This year is a repeat of last year. It’s a 12 year tradition for me to make ribs on Memorial Day weekend. The world is on year 3 of the corona virus pandemic, but cases are dropping. This year I finished the ribs in the oven again. I haven’t lit my grill in more than 18 months.
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Memorial Day Ribs 2021
This year I sound like a broken record. I made ribs for Memorial Day weekend – using my tried and true recipe. The world is still in a corona virus pandemic, and more Americans are resisting getting vaccinated. This year I finished the ribs in the oven with bbq sauce; I don’t think I’ve lit the grill in 9 months.
Ingredients
Meat
2 slabs (~6 lbs) of baby back ribs
Rub (a little different than last year)
4 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
Directions
It was really easy this year since I didn’t light the grill. Heat oven to 250 F. (My oven runs cool so I sometimes turn it up to 275 F.) Start by taking off the membrane that covers the bones. Then sprinkle top and bottom of the ribs with your favorite rub seasoning. Place ribs bones down, uncovered, on a foil covered roasting pan, and bake for 2 hours.
Next take the ribs out, cover with heavy duty aluminum foil, and place back on the pan and bake them another 2 hours.
Finally, take the ribs out, uncover them, paint them with your favorite barbeque sauce, and bake 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.
This year we served the ribs with corn on the cob and Barbie’s (famous) potato salad. It was delicious!
Memorial Day Ribs 2020
It’s Memorial Day weekend once again, and it’s time to make bbq ribs. This year is unique. It’s been 10 years since I started this tradition (yay), and we are in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic (boo). Last year, you may recall, I made some good ribs. This year, the rain forecast for Sunday and Monday is threatening to wash out the smoker portion of our rib day so I’m cooking them on Saturday.
Ingredients
(Meat)
2 slabs (~6 lbs) of baby back ribs2 Shiner Smokehouse sausages
(Rub)
4 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
(Sides)
Potato Salad
Corn on the cob
(Condiments)
Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey Barbecue Sauce
3 A.M. Bobby Que Original barbecue sauce [my local favorite]
Sliced pickles
Sliced white onion
Sliced cheddar cheese
Cook
After 10 years I’m getting better at this part. Start with thawed (refrigerator temperature) ribs. Take the membrane off the bone and cover in a rub 1-2 hours before cooking. Cook uncovered ribs (bone side down) on a cooking sheet in the oven at 250° F for 2 hours. Wrap them with heavy duty aluminum foil, and cook for another 2 hours. Finish them uncovered with bbq sauce (in the oven or in a 250° F smokey grill) for up to 30 minutes; check them every few minutes.
Corn on the cob is easy: shuck, boil for 6 minutes, plate with butter and salt.
It’s Barbie’s tradition to cook the potato salad, and she’s not divulging any secrets today. She said it has potatoes, boiled eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, relish, and onion.
I didn’t cook the sausage – 4 lbs of ribs seemed like enough – and it was.
Results
The potato salad had perfectly sized pieces of potato, and it was delicious. The corn on the cob was sweet, crisp and good. The ribs were tender and yummy (a little over cooked). Since I got the ribs on different days in May I got two brands: Indiana Kitchen (2.36 lbs) and Kroger Natural Ribs (2.47 lbs); couldn’t tell the difference when cooked.
Memorial Day Ribs 2019
Last year I didn’t make ribs for Memorial Day. I was sad. It was really hot; I think it rained a lot too. But, this year, I am going to make bbq ribs once more – continuing 9 years of tradition (video)
Ingredients
(Meat)
2 slabs (~6 lbs) of baby back ribs
4 Slovacek (pre-cooked) sausages
(Rub)
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
4 tablespoons paprika
4 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
(Sides)
Potato Salad
Pinto Beans
Put It Together
Barbie made the potato salad and pinto beans. I made the ribs and sausage. The sausage was Slovacek (pre-cooked) sausage so it was easy; put it on the rib pan 30 minutes before they’re done.
