Grill Ribs
Ribs recipes vary widely. Some call for hickory chips to smoke the meat while others require a special dry rub. Whatever your recipe calls for, a few basic grilling techniques can help you get the most out of your ribs. Follow these steps to grill ribs.
Steps
- Decide what kind of ribs you want to grill. The 2 most popular types are baby back ribs and spare ribs, but there are significant differences between the 2 cuts.
- Baby back ribs come from the top of the rib cage. They range in length from 3 inches (7.6 cm) to 6 inches (15.2 cm) and are meatier than spare ribs.
- Spare ribs are from the section of the rib cage under the back ribs. Spare-rib meat often is tenderer than back ribs because of its high fat content.
- Prepare the ribs for grilling.
- Cut the excess tissue from the ribs and discard it.
- Rinse the ribs in cold water to remove any loose material.
- Pour the dry rub onto both sides of the ribs. You can either make your own rub using brown sugar, black and white pepper, paprika and other spices, or simply buy dry rub at the grocery store.
- Rub the mixture into the meat and place meat on a plate.
- Cover the ribs with tin foil and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Choose the kind of wood chips you want to use to smoke the meat. Mesquite and hickory are popular and give the meat a distinctive flavor.
- Immerse the wood you choose in water for 30 minutes. If you have a gas or propane grill, use chips. If you're using a charcoal grill, use larger wood chunks.
- Heat up your grill. You want to cook your ribs slowly to make the meat tender. Follow the procedure below for the type of grill you're using.
- Gas or propane grill: Create an indirect heat source by lighting only about half of the burners. Put the wood chips in a smoking box and place the box between the flame and the grill surface.
- Charcoal grill: After ash forms, move the briquettes to one side of the grill. Place 2 or 3 wood chunks on the coals. Put a small baking pan with about 1 inch (2.54 cm) of water in it on the cool side of the grill. The steam from the water helps keep the rib meat moist and tender.
- Grill the ribs. Pay attention to how the ribs are cooking, particularly with charcoal grills, where regulating the intensity of the heat can be difficult. Recipes vary in the amount of time it takes to grill ribs, but spare ribs often take longer than back ribs. Ways to tell if you ribs are ready include:
- Meat thermometer: Rib meat should be about 180 degrees F (82.2 degrees C) when it's done. However, it can sometimes be difficult to get an accurate reading because the meat is so thin.
- Visual inspection: Ribs should be a rich brown color and slightly crusty.
- Tenderness test: Use tongs and pick up the ribs at the center of the slab. If the meat slumps and cracks from the bone, your ribs are ready.
- Brush the slab with barbecue sauce. Give the ribs another 10 minutes on the grill to let the sauce cook into the meat.
- Finished.
Things You'll Need
- Slab of ribs
- Grill (gas, propane or charcoal)
- Wood chips or chunks
- Smoking box (gas or propane grill)
- Plate
- Tin foil
- Knife
- Dry rub
- Baking pan
- Water
- Meat thermometer
- Tongs
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