Hillbilly Steaks
Dr. BBQ
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2006
- Messages
- 2,478
So today I've got 15 racks of ribs on the cooker so I thought I'd take some pictures and show you guys how I go about making ribs.
Ribs are one of those things that I think everyone would love to know how to properly make. All it takes is a few key steps, which I shall show you!
First off, you'll need a few tools
A clean work area, Yellow mustard (or substitute, I'll get into that later) a butter knife, and your favorite BBQ Seasoning.
NOw for the rub. Here is a basic rub recipe. Its a good foundation to start with, but what I encourage you to do is experiment with it, and use this recipe to create your own that you can be proud of. There are no rules, just taste it and go from there. If you think it needs to be sweeter, spicyier, saltier, etc...add accordingly.
1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar- Its important to spread the sugar out on a cookie sheet 12 hours prior to using to let it dry out. Other wise it will clump up and ruin your rub.
1/4 Cup Paprika
1 Tablespoon Fresh Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
3/4 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
3/4 Tablespoon Onion Powder
1 Teaspoon of Cayenne Powder
Combine all ingredients together and mix well! NO CLUMPS!!
Once you have your rub ready to go, now it is time to start preparing the ribs. A little trick that most people don't know is to remove the skin from the bottom side of the ribs.
Turn the ribs bottom side up as shown here
Use your butter knife to slide up underneath the skin membrane. I usually just use the knife to get it started, then I just use my fingers. A lot less prone to tearing the skin.
Just peel the skin away
Now one thing to keep in mind, not every rack you get is going to be in the condition to get the skin off. SOme of them have a very thin membrane and its almost impossible to even get it started. When I get racks like this, I just skip this step.
Alright, so once you get the skin off, now you are ready to apply the rub. I've heard lots of different opinions on what is the correct way to do it. For example, some people like to put the rub on the night before and let the ribs sit and marinate in the seasoning.
Of course I'm going to tell you the way that I like to do it. :whistling:
I like to put the rub on right before they go on the cooker. Reason being is that the longer the ribs sit with the seasoning on them, the more the seasoning breaks down and melts into the meat. Now granted, you will still get the flavor because it soaks into the meat, but you won't get the nice crust that forms on them when they are put into the grill freshly applied.
This is one thing that makes my ribs outstanding...that flavorful crust! :love:
before applying the rub, I like to brush them down with plain yellow mustard. I encourage you again to get creative here. There are lots of different things that you can use like spicy mustard instead. I've even heard of guys using plain yogurt. I've experimented a bit, and I really like the regular mustard. I even put extra on because I like the resulting taste you get.
apply as so....
Now it is time to apply the rub. This is not to be taken lightly. I'm a serious perfectionist when it comes to BBQ and Ribs, and its really important to get just the right amount of seasoning on. You will have to figure out for yourself, how much is just right....but my point is that you don't just want to shake a bunch on there.
I usually put a nice light coating on the bottom side...and even more on the top. But make it even over the entire rack.
bottom side...
apply mustard to top and season....
OK, for you guys with the smokers...here's what we're going to do. I'm not going to get into the details of how you should run your cooker, we'll do that another time. But I prefer to use a mixture of Hickory and Red Oak Wood for my flavoring. The most important thing I can stress is don't over smoke them. No matter what type of smoker you are using, try and keep a nice clean fire going. Smoldering wood will ruin the taste of your food. Maintain a temp of 225 to 250 for 4-5 hours and you should be good to go. If you choose to put BBQ Sauce on, do it about 20 minutes before you take them off. I'll get more into the details of checking for doneness in a mintue.
Method #2. For you guys that don't have a smoker but still want some great ribs, here's how you do it. You can use the rub if you want, but save it for the end. Now I have a way I do these that I won't share all the details, but here is the basic idea. Get yourself some Heavy Duty aluminum foil. Make sure its the heavy duty. What you're going to do is tear off a big chunk of foil and make a sort of container around the ribs. So make sure you pull off enough. You'll want to turn the ribs upside down in the foil. Pick out some sort of liquid to use for cooking. Some examples are orange juice, apple juice, or even beer. Anything you think will taste good. Its kinda hard to explain on here, but you want your foil wrapped up in a way that allows you to add the juice and spices to the ribs and it doesn't leak out. You want to pour in a decent amount, but not to the point were they are drowning in it. I'm guessing here, but probably 3-4 cups. Now that you've added what you want to cook it with, you can also add spices. Onion, garlic, fruit...anything really to add a little extra flavor, just throw it all in there. Pre heat your oven to 250. Before you put the ribs in the oven, seal up the foil so they are tightly wrapped, trapping in the moisture. Be very carefull not to rip a hole in the foil, this is easily done. Put them in the oven and let them cook for about 1.5 hours and then remove. Be carefull removing them from the foil, at this point they will be near the fall apart stage. Apply the rub if you choose to and get ready to finish them on your grill. All you need to do is grill them for about 15-20 minutes at medium heat. You're basically just adding a crust to the outside. If you want bbq sauce, this is the time to put it on.
