Rob's Rants

Yesterday I brought home my new Bradley Digital Smoker. Today I smoked two racks of pork ribs and a few chicken breasts as a test to start figuring out just how this works and compares to my dedicated New Braunfels Black Diamond pit.

And I’m surprised I’m even able to write this, rather than lying somewhere passed out in a food coma after eating nearly an entire rack of ribs by myself.

So the initial verdict is positive. The smoker did a very good job, providing good smoke flavor, decent temperature control, and most of all: convenience. In fact, I did something unheard of while cooking this batch. After setting up the smoker, I left home. For 4 hours. I took my daughter into Boston while I picked up something from my office. We rode the subway, had lunch, and did a little shopping. After the first three hours on the smoker, my wife wrapped the ribs in foil, and I was home before the end of the “2″ period in the 3-2-1 method. I’m positively ecstatic about this … I was able to spend four hours doing something else while making great bar-b-que. And that’s really what I was looking for.

The Technique

I used used my normal rub and the 3-2-1 technique. I really wanted to start simple, and test the smoker rather than new variations of how to cook ribs. So I purposely kept the variables to a minimum. That means I didn’t rotate the racks in the smoker, I didn’t open the door all the time to look at the cooking, and I stuck to a tried and true recipe.

The Meat

I used two full racks of pork spare ribs from BJ’s Wholesale club. I prepped them by removing the membrane and cutting them St. Louis style. These techniques, along with videos, are detailed in my beginner’s guide to bar-b-que post.

The Rub

I used a two-part rub on my ribs. It’s also described in more detail in my beginners guide post, but it’s essentially table salt and spices in the first layer, followed by a brown sugar and kosher salt top layer. I applied the rub and then wrapped the racks in plastic and set them in my refrigerator over night.

The Smoke

Smoker Setup

I set the Bradley to 250° F and let it warm up. I wanted the pit hotter than I would smoke at to help compensate for the temperature drop when I put in the meat. After letting the ribs warm up a bit (though I didn’t have enough time to let them get to room temperature). I spread the racks out on three shelves, with the rib tips up top and two racks below. I added some chicken breasts wrapped in bacon on the bottom shelf, started the smoke (setting the time to three hours) and dropped the pit temperature to 220° F. I set the timer for 6 hours and 20 minutes. And then I walked away.

(I did set a thermometer into the chicken I had put in the smoker … I wasn’t sure how long that would take and I wanted to make sure it was the right temperature.)

After three hours, My wife took the ribs out and put them in the foil along with a splash of cider vinegar. I came home when there was 1.5 hours left. Two hours after going into the foil, I removed the foil and basted the racks with a 50/50 mix of bar-b-que sauce and cider vinegar. I also added a couple more bisquettes and cranked up the smoke for another 40 minutes.

The Results

Overall I say the results were good. I got a decently smoked product with a minimum of effort. As I said, there was a decent smoke flavor, and, as usual, the 3-2-1 method all but guaranteed tender ribs. But I did notice a few differences versus smoking with hardwood.

Ribs Fresh From the Bradley

First, there was a noticeable lack of a pronounced smoke ring. There was good smoke flavor, but no ring. I assume this has to do with the electric heat versus a traditional charcoal or wood fire. With a traditional wood heat source, there is a constant low level of smoke at all times. With the electric smoker, when the smoke is off, it’s off. This is something I will have to experiment with.

Second, there was less “bark” formation than I am used to. Again I attribute this to differences in the smoke chamber conditions. I wonder if it has mainly to do with the water pan creating a higher humidity environment in the Bradley chamber, or if there is actually less moisture than over a wood fire since wood does gove off quite a bit of water when it burns. Either way, the crust on the ribs wasn’t as thick or crunchy as I am used to. Because of the difference in crust formation, I ended up with a saltier bark than I normally get when using my standard rub mix.

Finally, there was a discernible difference between the lower and upper shelf locations. The lower shelf ended up creating a rack which was far more tender than the upper shelf. So I will definitely need to rotate the rack positions during cooking.

But overall I am pleased. I got 99% of what I was seeking, which is convenience. And the rest of the issues I am sure I can work through. I’ll just have to eat a lot of bar-b-que to figure it out. Damn … [superemotions file="icon_rolleyes.gif" title="Rolling Eyes"]

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Related posts:

1. New Bradley Digital Smoker – A Summary
2. My New Bradley Digital Smoker – A Review
3. Pulled Pork From My Bradley Smoker
4. Updated BBQ Rub and Seasoning
5. Smoked Pork Ribs on My Grill