3/21/10 - Baby Back Ribs ...dry rubbed

After walking over 17 miles this weekend (spring fever really got a hold of me!) and getting my butt kicked at pilates class I was ready for a treat. We headed over to the grocery store to pick up a few veggies to complete our dinner tonight (real grocery shopping usually happens on Tuesday after I have a chance to check the circular and make my meal plan) but I got distracted. Always a sucker for a sale, I noticed that they had some ribs on special so I went to take a look. I ended up buying baby backs (instead of spareribs) which weren't actually on sale but once my head was filled with juicy ribs I really couldn't help myself. 

I made ribs for the first time ever on a snow day earlier this winter but this time I was looking for a little more advice. Don't get me wrong Alton Brown's recipe was delicious but a little messy (my foil didn't seal completely and I ended up with braising liquid all over the place). One of my friends who is a CIA graduate and chef suggested that I keep the dry rub but skip the braising. I was a little worried that the meat would end up dry but I decided to follow his advice.......

In the end it was lack of time not cooking method that was the issue. After 3 hours I couldn't stand the delicious smell that was permeating my entire apartment and first I took one little bite and then all of a sudden a full slab was on the table and half way to devoured. The taste of the ribs was delicious even if the meat wasn't falling off the bone done.

Dry Rub (modified from alton brown)
8 tablespoons light brown sugar, tightly packed
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon herbs de provance

1) mix all ingredients together and then liberally spread over ribs (this should coat 2 racks of baby backs)
2) place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour to absorb coating
3) cook at 250 F for 3+ hours or until meat starts to pull back from the bone
4) coat periodically with BBQ sauce
5) once meat is just about done - do final coating with BBQ sauce and then place in broiler (high) for about 10-15 min to caramelize sugars and give a crisp exterior