Dry-rubbed with spices and slowly cooked in the oven before grilling is the secret to this recipe. I made these for a Jurassic Park-themed BBQ and movie screening, and none remained. I cooked approximately 10 lbs of ribs, 4 racks cut in half, to serve about 15-20 carnivores. I got the recipe from here but did not use their recipe for the barbecue sauce, purchasing some Sweet Baby Ray’s Sweet n’ Spicy sauce to use instead that I mixed with the pan drippings.
How to remove the membrane from the baby back ribs:
It is not as easy as this makes it out to be. It’s messy, and the membrane breaks, and sometimes it takes some of the tasty bits with it. I found it easier to start at the thickest, fattiest end to take off the membrane. You’ll see it, it looks shiny and lies on top of the fat. I alternated between a butter knife and a real knife to hack it off. Definitely give yourself time for this! It gets easier as you get used to it.
Ingredients (serves 8-10 — double the recipe if you want to make more!):
- 5 lbs baby back ribs (2 2.5 lb racks), rinsed, patted dry, membrane removed, then halved crosswise
- 3 tbs salt
- 3 tbs chili powder
- 2 tbs packed dark brown sugar
- 2 tbs paprika
- 2 tsp dry mustard
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1.5 cups of a barbecue sauce of your choice
Preheat the oven to 325˚. First, deal with the rinsing and membrane removal on your ribs. Slice those babies in half. In a bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients. Lay down a sheet of tin-foil (large enough to securely wrap a rib-half), and lay a rib section on top of it. Put a generous amount of the rub on each side of the ribs, rubbing it in. Fold the foil over the rib and lay on a rimmed baking sheet (juice will leak! don’t want it to spill) or baking dish. Repeat for the other sections. Lay sections down flat next to each other on the sheet (may need 2 baking sheets for this), and cover the whole sheet with tin-foil. Cook in the oven for 2 hours.
Heat up your grill about 30 minutes before the ribs are done cooking, cleaning and oiling up the grill rack first. If you’re using a charcoal grill put all the coals to one side so it’s nice and hot. Take the ribs out of the oven and carefully unwrap the foil using tongs or whatever method is easiest so that you don’t burn yourself. Pour about 1.5 cups of the barbecue sauce in a bowl, pour the drippings from one of the foils into the bowl of sauce (use whatever foil had the most liquid), stir to combine. Lay those babies on the grill over the hot coals, sauce the top side with a basting brush. Flip and baste the other side. Keep going until the ribs look crisp and caramelized (I did maybe 3 or 4 flips depending on the cut, and only 2 minutes or so per side cause our grill was pretty hot).
Remove from heat, and let rest for a few minutes. Slice between the bones to serve. Enjoy!
Hilary's Kitchen 