Grilled Pork Ribs
Ribs have a long and storied history in our family. Sort of a sixth sense kind of history. They weren’t a common dinner but we loved them when they were served. When we were in high school, we met our wonderful, longtime friend Garrett and ribs took on a whole different meaning.
Garrett lived about twenty miles from us – and he didn’t drive – so he would sometimes spend the night at our house. Somehow, every time he stayed with us it seems, we had ribs for dinner. This wasn’t planned – we didn’t make dinners at this point in time – our mom did. It was just some sort of strange coincidence.
After high school we all moved on and away and yet every time Garrett called us we would be having ribs for dinner. Coincidence? We think not. Every single time we make ribs we think of Garrett. And it’s highly likely he will call or text while we’re either making or eating them.
We don’t even remember the recipe our mom used to make them so we created our own. Our recipe uses a special rub and we cook them low and slow until the meat falls off the bone. Summertime is grilled rib time. Fire up that barbecue and invite some of your best friends over to share them!
Garrett, this post is dedicated to you. We’re making ribs!
TSKOG 🙂
Be sure to soak wood chunks at least one hour before grilling.
Prepare grill for indirect cooking.
Baste with sauce during final hour of grilling.
Slice and enjoy!
Grilled Pork Ribs
Brine
- ½ cup table salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 3 quarts water
- 4 lbs baby back ribs
Spice Rub
- 1 TBS chili powder
- 2 TBS brown sugar
- 1 TBS smoked paprika
- 1 tsp celery salt
- ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp cayenne
Sauce
- ¾ cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup cider vinegar
- 1 TBS soy sauce
- 1 TBS molasses
- 1 TBS Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
3 hickory or apple wood chunks each about the size of a lemon – soaked for one hour in water
Brine:
Dissolve salt and sugar in water. Place ribs in a large container and cover in brine. Refrigerate for a minimum of one hour and up to 4 hours. Remove from brine and pat dry.
Rub:
Combine all spice rub ingredients in a small bowl. Cover ribs thoroughly all over with rub. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Sauce:
Combine all sauce ingredients in small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Simmer about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened slightly. Keep warm until needed.
To Grill Ribs:
Light about 65 charcoal briquettes and burn until covered in light gray ash.. Spread coals over one half of bottom of grill, piling about 2-3 coals deep. Place two soaked wood chunks on top of hot coals and position rack over coals and wood chunks. Close lid and allow grate to heat about 5 minutes, then scrape clean with a wire brush. Arrange the ribs on the cool side of the grill adjacent to the coals but not directly over them. Cover and open grill vents. Cook ribs for 2 hours, rotating and flipping racks every 30 minutes and adding coals as needed to keep the temperature at about 300 degrees. After 2 hours, place third wood chunk onto coals and baste ribs with sauce. Continue grilling for another 1 – 1 ½ hours, basting ribs every 30 minutes. Transfer ribs to cutting board, cut between bones to separate ribs. Serve with extra sauce if desired.
Serves 4