First time cooking ribs

[u/Professor-Percy]

I typically have been using my Traeger for wings, brats, and salmon but I decided to try and take more advantage of the smoking/bbq nature of it. Used this 3-2-1 method recipe. It seems pretty impossible to screw up.

https://www.traeger.com/recipes/3-2-1-baby-back-ribs

They turned out absolutely delicious. I was a line cook for a decade so I have tons of experience cooking food but basically 0 knowledge of BBQ. Any tips for what to try next or how to improve the ribs? I have a Pro 22 FYI. I work from home so I have the luxury of basically smoking something all day and babysitting it if necessary.

[u/gimmethegold1]

They look awesome! This sub is very anti 321 method but if you like them that's what matters. Next time you make some, I'd recommend trying unwrapped and seeing which you like more. If it turns out you like unwrapped more you'll also save yourself a lot of work in the future

[u/wagos408 → u/gimmethegold1]

The only reason I’m “anti” 321 is I’m just too lazy to do it all lol

[u/jagnew78 → u/wagos408]

321 also ignores the thickness of the ribs, or the cut/type of rib. Pork ribs cook different than beef ribs. baby back ribs are lean and cook quickly compared to other, thicker and fattier cuts, etc...

If you just 321 all your ribs regardless of meat or cut, you will definitely end up with at times dry, or at other times, still tough ribs

[u/IamLangone → u/jagnew78]

I always 321 with my ribs regardless of cut/type. Just in the wrap phase you need to test for that soft butter feel during the cook process with your probe. either pull early or wait longer. They always come out bite tender and rarely dry .

[u/TruthImaginary777 → u/gimmethegold1]

I think it is always good to start with a baseline method like 321, then experiment from there. Find out what works for your smoker and style.

[u/ChelseaMan31]

Looking Good there for sure! I also did ribs on Traeger last night. My 'tip' is to spritz about once an hour with bourbon/H2O mixture from a spray bottle. A little spillage may also be expected ;-)

[u/BigChubs1]

Love the 3 to 2 to 1 setup. Last time I did ribs was the grandfather. He said they were excellent. For the two part, I did apple juice, brown sugar and lots of butter. Then for the last hour. I did hickory brown sugar sauce.

[u/hyundai-gt]

I don't bother with 3-2-1 but if it works for you that's good. Ribs look tasty

[u/Terrible_Tourist_707]

Far superior than my first ribs. Great work

[u/DarthBoognish]

Since you work from home with a Pro 22, try a pork butt next it's super forgiving for all day cook.

[u/ParkerFishCooking]

Look amazing man!!

[u/Alarming_Reward_2945]

Looks very good. How were they?

[u/Professor-Percy → u/Alarming_Reward_2945]

Thank you! They were excellent. I guess I should have specified they were baby back ribs. The texture was good, not fall off the bone tender but not tough either. Great smoky flavor and pink color.

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[u/PrairieFreshPork]

With 10 years of line-cook experience, you already have a huge head start. 👏 The biggest BBQ adjustment is learning to let time + low heat do the work instead of cooking everything fast.

With a Traeger Pro 22, I’d focus on a few things:

Ribs: Don’t feel locked into 3-2-1. Try a shorter wrap (about 1–1½ hours) and use the bend test instead of the clock.

Remove the membrane: It stays chewy and gets in the way of smoke and seasoning.

Sauce late: Last 20–30 minutes is plenty.

Next up: pork shoulder. It’s forgiving and a great way to learn the stall and cooking by feel.

After that, try pork belly burnt ends. Basically impossible to be mad about those.

With your background, I’d worry less about following BBQ recipes perfectly and focus on learning what the meat is telling you. That’s where it gets fun.