Sweet and Spicy Barbecue Ribs

Sweet and Spicy Barbecue Ribs

Here it is folks. My First barbecued meat recipe of the season. I just recently acquired a barbecue from the 70's that, up until recently, has been unused, sitting brand-spanking new in my grandfathers storage. I don't understand what it is but this barbecue produces the most flavourful meats. It must be the inefficient design and flaws with it that add character. Anyways, onto the recipe. I decided to add pictures to the directions for this recipe. This is not the traditional style of boiling the ribs before they hit the barbecue. I steam them in beer. It adds a very unique and delicious flavour. Also, I have made my own rub for these ribs that add a nice spicy, sweet, and exotic flavour to the meat. As for the barbecue sauce, I have yet to develop my own, so I'll leave it to you for what kind you are in the mood for. Just make sure it's a sweeter one. I personally chose to get a nice smokey flavour with a hickory BBQ sauce and I added a tablespoon of brown sugar to sweeten it up more. Anyways, enjoy this process. I hope you try it. It may take a couple hours to make but it's so worth it.


Ingredients:

Rub:

2 tablespoons sea salt

2 tablespoons raw sugar (or conventional sugar)

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 tablespoons ground black pepper

1 tablespoon cayenne powder (more for more heat)

1/3 cup paprika


Ribs:

2 racks of side ribs or back ribs

2 bottles of Wheat beer (Hefferveisen or Weissbier; Alexander Keith's White works too)

1 large orange

1 cup BBQ sauce (choose a sweeter one or add a tbsp or 2 of brown sugar)


Directions:

1) Put all the rub ingredients together in a Tupperware container. Make sure brown sugar is loose and not a clump. Put lid on container and shake vigorously. Put aside.

Pull back the thin membrane

2) To prepare the ribs, flip them over to the bone side and remove the very thin layer of membrane if it's still there. By using a spoon, you can get under it so you can grib it (you may need to use a knife to start it if it's too difficult). The it pulls of the rest of the way easily.

Sprinkle on spices and rub all over

3) Sprinkle on a generous amount of the spices on both the meat and bone side of the ribs. Rub the spices all over the meat making sure every bit of it gets spiced.

Pour in 1/2" of beer

4) Preheat the oven to 325°F. Pour the beer into a baking pan or small roasting pan. You will want the beer to be 1/2" deep.

Put orange slices in the beer

5) Slice the orange into thick slices to place in the beer. The ribs will sit on these oranges preventing them from submerging too far into the beer.

Place ribs in pan - cover with tinfoil

6) Place the ribs bone side down into the pan. Then cover pan tightly with tin foil and place in oven.

Cooking times vary for the ribs that you use.

For Side Ribs: Bake 1-1/2 to 2 hours


For Back Ribs: Bake for 1 to 1-1/2 hours

Thickness of the meat could also be a factor so check the ribs periodically in the last 15 minutes to 1/2 hour of cooking. You may also need to cook the ribs longer than the approximate times above. If you poke the meat with a fork or metal skewer and it goes in easily, the meat is ready to barbecue.






*Note: At this point in the cooking process, you can refrigerate the ribs for a couple days before barbecuing them*

Place ribs on BBQ and baste with sauce

7) Heat up barbecue on high. Once the grill is hot, turn the heat down to medium and put the ribs on. Flip after a few minutes and start basting with barbecue sauce.

Flip and Baste until dark brown in color

8) Being careful not to let them burn, keep flipping the ribs and basting them with BBQ sauce for 20-25 minutes until they turn a dark, rich brown colour.


9) Enjoy!!














                                             
So, there you have it. My first blogged barbecue recipe. I'm very excited for the summer. I'm going to try and create a lot barbecue recipes (including vegetarian ones for my vegetarian and vegan friends). I hope you'll follow along with my blog this summer and even try out a few of these.


Cheers!!