MrsForensicBBQ and I spent a week in Idaho and I had to find out what makes Idaho.. Idaho. One things always comes to mind, and yes – you’ll see that later. Some other things will be coming that you might not have thought of unless you’re from the Gem State. Today we’re just going to ease you into my Idahoan experience as we play with the huckleberry.
The Prep Table
So I actually had to be in Idaho for work, but Mrs got to have fun and explore. One of the things she brought me was that bottle of BBQ sauce. While we saw a lot of huckleberry things, the only thing I actually partook in was the Owyhee Huckleberry Gems. And while those were good, nothing beat their Idaho Spud. I brought one of them spud bars home and it sits on my desk as I type this. Anyway, huckleberry.
I texted my buddy and said “have you ever just done grate ribs?”. I’ve always 3-2-1 wrapped – played with the timing a bit for pellet vs. electric smoker.. but I can’t ever recalling anytime just throwing it on the grates and letting it go. So that’s what we’re going to do here. Just 275F until done.
But.. am I really smoking at 275?
Fillin’ up our tube with pellets and supplementing with some smoke. I didn’t know how long it’d take, didn’t know how they’d turn out – but we will today.
The Process
I’ve used by 40lb hopper Bull – “Takin’ Care of Business” – for a lot of my cooks on here, but this year I’ve been trying to use more of the little guy – El Alamein. (Us RecTeq’ers name ’em on the app – so there’s my secret names). Anyway, let’s keep ’em cooking.
As I neared the 4 hour mark, these were starting to pull away (Check the ends of the bones between the two pictures. When they start to expose and get that bend – you’re about good. You can jab with a ThermaPen and make sure they’re 200F – but you’ll know.
Go say hi to Dorothy Baumhoff over at Homemade by Dorothy if the idea of Huckleberry BBQ sauce appeals to ya. I’ve forever had a more spicy than sweet flavor preference, but these were experimental ribs, lets get experimental.
The Result
Notes to take from this one: Did I miss out on the smokiness? I did. Pellet smokers don’t give you a powerful smoke like a stick. I was hoping the pellet tube would add a bit, but I didn’t get too much smoke on here at all.
BBQ sauce was good – even for a sweet sauce. If I was going back to the Sweet BBQ game, I’d definitely use this one. Was it my favorite? No.. but it was a delicious profile.
More importantly – how was the bite? The best I’ve had in a rib yet. This one surprised me because I’ve always done the wrap to stay tender. I didn’t do a damn thing to these ribs other keep ’em on the grates. Sure, I moved the slab to make sure I had the bend and to apply the sauce, but that was it. And the meat adhered to the bone, but ever so slightly. Is the 3-2-1 dead? Probably not, but I was happy with the result!