Baby Back Ribs Recipes!

[diechris]

Ok... so for the past 2 months I've been a fiend for Baby Back Ribs. If a restaurant has it on the menu I would order it with out a doubt!

Now... This makes me wonder if i can make a really good rack of baby back ribs. Im talking meat falling off the bone good.



....I bought a rack the other day thinking it would be easy


I was wrong... It tasted good but it was a bit tough and I'll admit that it wasnt the best rack ive had by far.


So like all important questions in life I came to Talkbass!




If anyone is willing... Please post your BEST baby back ribs recipe or tips!

[JimB52]

Back when I made ribs, I'd put a dry rub on, and cook them over a low flame with some wood chips for a bit of smoky goodness. Let the edges brown or blacken if you prefer, about 15-20 min per side. Then into a pan, add your favorite sauce a half bottle of beer if desired, cover with foil and bake at 300 for 1 1/2 hours or until falling apart.
Sweet Baby Ray's is the best sauce that comes in a plastic squeeze bottle, BTW.

[jonathan_matos5]

i just put them in the smoker for about a day. taste mighty fine.

[FL Knifemaker]

Marinate them overnight in pineapple juice and beer. Then slow cook over a wood fire. Keep them moist on the grill with fresh beer and more pineaple juice. When they are done cut them up and mix with your favorite BBQ sauce or eat them bare

I never put BBQ sauce on them while they are cooking. If the sugar in the sauce burns even slightly it tastes bitter.

[diechris]

man these are great.... we're going to need to set up a talkbass ribs cook book or something

[edmidlifecrisis]

When I make baby backs, everyone shows up that I know. My family begs me to make them and so do friends. I bring them to friends' houses on special occasions.

Use a dry rub for them, paprika based, there are lots of them out there. I make my own with paprika, pepper, brown sugar, cumin, chili powder, garlic and a few others.

Rub them all over with the dry rub and put in a tray and cover with saran wrap. In the fridge overnight.

Use a smoker for slow cooking, a low flame on a standard barbecue is too hot. It should be around 200 degrees, only a smoker can do this correctly. I use a propane powered water smoker (water bowl between flame and food, keeps in moisture). put some pre-soaked wood chips in the smoke box and smoke till the meat shrinks about 1 /3 or 1/2 or so inch along the bone. Usually one rack takes about 3 or 4 hours. You can't overcook them or dry them out with this cooker unless you forget about them for days!!

Eat em dry. They're outstanding this way and the meat literally falls off. We don't like 'em wet but you can make a homemade bbq sauce to put a LITTLe on them.

There are some great bbq sauce recipes in

"Smoke & Spice" by the Jamisons. Great book.

Good luck!!

The previous posts have some great info in them, too!!

[BetterBottomEnd]

Slow cooked over a smoker is the only way to do it. Dry rub and marinate over night. I always do spare ribs 3-2-1 style. 3 hours in the smoker sprayed every 20-30 minutes with a little liquid (I like something like cranberry juice and apple cider vinegar) then two hours wrapped in foil then the last hour out and basted them every 15 or so minutes with a your favorite/homemade BBQ sauce. If you over cook them I find them mushy. Spare ribs maybe 2-2-1 as long as you keep a close eye on your temperature. 200 is about right.

[peterbright]

Too much work for my home cooking. I eat them out only.

[mward69]

Originally Posted by peterbright

Too much work for my home cooking. I eat them out only.

thats why the will taste sooooooooo much better. When you put your time into them, guess a pride thing. Slow smoke for hours...drink beer....oh yeah!!! Well worth it.

[FL Knifemaker]

I also use a dry rub sometimes. I like the dry rub from Bass Pro Shops. They also make a fantastic breadcrumb mix for frying fish or chicken

[abngourmet]

Ribs, like any cut of meat that comes from the part of the animal nearest the hoof or shoulder contains a lot of connective tissue. By this I mean the protein collagen, which, like any protein that is heated too quickly (generally over high heat) will tend to seize up and become tough (think a london broil that tastes and looks like shoe leather). The only way to avoid this is to do as most here who have posted suggest - low heat for a long period. This allows the meat to actually cook beyond "toughness" and converts the collagen into gelatin, making the meat tender. This is the "fall off the bone" characteristic many rib lovers seek.

The other aspect, a dry rub, marinade, or both has to do with the denaturing of proteins. Essentially, proteins are like balls of yarn, all tangled up, with little pieces of yarn sticking out at a 45 degree angle. A dry rub and/or marinade will help the proteins "unravel," much like the ball of yarn. The difference is that the proteins will eventually form new bonds, creating a looser but still homogenous structure. The dry rub basically will draw out liquid, which is then reabsorbed by the meat, which traps it in the newly formed protein bond structure. The result is that you can cook the meat past the point of where it would be done, allowing the collagen to convert to gelatin, yet still remain moist due to the liquid trapped in the protein structures in the meat. A marinade will also do the same thing for the most part - marinades with an acid component (wine, vinegar, etc.) will also aid in the denaturing of the proteins and thus the process of trapping liquid.

