"Dana Myers" > wrote in message news:40ae4858$1@wobble...
> While I agree that boiling too long to warm the ribs
> runs the risk of pushing them into overcooked, I look
> at this way - cooking the ribs at 212F in a bag
> is basically the same as cooking them at 212F in
> the smoker without smoke. What's the difference
> between "cooked just right" and "overcooked" when
> they're in the smoker? It might not be that different
> when they're simmering in a pot of water.
>
> The one factor that I think mitigates this is I believe
> boiling water imparts heat more efficiently than smoke
> at the same temperature, but I don't have scientific
> evidence to back it up. (snip)

I won't bore you with the science since I'm a poor teacher and not a
thermodynamicist. Probably can't even spell it right.

The short explaination is yes, boiling cooks differently and faster than
smoking. It's bacause water is much more dense than air and holds more heat
to impart top the food. The reason you feel more hot on a humid day, because
steamy air holds more heat (HVAC guys call it "latent" heat). The ribs in
abag of boiling water are being touched by the plastic bag which is more
dense than air, and once the bag expands with steam the steam is still mroe
dense then the air in a BBQ pit.

Overcooked ribs turn mushy. Falling apart. Bad. Steam cooking faster is why
some folks put ribs in foil part of the time they BBQ to get the faster
cooking.