Cooking ribs requires patience, but they were easy enough: thaw for 2 hours, cook rubbed ribs 2 hours, cook foil covered for 2 hours, finish naked w/ sauce for 30 minutes.
Results
As always, Barbie’s potato salad was delicious. The beans were very good. The ribs were tender, but I think they dried out (over cooked) a little bit.
Memorial Day Ribs 2017
I cooked ribs again this year, but the level of enthusiasm was really low: I didn’t cook them until Memorial Day Monday and no one suggested/volunteered sides.
I bought 2 packs seasoned – “Kansas Style” seasoning – in the bag ribs. I cooked them in the oven covered for 2 hours, then based with sauce and uncovered for 1 hour, then re-based and covered with sauce for 1 hour.
They came out great. So I think I found the secret.
I made store bought beans and frozen corn for sides.
Memorial Day Ribs 2016
So, I’ve been doing this for six years now. This May was one for the weather books – we nearly didn’t (couldn’t) bbq outside. In the last week we’ve had flooding, tornadoes, and damage all around us. But today, the Sunday before Memorial Day, it was partly sunny and 90 degrees. It’s time to bbq ribs.
We had the usual suspects – with a twist: this year it’s baby back ribs, my variation of Memphis Dust rub, Barbie’s potato salad, beans, and a dessert.
Ingredients
(Meat)
2 slabs (~8 lbs) of baby back ribs
(Rub)
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
4 tablespoons paprika
4 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
(Sides)
Potato salad
Baked beans
Barbie’s potato salad was delicious! I didn’t try the dessert she made, but by the “yumm” and “this is good” comments I gathered it was delicious too.
The ribs were good, but it took a while to repair them. First off, they were the largest baby back ribs I’ve ever seen (3.7 lbs and 3.8 lbs). Second, I had the oven at 250 the whole time. I started cooking them at 12:30 PM, wrapped up without the rub in an aluminum pan; I brined them but forgot to rub them. I uncovered them at 2:30 and added rub. I covered them again at 3:30. I uncovered them at 4:30 and covered them again at 5:00. I left them covered until 7:00, when they finally showed signs of tenderness. I left them open while I started the grill. I put them in the grill from 7:30 to 8:00. We finally ate around 8:30. That was a long day of tending to ribs.
I think where I went wrong was the double cover of aluminum: foil in a pan. I think last year I put them on a baking sheet. Also, I thought last year I started with uncovered for 2 hours, then sauce, then covered for 2 hours. Also, I think these ribs were closer to St. Louis cut then baby back size.
Memorial Day Ribs 2015 – Don’t Mess With Success
I started thinking about my Memorial Day ribs back on May 1st. It’s a tradition now. I’ve made ribs on Memorial Day weekend for five years! I think last year’s ribs were the best, so I don’t want to mess with success. This year I’ll oven-bake them first, then finish them outside in a smoke-filled grill; weather permitting.
Although Memorial Day Memphis Style sounds cool, I can stop calling them Memphis style because they’re more of a combination of Central Texas style and dry, Memphis style ribs. There’ll be some kind of thick, tomato-based sauce on the table if we need it. We like Sweet Baby Ray’s.
The new phrase this year is “dry brining.” Basically dry brining is lightly salting the meat 1 to 2 hours before cooking. Last year, Meathead (remember him from AmazingRibs.com) removed the salt from his Memphis Dust rub recipe. Now he applies a dry brine for 2 hours then rubs the ribs with Memphis Dust.
Ingredients
(Meat)
3 slabs (~10 lbs) of St. Louis cut spare ribs
(Rub)
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
(Charro beans)
1 lbs pinto beans
1 yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
1/2 lbs bacon
(Coleslaw)
1 lbs bag coleslaw mix
mayonnaise
buttermilk
white sugar
cider vinegar
lemon juice
salt
pepper
(Potato salad)
5 lbs Russet potatoes
mayonnaise
dill relish
sweet relish
yellow mustard
Make the sides
Vincent made charro beans.
Katie made coleslaw.
