Today we’re getting outside and making Kamado Joe baby back ribs.

It’s a beauty of a day, sunny and warm. Those rainy spring days are inching towards summer.

Grilling is a year round event here our home. Neither rain, nor snow …

A good grilling tent is a nice backyard feature. Easy to put up, easy to take down. That’s another project we’re working on. Stay tuned.

Kamado Joe Baby Back Ribs

Nothing says summer barbecue like racks of smoked baby back ribs. Here we make them year round and so can you.

We picked up two packages Smithfield baby back ribs from the local megamart. Two packages are a bit too much for us. One is not enough.

So let’s get going.

Kamado Joe Baby Back Ribs – Rib Preparation

Open those cryovac packages and give them a good rinse under cold water. You’re washing away any bits and pieces of bone fragments and such that might remain. Pat them dry with paper towels. Don’t toss the paper towels away yet, conserve those resources.

Some folks opt to leave the membrane on the back of the ribs. We remove it, your choice. A butter knife works really well here. Just slide it between the membrane and a rib bone. Using one of those saved paper towel grab that membrane and pull it off.

We trim the ends a bit to square them up. Put those rib tips on grill as a snack for the grill master.

Kamado Joe Baby Back Ribs – Seasoning

For these Kamado Joe baby back ribs, we like to give them a good rubdown with apple cider vinegar. This step will add a bit of flavor and help the rub to hold on to those ribs.

Today, were using some of this Twisted Q Wicked Sweet Bourbon rub. It comes with a shaker top, so shake on as much as you want. We aim for 2 to 4 teaspoons of rub per pound of meat.

Let the rub sit on the meat to absorb some moisture so it’ll stay on the ribs better.

Kamado Joe Baby Back Ribs – Smoker Preparation

Today we’re using apple wood for smoke. Pork and apple wood smoke are a popular combination. Pork can stand up to a lot of smoke. Apple wood smoke doesn’t overpower and dominate the other flavors.

Fire up your Joe. We’re using the heat deflector for indirect cooking. Our target cooking temperature is 250 °F (121 °C).

Our bottom vent is opened about 1/2 inch, the top vent is opened 1/4 of the way and the daisy wheel is fully opened. We are watching the temperature come up, and as it gets closer to our target of 250 °F (121 °C) we’ll close down the top vent.

Once the temperature has stabilized, add in your smoking wood of choice. A piece on the hot coals, and another piece or two close to the first. As the fire burns, these pieces will start smoking.

Kamado Joe Baby Back Ribs – Smoking the Ribs

Place those baby backs on the grill grate.

Today, we’re using the 3-2-1 method. Smoke them for 3 hours, wrap in foil and cook for 2 hours, then unwrap and cook for another hour.

Every 45 minutes to an hour or so, lightly spritz those ribs with apple juice. Doing this will help keep the ribs from getting dry. Dry meats won’t hold smoke.

After 3 hours of smoking, wrap each rack of ribs loosely in a layer foil. Add a 1/4 of apple juice in the foil pouch to help steam and cook.

In 2 hours, remove the ribs from the foil. Take care not to spill any juices and fats that will have accumulated in that foil pouch.

Put the ribs back on the grate. Lightly dab them with the barbecue sauce of your choice, or use none at all.

Every 15 minutes or so, give them another light coating of barbecue sauce, or use none. Make them the way you want.

The rib meat will have pulled back from the bone.

Dig in.

Check out my other Kamado Joe and JoeTisserie recipes and links here on my Outdoor Eats page.