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A judge at the Memphis in May contest said my ribs were 'too clean' off the bone
I always thought fall-off-the-bone was the goal, so I'd cook my baby backs for exactly 4 hours at 250 degrees. He pulled me aside and said that texture is for crock pots, not competition. Real pitmaster ribs should have a slight tug, leaving a clean bite mark. I switched to a 3-2-1 method but cut the wrap time down to just 1 hour. Now they have that perfect pull I was missing. Anyone else get dinged for being too tender?
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eva_garcia564mo ago
Man that judge pulled you aside? That's brutal. But honestly I get it. @reese_singh87's buddy ain't alone. I saw a guy at a local comp get ripped for his ribs looking "too perfect" like they were from a restaurant. Real backyard cooks want that messy fall apart thing. But competition judges want a little fight back. Your wrap trick sounds right. I learned the hard way too. Took me three years to figure out they want that "clean bite" not a pile of meat on the plate. It's a whole different game.
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juliawalker5mo ago
Lol welcome to the wild world of competition BBQ where the rules are made up and the points don't matter. It's a total trap, you spend years trying to get that fall off the bone texture for your family just to have a judge call it mushy. That 3-2-1 tweak is smart, cutting the wrap time is key. Sounds like you found the sweet spot between pot roast and beef jerky.
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reese_singh875mo ago
Man, my buddy spent a fortune on a brisket for his first comp. The judges tore it apart for being too soft, just like @juliawalker said. He was so mad he almost quit right there. Now he swears by less time in the foil, too.
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