Grilling Ribs on Your Grill. Yes Grilled Ribs Can be Great.Ribs are great when barbecued and put in a smoker, but what about grilling ribs? I can teach you how to grill ribs to perfection using only your Weber gas grill. In this article I will share a really great recipe for baby back ribs with you.
Also make sure the butcher has removed the membrane on the back of the ribs. I will show you how to do that as well, but it is so much easier to have someone else do it for you.
The Prep I would start out by rinsing your baby backs off, patting them dry with a paper towel, then cutting them in half if they are still a full rack. This will make it easier for cooking. The membrane on the back of the ribs will keep the rub's flavors from working into the meat so remove this before you put the rub on if it is still there. Just get it started with a knife and then peal it back and off.
For these grilled ribs we will be using a dry rub. Something I learned about when we lived in the south. The time to put the rub on the ribs is well in advance of when you are going to actually grill them. I always put my rub on the night before or at least the morning that I would be grilling them. This give the rub's flavors time to work into the meat. Also, once the ribs are cooked I sprinkle a little more of the rub on top of the ribs at the end. I always make my rub well in advance. Sometimes weeks in advance. Mix your rub, put it in a airtight container, shake it up real good and you can leave it for quite a while. I would plan ahead so it sits for at least a couple of weeks or more in the container before you plan to use it. This way the flavors from all the spices will have a chance to meld together. This is just what you want to happen. Also it doesn't hurt to shake the container from time to time as well.
When you are ready for your meal pour only the amount of rub you intend to use into a small bowl and put the rest away. Once your hands touch the ribs and the rub, you have to use that rub. You don't want cross contamination with the rest of the rub you aren't using. We talk about this in our food safety section.
Sprinkle the rub on the meat evenly and in generous portions then gently pat it into the meat. Do both sides of the ribs. Put the ribs back in you pan, cover them and put them back in the refrigerator until you are ready to cook.
How much rub you put on each rack will depend on your tastes, however the recipe proportions that I am giving you will generally be enough to do 4 to 6 racks of ribs.
The Rub This recipe for grilling ribs actually came from Steven Raichlen. I have altered and changed it a bit to suit my personal tastes, so I guess in some small way that makes it mine now. I can tell you this though, he has some very good recipes if you are interested.
Grilling your ribs This, believe it or not is the easy part. You will be using indirect heat for this meal. If you have a charcoal grill, set your coals to the side for the cooking and be sure to check and refresh them from time to time to keep your heat up. If you have a gas grill like I use (with hopefully three burners) turn off the back two and keep the third on low heat for the cooking part. Remember, grilling ribs is a slow process. To do them right you just can't rush it. 1) Take your ribs out of the refrigerator and let them get to room temperature before grilling. 2) Preheat your grill like normal, using all burners if using gas. 3) Once preheated clean off the grate if you haven't already done so. 4) Using indirect heat as described above, put the ribs on the grill and go get a beverage. You are grilling with very low indirect heat here. With this type of meal you really don't have to worry about flare ups and burning your food. Actually your only real danger here is leaving them on to long and having them dry out. Ouch!! As a matter of fact, when grilling ribs this way, you really want to limit how often you do open the lid. Each time you open it, you let precious heat out and thus prolonging the cooking process. Grilling ribs this way will take you about 1 1/2 to 2 hrs from start to finish depending on time and weather. During this time span I might only open the lid two or three times to check the food. You will know when the ribs are finished when you will see them begin to pull away from the tips of the bones. Bring them in the house, let them rest for a couple of minutes while you pull together the rest of the meal and you are good to eat. Even though we used a dry rub here, you always do have the option to add a wet sauce as well. If you choose to do this I would recommend putting it on about 1/2 hour before you are going to take the ribs off. Side Note: Even though I suggest above that you turn two burners off and leave the other one on low, please remember that if you are cooking in the winter and it is cold, you may have to adjust and run two burners on low. Again, this is all about experimentation
I sure hope you enjoy this meal as much as I do. Grilling ribs is by far one of my most favorite meals to make and eat. Return from grilling ribs to grilling recipes
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