Tendernism! Dub Shack BBQ Presents Beef Short Ribs

Tendernism!

What is it, and what makes everyone's YouTube OG throw something across the room such as sunglasses and pens in sheer excitement of a bone sliding out of beef? Well, the friendly pitmaster is laying down some knowledge of how to achieve the same result without having to spend hundreds of dollars to practice smoking beef short ribs that will certainly cement your own legacies as true pitmasters in your own rights.

Shout out to Kara's Packing Company in Owensville (my real plug) for slinging them at a good price, and to Double B Farm & Ranch in Bigelow for raising tasty cows that are giving my pit the best smoke in the neighborhood by a long shot.

You know what I say about shopping and supporting local small businesses: Do it. I'm a firm believer in the best products are the ones that can be sourced closest to home; whether that means I can finally make room for a quarter beef and/or a pig is up for debate. 

Now...we cook.

INGREDIENTS 

Beef short ribs

Bear and Burtons W Sauce

Killer Hogs TX Brisket Rub

STEP ONE. Open the packaging and pat the beef short ribs dry with a paper towel before trimming any of the scraggly bits away to what should be no more than 1/4" fat from the meat. Don't worry about the all of that fat; it will mostly render during the cook and waste itself during the process. Apply first the W sauce to all sides and repeat with TX Brisket rub the same way on all sides - especially the Westside. Set aside for at least 30 minutes to let the ribs come up to room temperature so they are not shocked when the smoker is ready.

STEP TWO. As Senior (my Oklahoma Joe smoker) gets the assignment, start out with a cooler smoke not to instantly shock the meat like we normally do around 300+ degrees for most proteins. Add the mesquite splits to the fire and babysit the thing for three hours at 275-300 degrees. At that point, feel free to do your first temperature and tenderness checks: If they feel like butter, then the beef short ribs are pretty close to done.

What is done, and what is tendernism, friendly pitmaster?

Done is 202-205 degrees and tender, and tendernism takes those same beef short ribs a step further to where the bone easily slides out of the beef. For an exact temperature, I took mine close to 215 degrees which in many quarters is overcooked but hey, I had to follow a trend.

STEP THREE. Once finished, let the ribs rest for at least fifteen minutes to an hour before serving. For the eyeglass toss, eat before the minimum rest; everyone else knows that it is merely brisket on a stick.

My thoughts: Was it good? Yes.

Was it tender? Yes.

Was it tendernism? Yes, but under specific circumstances. 

Would I do it again? It's highly unlikely that I will because it just takes too long, and the fact I ended up braising them once I got my desired color until it was time to eat. 

But don't let that stop you from trying.

Thank you for reading this post. Go outside and cook something superb this weekend instead of laying around the house begging for fast food, or worse, snacks. Be blessed, be safe, be good to each other, and tell everyone that every day is a GREAT day for Dub Shack BBQ!