BASIC BARBEQUE RUB
1⁄2 cup paprika
1⁄4 cup kosher salt
1⁄4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons dry mustard
1⁄4 cup chili powder
1⁄4 cup ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
1⁄4 cup granulated garlic
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
TOMATO BARBEQUE SAUCE
Combine and cook over low heat for 30 minutes:
1 cup tomato ketchup
1⁄2 cup light brown sugar
3 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder
1⁄4 teaspoon onion powder
2 racks of ribs, either St. Louis or baby back
To prepare the ribs, remove the membranes from the inside (lift a corner of the membrane with a knife, then grab hold with a paper towel and pull). Keep meat refrigerated until ready to cook.
One hour before cooking, light a carefully cleaned bullet smoker using the Minion method, which allows for a longer burn: After filling the charcoal ring with good-quality charcoal (not instant-light, and no lighter fluid), light 20 or so briquets in a charcoal chimney, then add them to the charcoal in the ring. Fill the water pan with water, and add to the coals a couple of chunks of hardwood (apple, hickory, oak, etc.—no need to soak). When the temperature’s about 250 and it’s burning clean, says Tuffy, the ribs can go in.
Thirty minutes before cooking, season both sides of the ribs with a moderate coating of rub, concave side first, then meat side. Seasoning earlier than that, says Tuffy, causes the salt content of the rub to leach moisture, leading to dryer ribs. Let the meat rest on the counter for that half-hour.
Place ribs in the smoker meat-side-up and cook for “somewhere between three and two hours,” until the meat has achieved “a nice color—a reddish mahogany. Black is not good. Less smoke is better than more smoke.” This is the 3 part of 3-2-1. (This part can be accomplished on a grill—with careful watching, lest the sugar burn. Then finish the rest in a 250-degree oven.)
Latest Comments