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Costco Seasoned Ribs on Traeger
Costco sells fresh, pre-seasoned uncooked ribs that are perfect for smoking on a Traeger wood pellet grill. This style of seasoning is more common for Memphis Dry barbecue and Lexington-style barbecue ribs but can also be adapted for the saucing of Kansas City-style ribs as well.
You can season fresh, uncooked ribs with one of Traeger’s seasoning blends like their Anything rub, Perfect Pork rub, and Pork & Poultry rub. If you want you can make your own seasoning rub with light brown sugar, salt, granulated garlic, and paprika.
A smoking temperature of 225 to 250-degrees on a Traeger grill is ideal for smoking Costco seasoned ribs. Though you might want to turn the temperature up as high as 275-degrees if you are planning to make the seasoned ribs in the traditional Memphis Dry or Lexington-style barbecue.
It generally takes around 5 to 6 hours to finish ribs on a Traeger grill at 250-degrees. Though it might only take an hour for precooked ribs to warm all the way through.
You can tell when ribs are finished by inserting an instant-read probe thermometer into the thickest part of the meat. You are looking for a temperature of 190 to 205 degrees, which is the point where the connective tissue has rendered into gelatin and the ribs should feel loose on the bone, but not fall off the bone.
How Do You Smoke Costco Ribs on a Traeger Grill?
If you are smoking Costco seasoned ribs on a Traeger grill for Memphis Dry or Lexington-style barbecue, then you want to set the temperature at 250 to 275-degrees. The traditional smoking woods for these styles of barbecue call for using either hickory or apple, both of which are accent woods in Traeger’s line of wood pellets.
You can then smoke the ribs for three hours. Then lightly wrap them in aluminum foil for another two hours or until they reach an internal temperature of 190 to 205-degrees.
At this point, you can pull the Costco seasoned ribs off the heat and tent them in aluminum foil for 20 to 30 minutes. This will give them time for the rendered fat, gelatin, and natural juices to redistribute back into the meat fibers.
How Much Are Seasoned Ribs at Costco?
The Kirkland seasoned ribs at Costco typically sell for $13 to $16 per rack. Though you might be able to find them on sale in early summer or fall for less.
How Much Fuel Do You Need for Ribs on a Traeger?
A Traeger grill will go through about 1-pound of wood pellet per hour at 250-degrees, which is the average temperature for smoking ribs. Memphis, St. Louis, and Lexington-style ribs will take around 5 hours, which will go through 5 pounds of wood pellets.
Kansas City-style ribs take six hours or six pounds of wood pellets to give the sauce extra time to caramelize. This calls for up to 6 pounds of wood pellets at 225 to 250-degrees.
Texas-style beef ribs are larger and need between 6 to 8 hours at 250 to 275-degrees. This will go through up to 8-pounds of wood pellet for a full smoking session.
Can You Smoke Costco Ribs?
All the different types of ribs sold at Costco will do well on a Traeger grill. This includes raw, unseasoned ribs, pre-seasoned ribs, and pre-cooked, sauced ribs.
However, the temperature and time in the smoker can vary. Fresh uncooked ribs might take 5 to 6 hours smoking on a Traeger, whereas precooked ribs might be done in as little as 45 minutes to an hour.
What Seasoning Goes Great with Ribs in a Traeger?
Traeger offers their own seasoning blends. Their Anything rub, Perfect Pork rub, and Pork & Poultry rub are all great ways to season fresh ribs before putting them in the smoker.
You can also make your own seasoning rub for ribs with a mixture of light brown sugar, salt, paprika, granulated garlic, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.
Ideally, you want to put the seasoning rub on your ribs for 4 or more hours before smoking them in your Traeger grill. This will give the salt and sugar time to permeate the rib meat, while also bringing water-soluble proteins to the surface to create a more flavorful crust.
What Temp Do You Cook Ribs on a Traeger?
Smoking ribs on a Traeger grill usually calls for a temperature between 225 to 250-degrees. Though some traditional styles like Memphis Dry, Lexington, and Texas beef ribs call for smoking at temperatures closer to 275-degrees.
How Do You Know When the Ribs Are Finished?
You should take the ribs off the heat when the internal temperature in the thickest part of the meat registers 190 to 205 degrees on an instant-read probe thermometer. This is the point where the ribs feel loose on the bone, but they aren’t falling off the bone, which is considered the proper texture for rib meat.
Final Thoughts
The seasoned ribs at Costco are great for smoking on a Traeger wood pellet grill. The seasoning blend they use is very similar to Memphis Dry and Lexington-style barbecue ribs, but you could also use them for Kansas City-style sauced ribs.
You could also use one of Traeger’s seasoning blends such as their Anything rub, Perfect Pork rub, or Pork & Poultry rub to season fresh ribs yourself. You could also your own seasoning rub with light brown sugar, salt, granulated garlic, and paprika.
225 to 250-degrees is the ideal temperature for smoking seasoned ribs on a Traeger grill. Though a lot of Memphis barbecue purists will tell you to turn the temperature up to 275-degrees for smoking ribs in around 5 hours.
Inserting an instant-read probe thermometer into the thickest part of the meat in the middle of the rack will give you the most accurate reading of the internal temperature of the ribs. They should be succulent and tender when they hit temp of 190 to 205 degrees.
Robert is a certified Pitmaster, with over a decade of experience in smoking the best meats you’ll ever feast upon. He also has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Texas at San Antonio. When he’s not researching technical topics, he’s most likely barbecuing in his backyard.