Loong hold over

[smookem]

As you can tell I just joined the team. Have been reading for some time. There have been threads about holding over pork ribs for a short time. I often take our motorhome on vacation and do not have the means to cook ribs for any length of time. Generally purchase ribs in cyro pack from Costco, then freeze. They are 'too fall the bone' and are too sauced. Can I cook my own ribs then cool and freeze them safely? I enjoy this site.

[Ryan]

Yep done it a couple times. Can either reheat on grill or in the oven.

[Bama BBQ]

I think you can. I do it with pulled pork all the time. Here's how I do it: cook to desired doneness, either 1) cool uncovered in a fridge to below 40*F within 2 hours, then slide them into a vac pack, and freeze them or 2) go straight into the freezer uncovered and then vac pack them. Maybe even slice them into half rack packs for easier handling/reheating. To heat them place them in boiling water (still in the bag), or open the bag(s) and grill them or heat in the oven.

[barkonbutts]

Yes you can do this, I do it all the time. If I am doing ribs I cook like 4 slabs.. eat about 1.5 and then package the rest for easy reheating on a night when I do not have time to cook them... They are not as good as the day you cook but they are pretty darn close. I thaw and grill on the gas grill or put into the oven, or boil in the bag and then open up and eat....yes cool them down and then pack and freeze.

Welcome from Dayton!! Now go smoke some meat!!

[curious aardvark]

As you can tell I just joined the team. Have been reading for some time. There have been threads about holding over pork ribs for a short time. I often take our motorhome on vacation and do not have the means to cook ribs for any length of time. Generally purchase ribs in cyro pack from Costco, then freeze. They are 'too fall the bone' and are too sauced. Can I cook my own ribs then cool and freeze them safely? I enjoy this site.

yep - no problem

[Blue Dog BBQ]

from Western North Carolina. I say buy a small smoker that you can take along with you and that way you don't have to freeze anything. When I do ribs I will not stop eating ribs until the ambulance shows up.

[smookem]

Thanks all. I will do it. The thought of fixin several and freezing the rest is helpful to me. A reheat on the portable grill will do just fine. Thanks again.

[HawgHeaven]

I do it alot. I vacuum seal them in individual "rack packets", they will keep for quite some time in the freezer. To reheat them, I thaw them first, place them in a disposable pan with a bit of apple juice, cover the pan with foil, and cook for aboot 20 minutes @ 350.

[dba1954]

Pickup a small smoker like a Cookshack SM009 or SM025. I know truck drivers that carry them around do some smokin on long hold overs .... nothing compares to fresh out of the smoker.

[mackbrad]

Get urself a 14.5 wsm great for travel

[travcoman45]

Yall could pull the meat offin the bone when ya freeze it. Saves a bita space.

[JarJarChef]

Short answer: yes

Long answer: yes as long as you do proper cooling.

I like the earlier post of 2 hrs to get below 40 degrees, however the State of Florida Health code says different.

>140 to <70 in 2hrs
<70 to <40 in 4hrs
For a total cooling time of 6hrs. I am not a fan of it, but it helps with large volume.

Tips for quicker cooling: make sure you have an air gap between the racks. Don't overload the fridge or freezer if using that method. Another way would be to let the ribs cool slightly on counter so you can handle them, vacuum pack them and into a cooler with ice bath, then freeze.

Reheating of anything should be done in a safe method that will get the product from <40 to >165 in under 2hrs. So on the grill IMO will be the fastest with best results for the ribs.