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.
Continue readingThis 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.
Continue readingThis 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.
Continue reading 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.
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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)
Continue readingI 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.
Continue readingSo, 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.
Continue readingI 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.
Continue readingLadies 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.
Continue readingInspiration:
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:
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)