Rick Day Ribs Recipe & Cooking Hints
Pork ribs are purchased in SLABS, consisting of about 15 bones
in each slab. A RACK is a SLAB cut in half (6-8 bones). Ribs
come in four categories, defined by the location on the hogs rib
cage they are cut from: COUNTRY STYLE...these are more like pork
chops and not considered a true rib...pork chop shaped bone. At
opposite end of loin backs. Sold in pieces. LOIN BACK....this is
the cut closest to the spine..where the tenderloin is located..
Short and very curved bones. Sold in slabs or half-slabs (racks)
and usually weigh 2 and down (1.75 - 2 pounds a slab). (The BABY
BACK is simply a loin back off a baby hog..or hog under 85# when
dressed Babyback slabs usually weigh 1 3/4 and down. Sold in
slabs, it is a Gourmet cut of meat....) SPARE....more of the
middle and lower section of the ribcage. Spares have flat oval
bones. Largest of the rib categories..and usually have an extra
piece of meat on the underside of the rib, called the Brisket,
or tip, which is trimmed off prior to cooking. Usually weighs 3
and down. For BBQ'ing, spares are trimmed somewhat similar the
shape of the State of Tennessee..flat on left, angled on
right..and straight even on top and bottom, with brisket removed
(and cooked separate, if desired, known as the 'trash ribs') ST.
LOUIS CUT...this is a cut of ribs that is the border area
between the loin and the spare...in essence..it is a flat oval
shaped bone slab, similar to the spare, but from the top it
looks like a loin back. Great for outdoor BBQ'ing for friends,
and a must for Texas Style competitions. Which is best to cook?
Well...I guess it depends on how much room you have on your
grill, and what is the occasion. Spares are for feeding the
masses..and the loin backs are better for small dinners or
picnics, on smaller grills. Figure on providing a full slab for
heavy eaters and a rack for normal appetites. The best place to
buy Loin back Ribs now in small quantities is Sam's Club. They
come 3 slabs to the cryrovac package. I know lots of
professional BBQ cookers who get their championship ribs from
Sam's. You should never pay more than: $6-7 a slab for loins, $6
for spares, and $6-7 a slab for St. Louis. COOKING RIBS The two
most critical points of cooking any type of BBQ is....time and
temperature....both low and slow! This is how I prepare Ribs for
Competition: I choose Loin back's 2 and down...and keep them
iced down (not Frozen) before time to cook. While I start my
fire and get the grill up to a warm temp. of about 180 F, I take
the ribs out and set them on a table to come close room temp.
(as you should with ALL meats you grill or BBQ). I take a slab
and remove the back membrane by twisting and bending the slab
like an accordion, and then placing the slab on a flat surface
and running a small Phillips head screwdriver down a bone in the
MIDDLE of the slab, CAREFULLY separating the bone from the
membrane (also known as the tallow). Working the blade of the
screwdriver slowly sideways on one end of the slab, until a
space big enough for my index finger to enter the pocket created
between the bone and the membrane. I then CAREFULLY work to the
opposite end of the slab..until two, then three fingers are to
the other side....then I lift STRAIGHT UP AND AWAY FROM THE
middle of the slab...this pulls the membrane away from the
middle of the slab and slowly releases from the slab...until it
is joined only at the tips....just lift this membrane off and
discard it. REMEMBER to take your time for the first one..and it
gets easier to do as you go along. Just work the membrane off
slowly and try to remove it as one piece, if some of it tears
and stays on the slab, don't worry..just leave it. You do not
have to do this part..but it is worth the effort! REMOVE
MEMBRANES ON LOIN BACK'S ONLY!!! Spares are darned near
impossible to totally remove! Next..I trim the two end bones off
each tip...leaving a 12 bone slab. I do this because it looks
better, cooks better, and sometimes there are bone fragments in
the tips, no fun for judges to bite into! Then...while the fire
is still heating, I squirt some Italian Dressing on both sides
of the ribs. This adds a unique flavor and gives the dry rub
something to stick to while the ribs are smoking. I then
sprinkle a dry rub on both sides of the slab. Try OLD BAY
seasoning, found in the seafood section of Kroger by the meat
case. All that Rendezvous Seasoning utilizes is Old bay with
some cracked white peppercorns!! You can make you own dry rub
from scratch, make it spicy or mild. This is the fun part of
ribs..the experimentation with the rub. You don't have to rub
the spice, just sprinkle over the top, bottom (if you get the
membranes off) ends and sides of the slab. A good rule of thumb
is to make sure there is no unspiced red meat exposed anywhere!
WARNING: Stay away from large amounts of salt in your rub, it
draws moisture out of this delicate cut of meat, and will dry it
out! SUGAR in the rub will caramelize during cooking and will
blacken your ribs unnecessarily. Leave the rub on about 10
minutes before putting the slabs on the grill. NEVER put the
ribs on the cooker meat side down, always put the slab BONE SIDE
to the fire, You should rotate your slabs if the fire is hotter
on one side of the grill than the other...or rotate the slabs
180 degrees, but don't move them from their starting spots, etc.
