Turn your grill into a smoker

Big smokers work by applying a slow-and-steady stream of smoke to lumps of wood or wood pellets for several hours. To turn your backyard grill into a smoker, you need to be prepared to slowly add wood as needed during the smoking time.

The wood chips will burn more consistently if they are soaked for at least an hour (or as long as overnight) before they're put to use. When you're ready to smoke, you'll make a boat out of aluminum foil to hold the wood chips and then prepare the grill for indirect heat either by lighting a chimney of charcoal and setting it to one side in the grill or by turning on just one or two gas burners. Your objective is to set the ribs over the area without the heat and smoke, and to keep the heat at or below 300 F while smoking.

Timing

A lot of barbecue enthusiasts swear by a "3-2-1" method for smoking ribs: three hours of smoking, followed by two hours of cooking the ribs wrapped in foil, and finally an hour of cooking and saucing the ribs on the grill (without smoke). I find three hours of smoking to be a bit too much smoke and opt instead for more of a "2-2-finish" method (much less catchy, I know), which means you only need to smoke these ribs for two hours on the grill. Then, you'll wrap them in foil and continue to cook them on the grill or bring them inside to finish in the oven.

Knowing when they're done

Perfectly cooked ribs shouldn't be falling off the bone. That's an indication they've cooked too long. You can use a thermometer to check that they hold a temperature over 190 F for more than one hour, or you can use this easy test. Slide a pair of tongs under the middle of the rack and pick the ribs up gently so they create a rainbow shape. If the middle of the rainbow bends and the bark of the ribs cracks, your ribs are ready for saucing.

Finishing your cooked ribs really is as simple as sticking them back on the grill over high heat and basting them with sauce. If you went to charcoal grill route for smoking or you don't want to use the grill again, you can also do this step in the oven at 375 F. The nice thing is that you can do all the cooking in advance and even cool and store your ribs, and then reheat them with sauce and the hot heat of the grill when you're ready to serve.

Smoked Ribs

Serves 4 to 6

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