What does this mean to the cook? Methods for cooking ribs and other tough cuts need to be cooked using methods already suggested or others that make use of liquids and low heat. Braising is one technique that works well - think stews and pot roasts that use cuts such as beef chuck, which comes from the shoulder of the animal. As for ribs and braising ...

If you can't smoke or grill them, you can always braise them. Alton Brown has a great recipe, though you can braise them in a pot or roasting pan as well. Simply dry rub them, let sit for a few hours or over night, then place in a pan (Alton Brown encases them in foil), add enough water or other liquid (wine, beer, water, a marinade, etc. - it's up to you) to come just up to the top, cover with foil, and place in a 225 degree oven. In four hours or so you'll have some great ribs, and you can reduce the braising liquid to a glaze and brush that on the ribs.

Anyway, that's my take. BTW, I do ribs on my smoker made by Klose Manufacturing (www.bbqpits.com) - they come out great.

My two cents,

Alan

[edmidlifecrisis]

Alan

your post was very cool. Thanks for sharing that!!

Ed

[abngourmet]

My pleasure. Hope it was helpful.

Alan

[GeneralElectric]

I take a baby, spin it over. Get my heavy duty locking pliers, dig and pull, dig and pull. When I have enough to make some dinner I toss them in some tupperware filled with the blood of Virgins overnight. Then I grill them on the flatop.

Sun cooked is the only cooked IMHO.

[steve21]

I desperately want a smoker. But I guess beggars can't be choosers and the fact that I get a decent BBQ grill (propane) in front of our door is going to suffice.

[abngourmet]

Originally Posted by steve21

I desperately want a smoker. But I guess beggars can't be choosers and the fact that I get a decent BBQ grill (propane) in front of our door is going to suffice.

You don't need a whole bunch of money to make good 'cue at home - I've done it on a humble $30 Brinkmann water BBQ. What matters is technique - temperature control, marinade, rub, etc.

I'd suggest this - get an inexpensive grill, and learn how to use it for 'cue. Once you master that, move on to a BBQ Cooker (and yes, there is a difference between that and a grill). Spend as much as you can afford comfortably, and perfect your art. Your family and friends will be forever grateful.

Alan

[steve21]

I've got my grill already... my family's big fans of my cooking.

[Bard2dbone]

Originally Posted by abngourmet

Ribs, like any cut of meat that comes from the part of the animal nearest the hoof or shoulder contains a lot of connective tissue. By this I mean the protein collagen, which, like any protein that is heated too quickly (generally over high heat) will tend to seize up and become tough (think a london broil that tastes and looks like shoe leather). The only way to avoid this is to do as most here who have posted suggest - low heat for a long period. This allows the meat to actually cook beyond "toughness" and converts the collagen into gelatin, making the meat tender. This is the "fall off the bone" characteristic many rib lovers seek.

The other aspect, a dry rub, marinade, or both has to do with the denaturing of proteins. Essentially, proteins are like balls of yarn, all tangled up, with little pieces of yarn sticking out at a 45 degree angle. A dry rub and/or marinade will help the proteins "unravel," much like the ball of yarn. The difference is that the proteins will eventually form new bonds, creating a looser but still homogenous structure. The dry rub basically will draw out liquid, which is then reabsorbed by the meat, which traps it in the newly formed protein bond structure. The result is that you can cook the meat past the point of where it would be done, allowing the collagen to convert to gelatin, yet still remain moist due to the liquid trapped in the protein structures in the meat. A marinade will also do the same thing for the most part - marinades with an acid component (wine, vinegar, etc.) will also aid in the denaturing of the proteins and thus the process of trapping liquid.

What does this mean to the cook? Methods for cooking ribs and other tough cuts need to be cooked using methods already suggested or others that make use of liquids and low heat. Braising is one technique that works well - think stews and pot roasts that use cuts such as beef chuck, which comes from the shoulder of the animal. As for ribs and braising ...

If you can't smoke or grill them, you can always braise them. Alton Brown has a great recipe, though you can braise them in a pot or roasting pan as well. Simply dry rub them, let sit for a few hours or over night, then place in a pan (Alton Brown encases them in foil), add enough water or other liquid (wine, beer, water, a marinade, etc. - it's up to you) to come just up to the top, cover with foil, and place in a 225 degree oven. In four hours or so you'll have some great ribs, and you can reduce the braising liquid to a glaze and brush that on the ribs.

Anyway, that's my take. BTW, I do ribs on my smoker made by Klose Manufacturing (www.bbqpits.com) - they come out great.

My two cents,

Alan

I would have guessed you were a Good Eats watcher even if you hadn't referenced Alton Brown.

I love that show. If they had given me free rein to do my own cooking show, it would probably be a lot like Good Eats. I have a brain full of usleless trivia and love when I can apply it.