Hey kids! What time is it? (No, it’s not Howdy Doody time.) It’s time to make our one-of-kind, world famous, finger-licking-good, Memorial Day Memphis Style Ribs! This year I got started late. I didn’t think about ribs until the weekend before Memorial day. Anyway, this month the US officially ended our corona virus emergency, and I’m hoping to finish the ribs on the grill; weather permitting. I haven’t lit the grill since the summer of 2020.
Ingredients
Meat
- 2 slabs (~6 lbs) of baby back ribs
- 4 links of Texas made sausage (backup)
Rub
- I went with Famous Dave’s Rib Rub Seasoning again.
Sides
Potato salad
- potatoes
- hard boiled eggs
- mayonnaise
- sweet pickle relish
- dill pickle relish
- yellow mustard
- onion
- salt & pepper
- paprika (for garnish)
Elote (Mexican street corn)
- 4 ears of corn on the cob
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup cotija cheese (reserve some for garnish)
- 1/4 cup cilantro (reserve some for garnish)
- 2 cloves garlic
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Chipotle chili powder for garnish
- 1 lime zested & juiced (reserve some for garnish)
Directions
Ribs
First, preheat your oven to 250°F (121°C). While the oven heats up, remove the membrane that covers the rib bones. Then sprinkle top and bottom of the ribs with your favorite rub seasoning. When the oven is at temperature, place ribs, bones down, uncovered, on a foil covered baking pan, and bake for 2 hours.
Next, take the ribs out, cover them with heavy duty aluminum foil, place them back on the pan, and bake them for another 2 hours.
Finally, take the ribs out, uncover them, paint them with your favorite barbeque sauce. Place them back on the pan, uncovered, and bake them for another 30 minutes or so. Check for doneness. If they aren’t tender enough you could try covering them again and baking another 30 minutes. They should have an internal temperature of 190°-205°F (88°-96°C).
Sides
Potato salad
Peel and wash potatoes. Chop them into 1/2 inch cubes. Boil them until fork tender.
When the potatoes are done cooking, drain them, and mix in the hard boiled eggs, mayonnaise, sweet pickle relish, dill pickle relish, mustard, onion, salt & pepper.
Sprinkle some paprika on top to garnish.
Elote
Bake ears of corn in a 400°F (205°C) oven for 12-15 minutes, turning the cobs 1/4 turn every 3 minutes. You may have to go longer and repeat the turning process until corn has some char.
While the corn is cooking, mix the mayonnaise, sour cream, cotija cheese, cilantro, garlic, salt & pepper (to taste), lime zest and lime juice together.
When the corn are finished cooking take them out of the oven, and top them with the cheese mixture, sprinkle with a bit of chipotle chili powder, and top with a bit of extra cotija cheese and cilantro.
Results
This year we served the ribs with Mexican elote and Barbie’s famous potato salad. It was delicious!
And kids, remember, Memorial Day isn’t about bbq, it’s about remembering fallen veterans.