Making BBQ Ribs

If our readers are anything like me, you are probably fans of both eating out for dinner and creating new tasty treats from home.  I decided recently to take on something I hadn't made on the grill myself, but have had numerous times--BBQ Ribs.  This was a true test of manliness at it's best, so I decided to take on the challenge.  I was assured by a few friends that had made ribs before that, "Oh, dude, it's so easy.  The trick is indirect low heat for a long time."  Little did I know that I was getting myself into nearly an all-day prep and cook session.  Here's how it all went down.



BBQ Ribs -- JG Style
Ingredients: 
Quarter-rack or more of Pork Ribs
Kosher salt
Parsley Flakes
Paprika
Brown Sugar
BBQ Sauce of Choice (Mine is Weber Grill)
Garlic
Whole Orange-Cut half into slices, other half use for Orange Zest
Cheese Grater

Total Cost for ingredients: $19-24

First of all, I started out by buying a quarter-rack of ribs from the local butcher.  I found a great cut of meat, for fairly cheap at the local Kroger. I had never done ribs before, so prepping the meat was my first challenge.  After watching multiple videos on YouTube about how to prep meat and remove the membrane of the ribs, I was ready to put a dry rub on the meat, and prep the rest of my meal (grilled artichokes with a soy/garlic aioli -- I'll tell you later in another post).

Creating a dry rub is easy; be daring!

My first instinct was to do what I do with my pork chops, which was to try to and make my own dry rub.  Normally, my dry rub consists of kosher salt, parsley flakes, paprika, Caribbean jerk, and a bit of brown sugar - in this case I dropped the brown sugar because of the BBQ sauce.  Mix these ingredients together in a small bowl, and just rub this into the top side of the ribs with your hands and let them stand in the fridge for 1 hour to really pick up the flavor of the rub.  The BBQ-Sauce concoction I made was my favorite part of the process, because it allowed for a little creativity.  I took Weber Grill BBQ Sauce and jazzed it up a bit by adding a tbsp. of brown sugar, kosher salt, garlic,  sriracha, and orange zest (orange peel + cheese grater = awesome) for a bit of bite during the grilling process.

Ultimately, after prepping the grill to about 150-200 degrees, slap the ribs on the grill for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, flipping the ribs every 20 minutes or so.  REMEMBER--low, indirect heat is the name of the game here.  Cooking ribs slowly is the only way to go.  So if you use a gas grill like myself, preheat the grill and use the opposite side burner to get this effect.  For example, I used the top right side of my rack, which means I use the farthest left burner to get this indirect-effect.  Once the meat has started to pull back away from the ribs or is visibly more tender, then you may apply your BBQ sauce generously to the top and then the bottom of the meat.  Apply the sauce too early, and it will burn...apply too late, and the meat doesn't take on the flavor of the BBQ fully.  In my opinion, you should never apply unless it's been over 45 minutes, but it is a matter of preference. Let each side set coated in the BBQ for about 20-30 minutes, and then flip as necessary.

Slather the ribs on the top w./ BBQ, flip after 20-30 minutes.

After you've had your ribs on the grill for about 2 hours or so (depending on the fluctuation of heat inside your grill), you can add any other fruits or veggies into the process.  Having added orange zest to the BBQ, I decided to add slices of orange directly on the top rack of the grill, and after browning them, they made a nice garnish to the meat while serving.  I also grilled yellow and orange bell peppers, to give the dish a very Southwestern look in the presentation, and another delicious garnish to enjoy.

That is all it takes to make yourself a rocking good rack o' ribs.  With all the BBQ that I've been making this summer, I wouldn't be surprised if I were so inclined to make these a few more times before the end of the season.

Do you do anything differently to your ribs?  Any other techniques or tips that you can offer to my recipe?  Feel free--I thought I did a great job making these for my first time, but I can always appreciate good pointers.  Let 'em rip -- mealightenment@gmail.com.

The goal for the remainder of the summer is to continue to bring you plenty of coverage on everything cooking and eating in Indy for super-cheap.  If you have any suggestions or places we should be looking, please feel free to email, tweet us, or friend us on Facebook.

Finished product = amazing.  Next time will be better!

Thanks for reading, and as always --Eat On,



--JG @Mealightenment