Barbie made potato salad.
Bake the ribs in the oven (4 hours)
Wash off the ribs, take off the membrane, and coat them with a thin layer of kosher salt; use about 1/4 teaspoon per pound. While the ribs are brining, mix the rub ingredients together. After an hour, apply the rub and put the ribs in a 250 F oven uncovered, bone-side down, for 2 hours.
Take the ribs out, brush them with barbecue sauce, wrap them in aluminum foil, and put them back in the oven for another 2 hours. Now take the ribs out, carefully unwrap them, and check if the bones pull away from the meat. If not, wrap them up, put them in the oven, and come back and check on them again in 15 minutes. When the bones start to slide they’re ready for the grill.
Finish them on the grill (15 minutes)
You can finish them under the broiler in the oven or in a covered grill (outside). If you want to finish them in the oven, paint them with sauce, lay them in a baking pan, bones down, uncovered, about 6 inches from the broiler for 10 minutes.
If you want to finish them with a smokey grill, prepare the grill for indirect heat. When the temperature stabilizes (no flames with charcoal) place wood chips on the coals/flames. Place the ribs on the opposite side the grill from the coals/flames. Smoke the ribs for at least 15 minutes (YMMV). Check internal temperature or pull on the bones every 5 minutes.
Remember – Memorial Day isn’t about sales, or parties, or bbq. Memorial Day is about remembering fallen veterans.
Memorial Day Ribs 2014
Ladies and gentlemen it’s that time once again when we strive for tender ribs, tasty sides, and family time – it’s Memorial Day weekend 2014. Last year – you’ll recall – I smoked the ribs on the grill for 1 hour then oven-baked them for 3-4 hours. This year I’m going to reverse that process: oven bake first then finish up on the grill.
Inspiration from DeepSouthDish.com: Fall Off the Bone Oven Baked Pork Spareribs with Sweet & Spicy Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Well, I delayed getting the ribs a little too long this year, and Kroger (our local grocery store) put spare ribs on sale on the Wednesday before Memorial Day (Monday). Needless to say they were sold out by Friday. All I had to pick from was plastic-wrapped, marinated St. Louis cut spare ribs (Chipotle or Kansas City flavored); I work with what I got. This will be different. I’m starting off with two slabs of marinated ribs. What is Kansas City flavor?
Bake Them
Remove the membrane. Put the rubbed (or marinated) ribs, uncovered, bones down, in an aluminum-lined baking pan. I use a disposable aluminum pan. Bake at 250 F for 2 hours.
After 2 hours, pour off any fat/juice from the pan. Brush ribs liberally with your favorite barbecue sauce. Wrap (or cover them tightly) the ribs in heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake at 250 F for another 2 hours.
This time after 2 hours, check if the meat pulls away from the bone. If not, wrap them up and continue baking – check every 15 minutes – until you can pull on the bones and they start to slide out. Don’t exceed 1 hour on this step. When they’re tender pull them out of the oven.
Finish Them
You can finish them under the broiler in the oven or in a covered grill (outside). If you want to finish them in the oven, paint them with sauce, lay them in a baking pan, bones down, uncovered, about 6 inches from the broiler for 10 minutes.
If you want to finish them with a smokey grill, prepare the grill for indirect heat. When the temperature stabilizes (no flames with charcoal) place wood chips on the coals/flames. Place the ribs on the opposite side the grill from the coals/flames. Smoke the ribs for at least 15 minutes (YMMV). Check internal temperature or pull on the bones every 5 minutes.
Eat Them
Everything (except gramma’s beans) turned out great. Ribs were good and tender. The macaroni salad and potato salad were tasty. I cooked regular sausage, boudin, and andouille to go with the ribs; they were OK. We’ll try the beans again tomorrow.
Memorial Day Ribs With A Twist: Smoked and Oven Baked Spare Ribs
Inspiration:
I like the recipe Oven Baked Ribs Spare Ribs from TheMeatSource.com, but I’m going to add a twist: smoke in grill first, then finish in oven.
