Hiker Neil wrote:
I bet bear ribs are better in the fall than in the spring. And I bet they taste a lot better than pork ribs. I was thinking of doing ribs this weekend. My shopping list: 2 onions, pepper, brown sugar, 1 bear, 2 cases beer.
Funny you unearthed this thread. I was meaning to write up a cook report. I made a batch of ribs about a month ago after carefully reading this thread and following instructions carefully (I did mine in the oven, with the award winning rub, with an oven thermometer etc. etc.) Everyone said they were the best ribs they had ever eaten although I still saw (tasted) room for improvement.
A hearty thanks for everyone who posted.
Dead on, Neil, fall bear is definitely the way to go. Ribs of all kinds are made up of not only meat and bone, but fat and connective tissue. The fat keeps the meat tender during the cook. The connective tissue is what makes some ribs tough and needs to be cooked slowly at low temps to soften it.
Dunkin, your cooking method is near perfect IMO.
Andy, whole racks of ribs are the way to go. Here are a couple of pics of preparing a whole rack for cooking as a "St. Louis" style trim.
First, cut the breast bone from the ribs using a sharp knife cutting through the cartillage joining the rib to the breast bone.

Next trim the diagonal flap of meat.

Next, pull the membrane covering the bone side of the ribs. This will toughen during the cook and will also prevent flavour from the rub from penetrating the meat if not removed.

Finally, trim the flap of meat at the end of the rack and you will have a fine looking rack of ribs. Rub and cook the pieces you trim off, too. The small flaps of meat cook quickly and give you something to snack on while the ribs finish.

Back ribs come trimmed ready for the BBQ and don't need this process except for removal of the membrane.
Last step is to give them a coat of rub and start the cook.
Dunkin, you mention a smoker box. Here is a smoker box setup on a gas grill. Only the side under the box is lit. This pics shows Armadillo eggs but its the same setup as for ribs.

Here's what they look like after rubbing.

.... and ready to eat.
