BBQ Baby Back Ribs

I told you that two rib recipes/techniques rose to the top during Rib-O-Rama last weekend. Today is the second of the two “winners.” The first recipe was for slow-cooked BBQ beef short ribs. While they were truly delicious, tender and mouth watering, it just wasn’t the same as eating a rack of ribs. When you have a hankerin’ for ribs, you just have to gnaw on a bone.

Well, these baby backs are the bomb! Again, I took your ideas and recipes and combined them with my tastes and came up with what are now my favorite at-home ribs. I have to be honest – a great BBQ dive will have better ribs. A mere mortal cannot compete with the master BBQ kings and their BBQ smokers and pits. But, in my kitchen, these are now my faves! And… you can recreate them!

This is one of the few recipe experiments that Nick has eaten. He ate an entire rack of these ribs with a side of cornbread. That’s it. No veggie. No Salad. Just ribs and cornbread. I have been force-feeding him veggies ever since.

There are a few steps to these ribs. None are complicated and they are totally worth the extra time. So, whip up a batch of cornbread, some slow-cooked baked beans and some slaw and lets gnaw on some lip-smacking, finger-licking ribs!

BBQ Baby Back Ribs

Ingredients:

• 2 racks baby back pork ribs, about 2 lbs each rack
• Dry Rub (recipe follows)
• 1 bottle of beer
• BBQ sauce (recipe follows or use your favorite bottled sauce)

Cut each of the racks of ribs in half and then remove the white membrane that covers the back of the ribs (on the bones). This helps the dry rub and bbq sauce penetrate the meat.

Place ribs (your should now have four slabs) in a baking dish and cover with dry rub. Massage the dry rub into both sides of the ribs. Don’t just sprinkle it on. If you don’t massage it into the meat you will end up with a crust of seasoning. The sensation is not all that great when it hits your mouth

Once the dry rub has been massaged into the meat, pour the beer over all. Cover and refrigerate overnight. (You can also put them in plastic sealable storage bags.)

About four hours before you want to serve the ribs, remove them from the refrigerator and let them come to room temperature. This will take about 30-45 minutes. Don’t let them sit longer than that. Remove the ribs only (not the beer they have been soaking in) to a foil lined baking sheet.

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Cover the ribs with foil and bake for 2 1/2 hours. Remove from oven. Let sit for about 30 minutes.

To cook on an outdoor grill:

Preheat grill. Place ribs on preheated grill away from any direct flame. Brush with bbq sauce. Grill for 15 minutes on each side, brushing with more sauce as needed.

Oven method:

Brush ribs with bbq sauce. Place under preheated broiler, about 6 inches from heat, and broil for 5-6 minutes per side or until browning and getting crispy edges.

Dry Rub

• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup paprika
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons black pepper
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons onion powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne powder (less if you don’t like any heat)

Combine all ingredients. You can make this a few days in advance. Store in tightly covered container. (Note: If you do not have these ingredients on hand, just purchase a prepared dry rub blend at the grocery store. It would be less expensive than purchasing all these spices if you are not going to use them again.)

BBQ Sauce

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped or grated
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup Worchestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1 /4 cup spicy brown mustard
• salt and pepper to taste
• dash cayenne

In a small saucepan over medium heat, saute the onion in the butter until translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the garlic and cook 1 minute longer, stirring frequently. Add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a low boil. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat. (You can prepare this a day or two in advance and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.)

Sweetest Blessings,
LeAnn