Alton Brown's Ribs are Now My Ribs
This recipe originally started off as Alton Brown's "Who Loves Ya Babyback Rib's" recipe fro season 2, episode 27. (Yes, I am that much of a Good Eats fan). The original incarnations was good, but it was too salty. So I made some changes here and there and over the years I made a lot of tasty ribs, but I never really had a set recipe I followed. I would just dig around the spice cabinet and throw in what sounded good, following AB's basic formula. Fast forward to 2009 when Alton Brown published "Good Eats: The Early Years. When this recipe made the pages, he addressed the salt issue as well as his esoteric "jalapeno seasoning". So I tried the new rub recipe with some of my own changes that I have tinkered with over the years and actually put pen to paper to have something last longer than the ribs last on the table. I hope you enjoy my take on something that is already phenomenal. Oh, whenever I make ribs, it's always a group endeavor so I usually double AB's recipe. I also realize that the rub ratio is not the same as his original concept or is newest rub recipe, but I think that the flavor is great and you wont be disappointed.
INGREDIENTS
NutritionThe Rub
- 1 1⁄2
- 1tablespoon kosher salt
- 1
- 1⁄4
- 2teaspoons black pepper
- 2teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 2teaspoons smoked paprika
- 2teaspoons Old Bay Seasoning
- 1teaspoon dried thyme
- 1teaspoon summer savory
- 2teaspoons onion powder
The Braising Liquid
- 2cups white wine
- 2tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2
- 1⁄4
- 2tablespoons honey
- 4roasted garlic cloves
Ribs
- 4racks of baby-back pork ribs
DIRECTIONS
- Take all the dry rub ingredients for a spin in the food processor to get them all evenly mixed.
- I like to let my ribs sit with the rub on overnight, So start this the day before you plan to go all caveman.
- Lay out 4 big pieces of HEAVY DUTY aluminum foil on the counter. Need to be longer than the rack of ribs and it MUST be heavy duty. If not and you'll get holes in the foil and a big mess in your fridge, or worse yet in your oven.
- Place one rack on the foil and scoop on a big pile of the rub. Then proceed to rub the seasoning into every nook and cranny you can find on the ribs. Don't forget the other side. This is going to help build up some epic levels of flavor.
- When the rub is evenly applied, leave the ribs on the foil meaty side down. Then bring the two long sides of the foil together above the ribs and seal with a crimp and fold technique. Then give one of the open ends a good tight seal, and the other end just kind of fold over.
- Repeat this with all the ribs. Store all the ribs in a roasting pan or something similar to contain any potential mess and keep it chilled overnight. If you're like me and don't have the space in your fridge for a roasting pan holding 4 racks of ribs, here is a tip. For this occasion, I have taken the two bottom drawers out and placed the ribs in the bottom of the fridge. Fits perfectly in my fridge. If you have any dry rub left over, store it in a glass jar because it will stain plastic.
- Fast Forward to the next day.
- Mix all the braising liquid ingredients together in a microwave safe container and heat microwave for about a minute or so. this just melts the honey enough to mix easier. I like to give it a quick vroom with the stick blender to get the roasted garlic thoroughly mixed into the liquid.
- Heat you oven to 250°F.
- Open the loosely sealed end of each of the foil pouches and pour an even amount of the liquid into each pouch.
- Seal the end of each pouch and place on a sheet pan or in a shallow roasting pan and place in the oven. Cook for 3 hours.
- When the 3 hours are up, pull the ribs from the oven. Open one end of the foil pouch and pour the liquid through a strainer into a sauce pan. Reseal the foil and but the ribs back in the off WITH THE HEAT TURNED OFF.
- Reduce this liquid by half over a med-low heat, or until it reaches a think syrupy consistency. This can take awhile because if you try to reduce it over too high of a heat, the sugar will scorch and the glaze will be ruined.
- When you have a nice sticky syrup, pull the ribs from the foil and place on a sheet pan. Turn the oven to Broil. Brush the syrup glaze over the top of the ribs to make a nice even coating.
- Place the ribs under the broiler for about 1 minute. You will want to watch them the whole time That much sugar in the glaze will burn like napalm if you don't pay attention.Pull the ribs when the glazed starts to get all bubbly.
- From here, serving options are up to you. I like to cut the ribs into single rib pieces, throw them in a big bowl with the remaining glaze and give them a good toss. I normally serve this in a post-modern caveman style. A big bowl of ribs, a roll of paper towels and the readiness to club someone over head if they get too close to your pile of meaty goodness. Regardless of how you do your ribs, I'm sure you'll enjoy this recipe.