenly, without stray flaps of meat or small ribs on the end. If you do buy ribs like this, there's an easy fix — trim them yourself.

The ribs now resemble a neat rectangle. Once cooked, every rib will be tender, cooked to the same doneness, and taste delicious.

Check out Traeger's selection of rubs and shakes. Or make your own — here's one Traeger-tested dry rub example. Rib rubs typically consist of four elements: salt, sugar, spice, and flavor boosters.

Salt enhances all of the flavors in your rub. Some pitmasters suggest adding salt well before adding the rub — even the night before — to allow it to penetrate the surface of the meat. Another tactic is to wait to add salt, then add a dusting of salt at the end, so you avoid over-salting. (This will also be appreciated by any guests on a low-sodium diet.) Or, you can just make salt part of your rub.

Sugar in a rib rub will caramelize on the surface, giving it a rich, deep, attractive look. The surface will also have a candied flavor. Sweet and pork seem to go together. Brown sugar is the most commonly used because the heavy granules and color are a good match with pork, but you can use other types as well .

Spice in a rib rub will give every bite a kick, and how big a kick is up to you. Pepper is a must. A gentle spice like paprika will satisfy everyone in the crowd (and the heat seekers can just dip theirs in a hotter sauce). Chile powder, like ancho or chipotle chile, will enhance the smokiness of the ribs and add a little more heat. Most people can handle either of these two spices which are common in Mexican cooking. If you want to try some Asian flavors, consider gochugaru (Korean red pepper powder) or togarashi (Japanese seven spice). If you want to guarantee heat in every bite, add red pepper flakes, ground chile de arbol, or ground cayenne to the mix. These are very spicy chiles that may send sensitive eaters dashing into the house in search of milk. If it's your first time using them, start slow and amp up the heat in future batches.

Your Flavor Picks. Basically, anything else you add. Pick the flavors you like in food — just have to make sure they are in dry form. Popular additions include:

• onion powder
• garlic powder
• crumbled bay leaves
• oregano
• mustard
• cumin
• cinnamon

... but it's your call. The only word of caution: Don't overdo it with any of these ingredients, or you could overpower the rest of the flavors.

The Dry Rub Method

You'll need around a 1/2 cup of rub for a rack of ribs. Apply your rib rub directly to the slab by seasoning the meat evenly on both sides. Let it rest on the rack for at least 30 minutes, then cook them on your wood-fired grill.

Rib Rub Tips -

• Pour the rub high (see video above for demonstration) for even application.
• A binder is not necessary
• Leave rub for 30 minutes at room temperature
• Chad’s favorite rub: Pork & Poultry Traeger Rub

The Wet Rub Method

Personal preference is no wet rub because it involves more ingredients and it can get messy but if that's your preference, apply a substance such as mustard or olive oil to the rack of ribs. Then coat each side with rib rub. Or, combine wet and dry ingredients to make a wet rub.

We recommend 50/50 cherry & pecan wood pellets. The slight nuttiness paired with its rustic richness makes it a full-bodied smoke that we love wrapping our ribs with.

How To Cut Ribs

If you don't want to leave the rack whole and unleash your inner carnivore by tearing the meat from the ribs with your fingers and teeth, get a sharp knife and carefully slice between the bones.

Matt Pittman tip: Sometimes it's hard to see where to cut the ribs to get ribs that are nice and meaty. It helps to flip the ribs over (meat-side down) to see which direction the bones are going.

If you can automatically adjust the temperature of your pellet grill — like you can with a Traeger — you won't have to worry about opening the grill to add charcoal.

Because your pellets are constantly added to the fire, you don't need to open the grill to add more pellets. Those pellets are just working away, keeping your grill at the proper temperature and delivering natural smoke flavor to the ribs.

Just follow the instructions above for tender, delicious, perfectly-colored — and evenly cooked — pork ribs.

How To Cook Pork Ribs On A Gas Grill

To cook ribs on a gas or propane grill, you'll need to set up the grill for smoking. You'll need to leave the burners off on one side of the grill, and place the ribs there. The other burners will generate the heat. This is called cooking over indirect heat. (If the ribs are put over the flame, a.k.a. direct heat, the surface of the ribs will burn before the meat cooks.)

Some gas grills simply aren't big enough to allow for indirect heat cooking, at least not for a cut of meat as generous as ribs.

If your grill does have enough space, you can start thinking about flavor. You can use wood pellets to generate smoke flavor. These pellets can go in a smoke box, or in foil packets.

How To Cook Pork Ribs On A Charcoal Grill

Smoking with charcoal is tricky. The main difficulty is maintaining a low temperature. Most charcoal grills are designed to give you a hot fire for cooking burgers and steaks, not for hours and hours of cooking.

You also have to set up your charcoal grill for indirect heat — that means the charcoals stay on one side of the grill, and the ribs stay on the other.

Measuring and arranging the charcoal briquettes is key. If you add the same amount of charcoal you would for cooking burgers, the grill will be way too hot. Also, if you light all of the charcoal at once, it may not stay hot long enough to smoke your ribs. One recent innovation to help solve this problem is the snake method, where you arrange the briquettes in a line that slowly ignites as you smoke.

You won't be able to regulate the temperature at the touch of a button. If the fire dies out, you'll need to open the charcoal grill and add more briquettes. In a worst-case scenario, you'll need to take the ribs out and relight completely. In both cases, the meat will cool down, drastically increasing your cook time.

How To Cook Pork Ribs In An Oven

Cooking ribs in the oven is a straightforward process, but you can't get any natural wood smoke flavor to the meat.

Also, ovens may not maintain consistent low temperatures the way your Traeger can, so it's best to cook at a slightly higher temperature, like 250-300 degrees Fahrenheit. You'll want to wrap the ribs tightly in foil, and place them on a baking sheet. Preheat the oven to the desired temperature, and cook for 3-4 hours.

The timing here is never going to be exact, it will depend on your oven and on the ribs themselves. Use a MEATER 2 Plus wireless meat thermometer to check the temperature of the ribs after about 3 hours. 203 degrees Fahrenheit is ideal.

If you want to brown the surface of the ribs, you can set them under your broiler for a couple of minutes after they're cooked. Or you can finish them off outside on the grill.

Now You're Ready To Smoke

Delicious, tender ribs really are easy to make. Buy good quality pork, trim to fit, choose a rub, and let the 3-2-1 method (and your pellet grill) do the rest. In just a few hours, you and your family will be oohing and aahing over one of your greatest grilling triumphs.