Make Your Own Damn Ribs

/

Adapted from several recipes across the internets...

UMTailgate Ribs

Rub 'Em


  • Baby back ribs

  • 2 parts chili powder

  • 2 parts smoked paprika

  • 2 parts coriander

  • 1 part onion powder

  • 1 part garlic powder

  • 2 parts crushed red pepper

  • 3 parts ground cayenne

  • 1/4 part ground coffee

  • 1/4 part lemon pepper

  • 3 parts dark brown sugar

  • Sugar in the raw


Preheat oven to 280 degrees.  Reserve about 2 cups of rub for later.  Mix rub 2 to 1 with sugar in the raw.  Spread half a cup of mixture on meat side of each rack of baby backs (spare ribs work too) with membrane removed.  Spread a quarter cup of mixture on bone side.  Place ribs on sheet pan, meat side up and cook for 2.5 hours.  Remove from oven.

Glaze 'em and baste 'em


  • Peach preserves

  • dark brown sugar

  • apple juice


Lower the temperature in the oven to 230 degrees.  Make an individual packet out of tinfoil for each rack.  Depending on thickness of the foil you are using, you might want to double up on layers.  Spread 3 tablespoons of peach preserves on each slab followed by 2 tablespoons of brown sugar.  At this point you are wondering why you are making peach pie on top of a rack of ribs...but trust me, it works.  Seal the ribs leaving one end open and pour about 1.5-2 cups of apple juice into the foil packet.  Seal it completely and put it on a rack in your oven being careful not to tear the packet and have the apple juice leak out all over the oven.  You might want to use a sheet pan underneath them if you are worried.  Cook packets for 1.5 hours.  Remove from oven once again.

Finish 'em


  • apple juice

  • rub from step one


Feel free to cover refrigerate at this point, up to overnight.  Place ribs on a medium grill and moisten each rack with about 2 tablespoons of apple juice, then sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of of rub and spread it around.  Heat ribs to desired temperature...which should be somewhere around "hot"...usually found around the time you start to see significant carmelization of the glaze.

Serve 'em up and enjoy.