Easy BBQ Ribs

It's less than 24hrs now until the big game, and my ribs are prepped and ready.  Pork ribs are among one of the largest consumed categories during the big game.  Now if you're a hard core rib cook, your ribs are most likely in a smoker right now getting nice and tender.  However, for those of us who don't own a smoker I have a real nice recipe for ribs that has my guests coming back again and again.

I start with a nice spare rib or baby back, both are very good.  You may be wondering "what's the difference in the two?", well they both come from the same bone as they are both ribs.  The main difference is, the baby back or "loin rib" comes from the loin section of the rib, which is along the back where as the spare rib come from the belly portion of the rib near the bottom.  Now loin ribs because of their location and demand are more expensive, have less meat, but cook faster than the spare rib.  The spare rib being located down by the belly where the bacon is makes it less expensive, and more meaty, but takes longer to cook due to the higher fat content. 

This year I went with the spare rib because I'm going to slow cook these in the oven after a quick pre-boil.  Since I don't have a smoker and I want these to be tender I put them in my roasting pan then cover them with water.  I always season the water with 1-2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of salt.  The vinegar is enough to break down all the connective tissue of the ribs which is what makes them tough.  You can put thyme in as well if you like, but since I'll be using a rub on them before they go in the oven I'm leaving it out this year.  You want to cover the ribs while they cook and cook them until they start to pull away from the bone when you pick them up.  I lay them out on a cutting board to cool to the touch before I give them a nice rub, putting the rub on while they are slightly warm helps the flavors to be absorbed by the meat.  Now all I have to do is warm them up, I do this in a 200 degree oven for about 30-45 min.  I don't apply the sauce until the end, otherwise all you do is burn up the sauce and kill the flavor.  So once the ribs have been in the oven for the 30-45 minutes now you can apply the sauce and let them finish in the oven for another 30 minutes, take them out and enjoy!

My Rib Rub (coats about 5 lbs of ribs)

2 Cups brown sugar
2 Tbsp Old Bay seasoning
1/2 cup seasoned salt
1 Tbsp chipotle powder
2 Tbsp dry thyme
1 tbsp onion powder
4 Tbsp black pepper

These ribs are awesome, I hope you enjoy!