When summer rolls around, most of us want to cook outdoors on the grill and eat copious amounts of corn on the cob, tomatoes, and other summer veggies. I am no exception. Until this summer, though, I didn't have a grill to use. Now that I do, I've been focusing on finding grilling recipes to try. One thing I had never made was barbecued ribs. So when I saw a recipe in Bon Appetit for Best-Ever Barbecued Ribs, I flagged the page and planned to make them.
Jeff went to Whole Foods to get everything we'd need for them, specifically some racks of ribs. The recipe said to use baby back pork ribs or St. Louis-style spareribs, and the butcher told him baby back were better, so that's what he got.
Typically, ribs require some time in the oven prior to grilling to ensure that they get fall-off-the-bone tender. I planned dinner for a Friday night, so on the Wednesday before, I rubbed the ribs with some spices (salt, pepper, dry mustard, cayenne, and paprika), wrapped them in foil, and baked them for 2 hours, according to the recipe.
When the ribs were done, I poured off and saved the juices, let the ribs cool, and then rewrapped them and tucked them in the fridge until Friday.
On Friday evening, I whipped up some buttermilk biscuits and Jeff went out to heat up the grill.
To make the sauce for the ribs, I combined the rib juices (rewarmed slightly in the microwave) with chicken broth and barbecue sauce (store-bought for convenience).
Then we took the ribs outside and Jeff grilled and basted them, flipping them frequently, for about 10 minutes. This gives them that nice charred crust and warms them through.
Back inside, Jeff cut the ribs between the bones, and then we served them with warm biscuits and corn on the cob. It was the quintessential summer meal. (The sort of thing you follow up with juicy wedges of watermelon.) The ribs came right away from the bone. They were so tender and nicely flavored. And they were incredibly easy to make. This was definitely a low effort/big reward kind of meal.
Since I'd never made ribs before, I halved and then followed the recipe exactly. You can find it here.
Have you ever made ribs?
Hope you have a happy, safe, and fun 4th of July!