Wicked Ribs

Serving Size : 1
Ingredients

for prepare Wicked Ribs

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Ingredient - Preparation Method

Ever since I had enough teeth to gnaw a bone, barbequed ribs have been one of my very favorite foods. I've been cooking ribs for fifteen years or so, but in the last five years I have worked hard on perfecting my technique. Although I barbeque throughout the year, regardless of weather, I also host a 4th of July party for family and friends with all-you-can eat ribs. I have even bartered for services by catering a rib dinner. Many people have asked me if I can tell them how to do ribs the way I do, so here is my attempt at explaining the process coherently. Disclaimer: There are probably as many opinions as to what constitutes a perfect rib as there are rib afficionados. This is merely my perception of perfection. However, people who have tasted my ribs agree with me. (Sorry, Tony Roma's. But for a small fee?) Choosing the ribs you are going to use for barbequeing is the first step. I think the very best ribs are pork baby back ribs. A good baby back rib rack will have plenty of meat between the bones. Choose racks that don't have thick layers or fat, or trim this fat off before cooking. Ribs keep well in the freezer, too, so if you find a source you may want to purchase enough for a future meal as well. Often during the winter months I have difficulty getting ribs. Usually, I can ask the butcher to order them in for me. In my area I'm able to get nice ribs that are in vacuum sealed packages. I like this packaging because thawing them is simple; just place the sealed package in a sink full of cold water for a few hours before you need to put them on the grill. The most crucial aspect of good ribs is the cooking technique. For many years I 'did' ribs on a gas grill, with edible, but not excellent, results. The problem is that for ribs you absolutely must cook them at lower heat for a longer time that you would, say, a steak or a roast. With a gas grill, it is very difficult to achieve this. Ribs need to cook for several hours with indirect heat. This process slowly cooks the fat out of the meat without leaving it dry. If you must use a gas grill, I recommend pre-cooking the meat. You can place the ribs on a roasting rack in a large pan, cover tightly, and bake for two hours at 325, or you can simmer the ribs in a large pot for the same amount of time. Then place the ribs on the grill long enough to heat them through thoroughly, and apply the barbeque sauce. However, this technique doesn't really constitute barbequeing, as you have actually done the cooking in the oven or on the stove. I use a Weber kettle-type charcoal grill when I wish to cook something with indirect heat. One of the features in Weber's kettle barbeques in the last few years is a cooking grate that has two hinged sections opposite each other that facilitate the addition of charcoal and smoking chips. If the grill is one solid unit, you can still poke the wood chips through the grate, but getting more charcoal in it is a chore. To prepare the grill for cooking, first make sure you've removed any ash from a previous use. You don't want the air holes in the bottom to become obstructed during the cooking process. Preparing the Grill: Place two piles of charcoal, about 25 briquettes each, on opposite sides of the coal grate. Light this charcoal, and allow to burn with lid off until the charcoal is covered with white ash. Meanwhile, soak wood chips (hickory, alder, etc.) in water. The chips need to soak for at least an hour before use. When coals are ready, spread the piles of coals out to one layer, still along the outside of the grill. Place about 5 or so new briquettes on top of each bank of coals, put cooking grate into grill, and put the lid on for 5-10 minutes. Remove lid, and scrape down grill with a wire brush. Place the ribs, meat side up, in the center of the cooking area, arranging them so that they are NOT OVER THE LIVE COALS. This constitutes the indirect method of cooking. Depending on the amount of ribs you are cooking, you may have to cut the racks in half in order to arrange them properly. (I find that I can just fit three racks, cut in half, at a time.) Before you replace the lid, drain and carefully place a handful or two of the pre-soaked wood chips on top of each bank of coals. Cover grill tightly. In short order, plumes of fragrant smoke will start pouring through the vent on top of the grill, and you're on your way! Check the ribs and turn them every