I will post pics later of the finished product...but here is what they look like as I put them in the cooker.
Ribs are one of those things that I think everyone would love to know how to properly make. All it takes is a few key steps, which I shall show you!
First off, you'll need a few tools
A clean work area, Yellow mustard (or substitute, I'll get into that later) a butter knife, and your favorite BBQ Seasoning.
NOw for the rub. Here is a basic rub recipe. Its a good foundation to start with, but what I encourage you to do is experiment with it, and use this recipe to create your own that you can be proud of. There are no rules, just taste it and go from there. If you think it needs to be sweeter, spicyier, saltier, etc...add accordingly.
1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar- Its important to spread the sugar out on a cookie sheet 12 hours prior to using to let it dry out. Other wise it will clump up and ruin your rub.
1/4 Cup Paprika
1 Tablespoon Fresh Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
3/4 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
3/4 Tablespoon Onion Powder
1 Teaspoon of Cayenne Powder
Combine all ingredients together and mix well! NO CLUMPS!!
Once you have your rub ready to go, now it is time to start preparing the ribs. A little trick that most people don't know is to remove the skin from the bottom side of the ribs.
Turn the ribs bottom side up as shown here
Use your butter knife to slide up underneath the skin membrane. I usually just use the knife to get it started, then I just use my fingers. A lot less prone to tearing the skin.
Just peel the skin away
Now one thing to keep in mind, not every rack you get is going to be in the condition to get the skin off. SOme of them have a very thin membrane and its almost impossible to even get it started. When I get racks like this, I just skip this step.
Alright, so once you get the skin off, now you are ready to apply the rub. I've heard lots of different opinions on what is the correct way to do it. For example, some people like to put the rub on the night before and let the ribs sit and marinate in the seasoning.
Of course I'm going to tell you the way that I like to do it. :whistling:
I like to put the rub on right before they go on the cooker. Reason being is that the longer the ribs sit with the seasoning on them, the more the seasoning breaks down and melts into the meat. Now granted, you will still get the flavor because it soaks into the meat, but you won't get the nice crust that forms on them when they are put into the grill freshly applied.
This is one thing that makes my ribs outstanding...that flavorful crust! :love:
before applying the rub, I like to brush them down with plain yellow mustard. I encourage you again to get creative here. There are lots of different things that you can use like spicy mustard instead. I've even heard of guys using plain yogurt. I've experimented a bit, and I really like the regular mustard. I even put extra on because I like the resulting taste you get.
apply as so....
Now it is time to apply the rub. This is not to be taken lightly. I'm a serious perfectionist when it comes to BBQ and Ribs, and its really important to get just the right amount of seasoning on. You will have to figure out for yourself, how much is just right....but my point is that you don't just want to shake a bunch on there.
I usually put a nice light coating on the bottom side...and even more on the top. But make it even over the entire rack.
bottom side...
apply mustard to top and season....
OK, for you guys with the smokers...here's what we're going to do. I'm not going to get into the details of how you should run your cooker, we'll do that another time. But I prefer to use a mixture of Hickory and Red Oak Wood for my flavoring. The most important thing I can stress is don't over smoke them. No matter what type of smoker you are using, try and keep a nice clean fire going. Smoldering wood will ruin the taste of your food. Maintain a temp of 225 to 250 for 4-5 hours and you should be good to go. If you choose to put BBQ Sauce on, do it about 20 minutes before you take them off. I'll get more into the details of checking for doneness in a mintue.
Method #2. For you guys that don't have a smoker but still want some great ribs, here's how you do it. You can use the rub if you want, but save it for the end. Now I have a way I do these that I won't share all the details, but here is the basic idea. Get yourself some Heavy Duty aluminum foil. Make sure its the heavy duty. What you're going to do is tear off a big chunk of foil and make a sort of container around the ribs. So make sure you pull off enough. You'll want to turn the ribs upside down in the foil. Pick out some sort of liquid to use for cooking. Some examples are orange juice, apple juice, or even beer. Anything you think will taste good. Its kinda hard to explain on here, but you want your foil wrapped up in a way that allows you to add the juice and spices to the ribs and it doesn't leak out. You want to pour in a decent amount, but not to the point were they are drowning in it. I'm guessing here, but probably 3-4 cups. Now that you've added what you want to cook it with, you can also add spices. Onion, garlic, fruit...anything really to add a little extra flavor, just throw it all in there. Pre heat your oven to 250. Before you put the ribs in the oven, seal up the foil so they are tightly wrapped, trapping in the moisture. Be very carefull not to rip a hole in the foil, this is easily done. Put them in the oven and let them cook for about 1.5 hours and then remove. Be carefull removing them from the foil, at this point they will be near the fall apart stage. Apply the rub if you choose to and get ready to finish them on your grill. All you need to do is grill them for about 15-20 minutes at medium heat. You're basically just adding a crust to the outside. If you want bbq sauce, this is the time to put it on.
I will post pics later of the finished product...but here is what they look like as I put them in the cooker.
