Barbecue Ribs, Take Two

As cuts of meat go, ribs aren't a really good deal. You usually end up paying steak prices for a lot of bone. Recently, however, while shopping with My Honey, we spotted some baby-back ribs at a really good price, and they were really meaty, too. We were able to scarf several racks to bring home.

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Now some of you may have seen my 2008 blog about barbecue ribs, wherein I added a few personal touches to a recipe offered by Mr. Alton Brown. The end result of that effort was some very good food, but I have to admit that the level of effort rubbed my lazy gene the wrong way. I wasn't looking forward to undertaking the process again, so the ribs sat in my 'fridge, taunting me for a couple of days.

As wonderful as the end product is, over time, I found that - even with the changes I made - making the ribs Mr. Brown's way, became unbearably tedious and time-consuming, at least for me; so kept up my search for techniques that would let me make great barbecue without as much work and worry. As a result, my new recipe for BBQ ribs produces an end product which - at least to my palate - is just as tender and tasty.

So, without further ado"

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The Ribs

Suggested Equipment:

• 2-gallon (or larger) zip-top food storage - to hold at least ½ rack of ribs
  
  
• Stock pot, 8 quarts
  
  
• Tongs
  
  
• Knives
  
  
• Cutting board
  
  
• Basting brush
  
  
• Cooking timer
  
  
• Common kitchen measures and tools
  
  

Ingredients:

1. In the original post of this recipe, I specified Grill Mates® Pork Rub. Unfortunately, this product is no longer available - hence the add-on recipe for pork rub, provided below.
2. The principal purpose of the sauce is to provide a sweet glaze on the meat. I currently use my own sauce recipe, or if I'm feeling particularly lazy (which is most of the time), Sweet Baby Ray's®, but feel free to develop your own choice here.

Item		Amount
Ribs	Pork - short, back, or baby back	1	rack
Dry rub mix	For pork, commercial or home-made1	½	cup
Sauce	BBQ - your favorite hot, sweet2	¾	cup

Directions:

Making good BBQ ribs is not a spur-of-the-moment thing. It takes time. A lot of time. Start preparations the night before you intend to commence eating the ribs.

1. Begin by applying the pork rub liberally to all surfaces of the rack of ribs. Place the treated ribs into a zip-lock bag of appropriate size, and put the bag in your refrigerator overnight.

2. 3½ hours before you intend to serve the ribs, retrieve them from the 'fridge, and cut them into slabs small enough to fit into a large, shallow, pot. I use a cheap, 8-quart, stainless steel stock pot.

3. Put the slabs into the pot and add several tablespoons of pork rub. Add water to barely cover the ribs, and bring the pot to a boil on the stove top. Once you have achieved a boil, reduce heat to a very slow simmer, and cover with a lid.

4. Let the ribs simmer for about 3 hours, turning the slabs over about half-way through. At the end of this time, the meat should be fall-off-the-bone tender.

5. Carefully remove the slabs of ribs from the water and place in a single layer on a cooking sheet or biscuit pan, meaty side down. Brush BBQ sauce generously, on the surface of the slabs, and put the sheet or pan under the broiler. Don't put the pan too close to the broiler element, or it will cook unevenly. It won't take long for the broiler to begin caramelizing the sugars in the sauce mixture, and begin browning the meat - about 7 to 10 minutes or less.

6. Remove the pan from the over, turn the rack(s) over (meaty side up), and again generously apply BBQ sauce to the surface. Return the pan to the oven, and wait for the broiler to begin caramelizing the sauce, and brown the meat.

7. Any time the ribs are in the oven, turn the sheet or pan around every so often, to insure even cooking, and watch continuously to avoid over-cooking.

8. Finally, when the slabs are done to your expectations, remove them from the oven and stack them on a serving platter. Optionally, separate the individual ribs using a sharp knife.

Serve with additional sauce and your favorite barbecue sides. We like potato salad and cole slaw, but for variety we often use steamed broccoli. These ribs are ready to eat!

Now you may have noticed a few things that require explanation.

First, I didn't braise the ribs per Mr. Brown's recipe. Frankly, I found the effort involved in oven-braising to be too much. I had heard from other sources about boiling ribs before grilling, and I reasoned that braising was really just another way of boiling. The key idea in both processes is low, slow, moist cooking for a fairly long time. Mr. Brown's process requires oven-braising at about 250℉ for 2-1/2 hours. Boiling only gets the temperature up to 212℉ at sea level, less at any altitude, so longer cook time is required.

Second, Mr. Brown creates a sauce using the juices that cook out of the oven-braised meat. Again, more effort than I am willing to put forward, when there are many very good commercial barbecue sauces available at almost any grocery. For most of my BBQ applications, I use Williamson Brothers®, because I like the flavor, and for most applications, I like the fact that it has a relatively low sugar content. Getting a decent glaze on your barbecue, however, requires sugar, so that's why this recipe calls for a hot, sweet sauce.

The Rub

If you don't have a favorite commercially-available pork rub, and your Grand-dad declined to share the recipe for his home-made rub, before departing his mortal coil, you might want to try making your own. This recipe might give you a better than average start.

Suggested Equipment:

• Common kitchen measures and tools
  
  
• Container (seal-able) for the final product
  
  
• Automated mixing device (optional)
  
  
• Bowl, 16 oz (if you have to mix by hand)
  
  

Ingredients:

Item		Amount
Sugar	Brown, packed	3	Tbs
Garlic	Dry, granulated	5	tsp
Paprika	Dry, ground	2	tsp
Black pepper	Dry, ground	1½	tsp
Cumin	Dry, ground	½	tsp
Oregano	Leaves, dry, crushed	1	tsp
Salt	Common	1	tsp
Cilantro	Leaves, dry, crushed	1	tsp
Cayenne	Dry, powdered	½	tsp

Directions:

1. Measure all components into the bowl (if you are hand mixing) or you favorite automated mixing device (if you have one). I find that this is yet another recipe where a cheap salsa chopper does a pretty good job - especially if you make a double, triple, or quadruple batch of the stuff!

2. Mix as thoroughly as possible, breaking up any and all lumps you encounter.

3. When you are convinced that all components are evenly distributed throughout the mass of the product, transfer it to the storage/dispensing container.

Makes about ½ cup.

You can, of course, simply use a small canning jar with a fitted lid, and just spoon out what you need whenever you use the rub. I find it more convenient to re-purpose an empty shaker jar from its former life as a storage/dispenser of Parmesan cheese!. The shaker top seals, and is very handy for applying the rub to the ribs - or any other pork cut you might want to use it on.

Final assessment? This works very well, and produces a main dish I am happy to eat, and would be proud to serve (if there were any left for guests...).

Meat, Pork, BBQ, Spicy Foods