Well, another 4th of July is in the books. We had a great long weekend and I hope you did too. Unfortunately it rained pretty much the entire time but we saw tons of family and friends, made lots of food and ate lots big meals together. We even found a few minutes in between rain showers to do some sparklers. So, the holiday was definitely a win overall!
Yesterday, for the actual 4th of July, we invited people over for a barbecue. I now use these large gatherings as an opportunity to test recipes. The poor unsuspecting souls that came over yesterday… they had no idea what they were in for. Luckily, it all worked out ok, phew!
We had a very summery/barbecuey menu with ribs being the main course. The first time I tried to smoke ribs they were awesome but I didn’t write anything down. I have been trying to recreate them for the last year without success. But, I have finally gotten back to where I started and yesterday they were delicious. Here is what I did:
Smoked Ribs
Ingredients:
Apple Wood Chips
1-2 slabs of Spare Ribs (1 slab will usually feed 2-3 people)
Barbecue Sauce (for serving)
Dry Rub:
2 T Paprika
1 T Garlic Powder
1 T Brown Sugar
1 T Ground Mustard/Dry Mustard
2 T Kosher Salt
1 T Onion Powder
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Oregano
Soak the wood chips in water for at least 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the dry rub in a small mixing bowl; stir until well mixed.
Rinse off the ribs and pat them dry with paper towels.
Sprinkle both sides of the ribs with some of the dry rub. You will not use all the rub, you will have plenty left over. (Some of my failures were in using too much of the rub. You could only taste the spices and they overpowered the ribs.)
With your hands, kind of pat the rub into the ribs.
Prepare the wood chips and your grill to turn it into a smoker. Click here to see how.
For my grill, I put the packet of wood chips on the front “burner” and only use that “burner.”
I also put a disposable pan filled with some water on top of the back “burners” that will not be lit. That pan will sit under the ribs since the grill will be set up for indirect cooking.
After the chips start to smoke I put the ribs on. I keep the heat on the lowest setting so the grill temp stays between 250 – 300 degrees.
I don’t turn the ribs or do anything to them. I leave them there and just stare at them every once in a while.
Leave the ribs to smoke for at least 3 and up to 4 hours.
Take them off the grill and wrap them in foil. Now, I might normally put them back on the grill but it was POURING down rain. So, I took them off the grill and put them, wrapped, in the oven at 250 degrees for an additional 45 minutes- 1 hour.
Take them off the grill or out of the oven. Let them rest for about 15 minutes then serve. You can cut them into individual ribs, cut them into smaller slabs, whatever you want.
I serve with barbecue sauce on the side- because no one should make that decision for someone else.
Enjoy!
Smoked Ribs
Ingredients
- Apple Wood Chips
- 1-2 slabs of Spare Ribs 1 slab will usually feed 2-3 people
- Barbecue Sauce for serving
Dry Rub:
- 2 T Paprika
- 1 T Garlic Powder
- 1 T Brown Sugar
- 1 T Ground Mustard/Dry Mustard
- 2 T Kosher Salt
- 1 T Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/2 tsp Oregano
Instructions
- Soak the wood chips in water for at least 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the dry rub in a small mixing bowl; stir until well mixed.
- Rinse off the ribs and pat them dry with paper towels.
- Sprinkle both sides of the ribs with some of the dry rub. You will not use all the rub, you will have plenty left over. (Some of my failures were in using too much of the rub. You could only taste the spices and they overpowered the ribs.)
- With your hands, kind of pat the rub into the ribs.
- Prepare the wood chips and your grill to turn it into a smoker. Click here to see how.
- For my grill, I put the packet of wood chips on the front "burner" and only use that "burner."
- I also put a disposable pan filled with some water on top of the back "burners" that will not be lit. That pan will sit under the ribs since the grill will be set up for indirect cooking.
- After the chips start to smoke I put the ribs on. I keep the heat on the lowest setting so the grill temp stays between 250 - 300 degrees.
- I don't turn the ribs or do anything to them. I leave them there and just stare at them every once in a while.
- Leave the ribs to smoke for at least 3 and up to 4 hours.
- Take them off the grill and wrap them in foil. Now, I might normally put them back on the grill but it was POURING down rain. So, I took them off the grill and put them, wrapped, in the oven at 250 degrees for an additional 45 minutes- 1 hour.
- Take them off the grill or out of the oven. Let them rest for about 15 minutes then serve. You can cut them into individual ribs, cut them into smaller slabs, whatever you want.
Notes