What You’ll Need:
- Spare ribs, preferably cut St. Louis style (I used two racks of ribs)
- Your favorite rib rub (I make my own sometimes)
- Your favorite barbecue sauce & a bottle of liquid smoke
- Roll of heavy-duty aluminum foil
- Disposable, aluminum baking pan, at least 3 inches deep
- Large paper bag (1 bag per 2 racks of ribs)
- Outside grill set up for indirect heating
- Wood chips for smoking in grills (hickory or mesquite)
- About 6 hours of your spare time (get it)
Step 1: Wash the ribs and remove the membrane from the bone-side. If you didn’t buy St. Louis style ribs, cut off “the skirt” (a small piece of meat on one side that sticks out) so that the rack of ribs look more rectangular. Sprinkle both sides of the ribs with your rib rub. Place the ribs in the baking pan, bone-side down, and cover the pan with plastic wrap or foil to keep the bugs out. Let them sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
Step 2: Now for the twist: smoke them outside in the grill. Add your favorite wood chips in the grill and stabilize the temperature between 225 and 250 Fahrenheit. Place the ribs in a rib-stand and place the stand on the side away from the heat – i.e. the indirect heat method. Keep an eye on the temperature and smoke them for 1 hour.
Step 3: Pre-heat your oven to 300 Fahrenheit. Place the ribs in to the baking pan and seal the pan tightly with aluminum foil. (I actually put some sauce on them before I sealed them in the pan.) Place the baking pan in the center of the oven. Bake ribs for 1 hour.
Step 4: Remove the foil from the pan, and drain any fat from the pan. Place ribs back in the baking pan, bone-side down. Leave the foil off. Bake ribs for 1 hour.
Step 5: Drain any fat from the pan. Slather both sides of the ribs with barbecue sauce. Bake ribs for 1 hour or until meat separates from bone. (This should not take more than 2 hours.)
Step 6: Turn off the oven. Remove the pan from the oven, and wrap the rack of ribs in foil. Place the ribs in a paper bag, and fold the top of the bag tightly closed. Let the bag of ribs sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
You are now a BBQ God! …so on the seventh hour, he rested, and enjoyed the fall-off-the-bone spare ribs. Amen.
Personal Notes:
I have a 3-burner gas grill and even 1 burner on low is too hot, so I bought an aluminum charcoal lighting box and put about 20 briquettes in it. It produced a lower, stable temperature. I could have kept feeding it briquettes, but I didn’t want to watch the temperature all day on my inaccurate thermometer.
(Originally published Nov 28, 2011)
Memorial Day Ribs – The Tradition Continues
I know I said last year I was done with ribs. I know I should have read my blogs again to remind myself that me and ribs are not meant to be, but time heals all wounds and how quickly we forget.
This year I used a different technique hoping a avoid last year’s failure.
I bought 3 racks of St. Louis style ribs from Kroger’s. In hind sight I think I could have gotten away with 2 racks. We had baked beans, salad, and corn on the cob; never made it to the watermelon. Maybe we’ll turn the left overs into pulled pork via the slow cooker.
First, marinate the ribs in apple juice for 2 hours.
Next, I coated both sides in Gulden’s spicy brown mustard.
Next, I coated both sides in Nolan Ryan’s BBQ rub. It was spicy, but not too spicy.
Then, the ribs cooked on the grill – indirect heat of course – for 3 hours at between 200 and 300 degrees. (I think the unsteady temperature is the primary reason for my rib failures.)
Next, I bathed the ribs in sauce and wrapped them in aluminum foil. They went back on the grill for another 2 hours.
Finally, I took them off the grill and let them rest for nearly an hour. They weren’t fall off the bone, but they weren’t tough either. I still haven’t found my holy grail, my fountain of youth, my….Maybe next year. (Maybe next year I’ll wise-up and buy the cooked ribs.)
But seriously, temperature is the number one factor to affect tenderness. I think I need a good thermometer and I need to stabilize the temperature.