I've been trying my hand at ribs over the past 3 or 4 months. They do NOT compare to the ribs at Ribfest (nothing I've ever had does), but they are passable. I have a Weber gas grill with the three knobs so that you can turn off the center burner, front/rear, etc. I do pull the membrane off...that is VERY important, IMO. I have a store bought rub that I've been using that has some brown sugar, various pepper, salt, and a few other spices. I rub them down the night before. Then I soak some wood chips (store bought) for about 30 minutes, and place them in a small aluminum pan directly over one of the burners (usually the rear). I then heat the grill up thoroughly with all three burners on high, then turn the center and front off, place the meat side down, close the lid, and don't look for at least an hour and a half. The Weber has "flavorizer bars" over the burners, so any drippings will not flare, but will smoke. The temp usually stays around 230 give or take 10 degrees. Cooking them indirectly like this (a pork loin is also good cooked in this way) lets them turn out pretty good. I baste them with a BBQ sauce a friend of mine has started producing in the Birmingham area...Slaphappy BBQ sauce. He makes a sweet and also one that has a little heat to it. I have been mixing them together and that's just about the right combination of heat and sweet. I'll turn the burner back on to let the sauce char slightly. The whole thing usually takes about 1 hour and 45 minutes. They won't fall off the bone, but they are pretty tender. Baby back or St Louis style are the best, IMO. They're pretty good done this way.
But...I've never had Ribs anywhere that compare to those at Ribfest. I don't think it's possible to do them like that unless you have the machine that Ken built...and the grill masters have a lot to do with it as well. You owe it to yourself to attend Ribfest at least once...it's a great time, and the ribs will make your tongue slap your brains out!
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Topic: Ribs (Read 3470 times)