Point is, don't expose meats to a hot spot on the grill for very
long, but keep them rotated, so that all the pieces get some of
the hot spot! If you are cooking on a gas grill, it is
imperative you do the following: Cook at as low a temp. as you
can without your burner flaming out. Cook as far away from the
flame as you can, if a double burner, put meat over the unlit
side, for example. AVOID FLAIRUPS!! Remember..time and
temperatureYou MUST introduce smoke to the meat, or it will not
be BBQ. Period. Use some hardwood pellets or moistened Chips of
hickory or mesquite combo applied to your lava rocks. Oak is
fine. NEVER USE RESINOUS WOOD, such as cedar or pine..the resin
can impart toxins to the meat and make everyone sick. Smoke
flavor is imparted to meats only within the first 2 hours and at
below temps of 200F. Excessive smoking can only serve to blacken
the meat, or overpower the flavor with smoke. After two hours
the meat 'seals' and nothing else can penetrate the meat...that
is why the low temps are so critical to imparting the BBQ spices
and smoke deeper into the meat early on in the process. If you
can not impart smoke to the meat, there is one other
alternative...marinate the ribs in large ziplock freezer bags
with each two slabs getting one cup of Worcestershire Sauce, one
half cup of Wicker's marinade, and one tablespoon of Liquid
Smoke, which is a product found in the same section as the
Wicker's. Marinade overnight..or for at least 8 hours before
applying dry rub. It gives a false flavor, but it is better than
no smoke flavor at all. COOKING TIME: It should take about 6
hours at 200 degrees (get an oven thermometer and place it on
the grill close to the meat...this is the thermometer to pay
attention to!), or 5 hours at 225, or 4 hours at 250. NEVER COOK
HIGHER THAN 250F!! All you are doing at that temp. is grilling,
and you cannot successfully grill any cut of rib, except for
Country Style Ribs. Apply Smoke for first 2 hours. After one
hour, baste ribs with anything! Beer, wine, Wickers, Gramma's
favorite pork baste, whatever...just don't let the ribs tryout!
After two hours of smoking, wrap EACH SLAB in HEAVY DUTY
aluminum foil. Be careful not to punch holes in foil. This is
the STEAMING process, which is the secret part that makes the
ribs so tender. To further tenderize the meat, pour a 1/3 cup of
marinade, or Citric liquid (OJ or pineapple juice works best)
into the foil over the meat, before carefully sealing the top of
the foil. Wrap tight BUT WATCH FOR HOLES IN THE FOIL. Double or
triple wrap, if necessary! That is why the extra heavy-duty foil
is so important. Cook in foil another 2 hours, at the lower
temps and 1.5 hours if cooking at 250. NOTE: at the end of the
foil process, when you open the foil of one slab to inspect,
look for bones shining at you...this means they are steaming too
fast and remove from grill immediately! If there is still mostly
meat over the top of the slab, you are ok. After 1.5 to 2 hours
in the foil, take one slab off the grill and open the foil.
Watch for hot steam! When you see this small amount of BLACK
LIQUID (rendered fat) at the bottom of the foil, that is the
signal to remove the slabs from the foil. This Black stuff is
the so called "pig taste" that good rib cooks replace with pure
BBQ flavoring. If you are not careful, the black liquid will
literally be reabsorbed into the meat, making them a little more
'porky' in flavor. I sometimes stack my slabs on their
side...like dominos to allow the Fat to slow off the slabs into
the bottom of the foil. Again, watch out for pinholes in the
foil! At the appropriate time, remove the foil and place the
slabs back on the grill....this will finish the cooking and firm
up the ribs if they have gotten too tender. About 30 minutes
before serving...paintbrush on a mixture of: 8 parts BBQ Sauce
(Cattleman's, Kraft or your own recipe will do) 2 parts honey
some rub (to your taste) NOT TOO MUCH if you prefer a dry
rib...SWAB IT ON if you want a wet rib. When the ribs are done,
take off grill and let cool for about 10 minutes (as again, you
should do with ALL grilled foods) before serving. Just before
serving, lightly dust the slabs with your dry rub. Cut into 3 or
4 bone sections, and ENJOY! Make sure you have plenty of Moist
Towlettes or warm strips of cloth soaked in lemon juice, to fix
up the sticky fingers. Serve with French Bread or Texas Toast,
BBQ Beans and Potato Salad, with the sauce on the side for those
who prefer. Ribs can be frozen after cooking. Wrap in clear film
or foil and place in the freezer. Leave in foil off the grill if
you plan on freezing and cooking later. That required last hour
of grilling/finishing will be achieved in the warming oven at a
later date. To cook frozen ribs, remove from freezer and let
thaw for two hours. Wrapped foil, and put in an oven at 220 for
45 minutes, they are almost as good as hot off the grill! Don't
forget the sauce!