Baby Back Ribs

Perhaps I’m jumping the gun on posting my suggestions for your Memorial weekend meal(s) but I figured it was better to post them now, so that you have enough time to go to Costco (or your butcher/grocer) and pick up some ribs and whatever else you needed. If you wait too long, the selection is going to be picked over…or GONE. Trust me on this, it’s happened to me – last year in fact. Because I love you too much for that to happen to you, I’m posting my ideas for Memorial weekend cookouts now, so you can plan accordingly. I’m starting with ribs.

Yummy, delicious baby back ribs.

I avoided making these for the longest time, even though they were my first pick to order whenever I went out to eat to my favorite steakhouse. My logic on the matter was grossly flawed. Somehow I got the idea that since ribs were so expensive it must have been because they were so complicated.

wrong, wrong, wrong 

I was wrong and I’m not afraid to admit it.

Ribs are easy. I promise.

If you are ready to claim your independence from high priced steakhouse ribs, then this post is for you. Today is the day that you can tell your favorite steakhouse that they don’t own you anymore.

Baby Back Ribs

Printer-Friendly Version

Ingredients:

6 pounds baby back pork ribs

2 cups water

40 oz BBQ sauce (until I find a recipe I like, I use Sweet Baby Rays)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large roasting pan with a rack (a heavy duty, rimmed baking sheet with a wire rack will work just fine) arrange the ribs evenly on the rack. Add water and cover the pan tightly with a lid or foil to prevent steam from escaping.
3. Put roasting pan into the oven and bake for 3 hours.
4. Remove the ribs from the oven and roasting pan (discard the water) and preheat your gas grill
5. Cover the ribs with sauce.
6. Grill the ribs on the grill for about 5 minutes per side on medium high heat, or until slightly charred. Since the meat is already cooked this step is just about caramelizing the BBQ sauce to the rib meat.

Notes: Avoid overcrowding your roasting pan. If the ribs are stacked on top of each other they don’t turn out quite as well. Also, the water shouldn't touch the ribs. If it does then you end up boiling your ribs instead of steaming them and they won’t be fall-off-the-bone tender. (because I have more ribs than would fit I laid the last rack diagonally across the other two racks to minimize surface contact.)

Source: Adapted from NFL Family Cookbook as found on about.com

Gwenevere