Smoked Beef Ribs

Before You Start...

1. I like to prep and season the ribs the night before to give the meat a chance to absorb the seasonings. The next morning, the ribs can go straight from the refrigerator into the smoker and be done in time for lunch.

To Prepare the Ribs

1. The night before you plan to cook (or several hours ahead), prep and season 2 racks beef short ribs. Gather all the ingredients. You won‘t need the apple cider vinegar until the ribs are almost done cooking, so set it aside for now.
2. If your beef ribs are not trimmed, remove the excess fat and silver skin from the meat side. Remove the silver skin (membrane) from the bone side. The fat and silver skin make up 15–20 percent of the weight of the ribs. Pat dry if needed.
3. Drizzle and rub about half of the 6 Tbsp sriracha sauce on the meat side of the ribs. For this step (and the next), I wear gloves and use my hands to thoroughly distribute the sauce all over the racks.
4. Drizzle and rub the remaining sriracha sauce on the bone side and along the edges.
5. Next, generously sprinkle 1 Tbsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and 1 Tbsp 16-mesh ground black pepper on both the meat and bone sides of the ribs (I absolutely love using a sifter for this).
6. Make sure to sprinkle some salt and pepper on the edges of the racks as well. Place the racks on a large tray, cover, and refrigerate overnight (or several hours) until you‘re ready to cook.

To Cook in the Smoker

1. Preheat the smoker to 285ºF (140ºC). After the smoker is up to temperature, place the rib racks in the center of the smoker. Close the cover and set a timer for 4½ hours. Don‘t open the smoker cover during this time.
2. Fill a small spray bottle with 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar. After 4½ hours, open the smoker and gently spray the ribs with the apple cider vinegar. Using an instant-read thermometer, check the temperature of the meat. You‘re looking for an internal temperature of 200–205ºF (93.3–96.1ºC). Close the smoker.
3. Monitor the ribs carefully over the next 30 minutes. Pay special attention to the smaller rack, as it tends to cook faster than a larger rack. Once the internal temperature of the meat reaches 200–205ºF (93.3–96.1ºC), they are done. Remove the racks from the smoker and let rest for 20 minutes.

To Serve

1. Slice the racks into individual rib portions. Serve with your favorite barbecue sauce. Something with a bit of acidity goes well with the ribs since they‘re pretty fatty and rich. Enjoy.

To Store

1. You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 1 month. To reheat the ribs, preheat the oven to 250ºF (121ºC) for 30 minutes or until warmed through.