BBQ Short Ribs for Dummies...

[Bill_Tex_Landreth]

Short rib plate and back ribs

[M_Taylor]

For what its worth, I would do the following:

1. Start on your smoker to get some smoker. 1-2 hours should be fine, and don’t worry about getting it down to 225. Lots and Lots of famous restaurants smoke between 275-300. Just go as low as you can get things and remember overstocking leaves your meat bitter tasting while under smoking leaves the meat edible. No one wants to eat smoked meat that tastes like its covered in bitter sawdust.
2. Remove the meat and transfer to a braising vessel. Aluminum pan, dutch oven, whatever. Add some liquid (BBQ sauce, meat drippings, vinegar, and a bit of apple juice is my go to) and cover. Braise until temps are around 200 (use a thermometer if you don’t trust you instinct/finger poke method).
3. refrigerate overnight in braising liquid
4. The next day, put the ribs on a hot grill to warm through and get some color. Take the solidified fat off the top of the braising liquid and reduce it to the thickness of your liking. Baste the meat in this liquid while it is on the grill.
   
   
   I know that in BBQ circles this would be sacrilegious advice. I am actually doing the above for dinner tonight for my family for father’s day, the reason being that we have been supposedly getting thunderstorms in the afternoon all week (none of which have actually happened). It was safer to commit to a 1-2 hour smoke rather than 6 hours yesterday.

I can’t even begin how to describe how wrong this is on so many levels.

Meathead Goldwyn does a sous vide 'que short ribs. You probably think that’s wrong too, but between you and Meathead Goldwyn, I know who I’ll listen to…

Listen to whomever you want, but as a native Texan who regularly smokes beef ribs (and brisket, and pork shoulder, and pork ribs), I can tell you that method just plain sucks for smoked beef ribs. I lobe braised beef ribs, but smoked ribs are not teh same as braised ribs.