smithfield ribs from walmart

[tduffy]

Are you guys finding any good bones on yours? I cruise over and check them out a couple times a week and find that they are tiny on one end, like two inch bones, with about three usable bones on each rack here locally. Anyone else find these like that?

yep, see it all of the time. There are more thin ones than good ones. I go a couple times a week and pick through them and take the good ones home to freeze. I will ask if they have more in back and will pick through those too.

 

[wmarkw]

Which ones are you all referring to?

This style: http://www.smithfield.com/products/extra-tender-fresh-pork/

or

this: http://www.smithfield.com/products/prime-fresh-pork/

or are they both good?

I've always stayed away from the "enhanced devil" but the spares at Sams Club I cant find a straight rib for the life of me; so I end up butchering a rack. Annoying. But might try one of these if they have some good size straight bones

 

[Burnt at Both Endz]

There is one STL cut and the other is full spares.

 

[akoda]

I guess it's time I learn to trip to St. Louis cut, I am typically a baby back guy

 

[Untraceable]

So if I know my Smithfield product right, they grade out the pork
DURoC- top 2%
Prime- Top 20%

I would assume the stuff that gets turned into "Extra Tender" and the unlabeled Sam's club product do not fall in the "Prime or higher" category.

Id supposed the enhanced ribs really shine when used with the H&F cookers. widen the window of getting a tender product.

 

[Burnt at Both Endz]

So if I know my Smithfield product right, they grade out the pork
DURoC- top 2%
Prime- Top 20%

I would assume the stuff that gets turned into "Extra Tender" and the unlabeled Sam's club product do not fall in the "Prime or higher" category.

Id supposed the enhanced ribs really shine when used with the H&F cookers. widen the window of getting a tender product.

I cooked Farmland/Smithfield Duroc last year, ended up 24th in the country in ribs. This year I've changed to the Extra Tender, same temps on the pellet grill. Here is my last turn in,1st in a stacked field of cooks, just sayin'.

 

[Untraceable]

I cooked Farmland/Smithfield Duroc last year, ended up 24th in the country in ribs. This year I've changed to the Extra Tender, same temps on the pellet grill. Here is my last turn in,1st in a stacked field of cooks, just sayin'.

so what are you saying? You were an awesome rib cook last year and still are?

 

[MikeJ65]

Cal,

Congrats on the rib win and your overall score/placing last weekend. Do you find the cook time slightly shorter on the Extra Tender version? I did two racks of Prime and one Extra Tender on Sunday. The Extra Tender finished sooner and it was the heaviest and thickest rack.

 

[Burnt at Both Endz]

Yes, I've had to work on my timing. With that said, they are not too far off of the Durocs, since the Extra Tenders are a lot more meatier.

 

[bpeyton89]

I'm making the switch to Smithfield from here on out. Been cooking Seaboard farms and injecting them. Best part about enhanced ribs is there is no need to inject.

 

[tduffy]

So if I know my Smithfield product right, they grade out the pork
DURoC- top 2%
Prime- Top 20%

I would assume the stuff that gets turned into "Extra Tender" and the unlabeled Sam's club product do not fall in the "Prime or higher" category.

Id supposed the enhanced ribs really shine when used with the H&F cookers. widen the window of getting a tender product.

As a hot and fast cooker I don't believe I need a wider window to get a tender product nor do I believe enhanced ribs give that. They surely do cook different than all natural ribs but the window of desired tenderness/texture is no different.

I cook both depending on what I can get. My options are limited in my area. I adjust my timeline accordingly.

 

[masque13]

so for those of you cooking with the Smithfield's discussed in this thread, what kind of timeline are you experiencing at temps around 275?

 

[Untraceable]

Lower quality meat is not the answer in the long run

 

[gettinbasted]

FYI, you still have a few days to sign up for the "Smokin with Smithfield" contest. $5000 for both pork and ribs plus $180 for each perfect score. Registration closes on the 30th.

http://www.smokinwithsmithfield.com/

 

[porkingINpublic]

so for those of you cooking with the Smithfield's discussed in this thread, what kind of timeline are you experiencing at temps around 275?

I've been doing 2/1.5/15 min

But that first 2 hours was making my bark really dark on my backwoods party.... on my pellet smoker it was fine. But I always ended up taking them out of smoke early and resting them...

Now I do 1.5/1.5/15 min and my color is much better and I don't spend as much time venting or resting ribs...

 

[porkingINpublic]

This was one I did 2/1.5/15min..... a little dark after the 2 hours of smoke I thought. The one I posted earlier was 1.5 hours of smoke.

 

[masque13]

This was one I did 2/1.5/15min..... a little dark after the 2 hours of smoke I thought. The one I posted earlier was 1.5 hours of smoke.

thanks for the info.....like you, I think the one with 1.5 hours of smoke has the prettier color. thanks for sharing your thoughts with me.

 

[bigdogphin]

FYI, you still have a few days to sign up for the "Smokin with Smithfield" contest. $5000 for both pork and ribs plus $180 for each perfect score. Registration closes on the 30th.

http://www.smokinwithsmithfield.com/

Thanks! Not sure how I missed this before. Not sure where I can get Smithfield butts though.

 

[Big Poppa]

The butts are harder to find....We are lucky in our area.

I love the money muscles. They dont have the seams that some of the gourmet brands do. So you dont have the splits and "pac mans" or injection trapping pockets.

I noticed the comment about "lower quality meat" isnt the answer. I am cooking what I think I can win with. I believe that Smithfield is great meat. The fact that it is affordable is really what bbq should be about and a bonus in my book. I can tell you that my offer to anyone at any comp to check what I am actually cooking stands. 3pm on any Friday. I am not representing one company and cooking a mix of brands or another brand. I am Smithfield all the way.

Once again this is a choice and an option available to you....The original poster asked if you can compete with Smithfield from Wal Mart. My answer is yes.

 

[tduffy]

I noticed the comment about "lower quality meat" isnt the answer. I am cooking what I think I can win with. I believe that Smithfield is great meat. The fact that it is affordable is really what bbq should be about and a bonus in my book. I can tell you that my offer to anyone at any comp to check what I am actually cooking stands. 3pm on any Friday. I am not representing one company and cooking a mix of brands or another brand. I am Smithfield all the way.

Exactly. Lower quality to what? What makes Smithfield ribs low quality is what I'd like to know. Over the last few years I've had no choice but to cook "enhanced" ribs because it's usually the only thing available in my area and I don't care to drive over 100 miles just to buy ribs that aren't. I've cooked these, hormel and tyson. Sometimes all 3 brands at the same contest. I questioned myself doing it because all I'd hear on this forum and several other places was how evil pumped ribs were and that they cannot win, yet when I cook them I get a tender, moist product that has always scored well for me. I've never understood the hatred for something that is done to a piece of meat during packaging that we do to the rest of our categories at the contest.