half hour or so, adding one more batch of wood chips when the smoke stops. Depending on the amount of charcoal, and the ambient temperature, the ribs should cook for about 2 to 3 hours total. Ribs are approaching done-ness when they have shrunk somewhat and the meat starts to pull away from the ends of the bones. Seasoning the Meat: Some purists feel that the addition of barbeque sauce is a travesty. I personally like barbeque sauce on my ribs, but the flavor of a seasoned and smoked rib is also delightful. If you intend to use sauce, however, I recommend that you do not season the ribs at all before smoking/barbequeing them. In particular, don't salt them! If they are salted before cooking, they will be inedible after the addition of a sauce containing salt. If you want them 'dry', use a 'dry marinade', such as salt, pepper, and garlic powder, rubbing it into the meat an hour or two before placing it on the grill. If you desire try a liquid marinade them before cooking them 'dry', don't use a marinade containing sugar or you'll end up with a charred mess. Barbeque sauce must NEVER be applied before the last 20 minutes or so of barbequeing. The sugar in the sauce will burn, thus ruining your creation. (I just don't 'get' the purpose of the pre-sauced racks of ribs I sometimes see in butcher departments.) Apply the sauce to the now-cooked ribs, and replace the lid of the barbeque. (Note: Be careful how long you leave the lid off between procedures. Don't, for example, go into the house to look for the barbeque sauce for 15 minutes with the lid off. The additional oxygen will make your fire too hot, and possibly ruin your creation.) Allow the sauce to bake onto the ribs for 10 minutes or so, turn, and repeat. If your ribs are finished and your company has not arrived yet, or if you simply wish to have them ready in advance so you can visit, remove the finished ribs to a foil-lined roasting pan, cover tightly with foil, and keep warm in the oven. Don't try to keep them warm on the grill; they'll dry out too much and be ruined. Large batches: I frequently do ribs for large crowds. Start your grill in the morning and begin barbequeing. At least every hour or so, add 5-6 fresh coals to each bank of coals. By doing this, you can continuously barbeque for six or eight hours if necessary. As each batch of ribs is finished cooking, remove them (without applying sauce!!!!) to a tightly covered pan in the oven and keep warm. When your guests are nearly ready to eat, return cooked racks of ribs to the grill in batches and finish saucing procedure. (I have a Weber gas grill, as well as the kettle grill. With large crowds, I often complete the saucing process on the gas grill, set to LOL burner setting(low-off-low, not laugh-out-loud, for you cyber folks!) while still cooking ribs on the kettle grill. I recommend you find a willing partner in the crowd, hand him/her a beer and have them be in charge of the gas grill. They can also throw on a couple of franks or burgers for the kiddies and other people who don't know what they're missing!) Barbequing other types of meat using the indirect-heat/smoking method: Two other things I frequently cook in this way are chicken thighs and game hens. Chicken thighs: We prefer the thighs only for barbequeing because they have less of a tendency to dry out than breasts, and also because I can often buy a package 30 or more fresh thighs for less than $4! Cook them using the technique used for ribs. Chicken thighs take about one and a half to two hours total. When I'm ready to sauce them, I carefully pull the skin off the thighs first. My family prefers them this way; we don't like to eat the skin, and why waste all that barbeque sauce on the part you don't want to eat? Leaving the skin on during the cooking keeps them moist, too. Cornish game hens: Four game hens will fit down the center of the grill. Thaw them, remove giblet package and cut through the back with sharp kitchen shears, and spread them out flat. Game hens take about and hour and fifteen minutes to two hours. We prefer not to sauce game hens. Instead, before placing on the grill, I season them with Tony Cacherone's Creole seasoning. In the case of game hens, we like to nibble a little of the skin. Much thinner than chicken skin, game hen skin gets nice and crispy. (The first time I prepared game hens this way, my two teenagers said, "Mom, this is the best chicken you EVER made." Heck, if it impresses teenagers, I must be doing something right!)

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