Hot Spare Ribs

Recipe for typical American Spareribs

One of America`s barbecue icons are the famous spareribs - the meat should be tender, but not soft or mushy. Ideally, they are sweet, sour and spicy with a smoky flavour. In the US, they are often prepared with professional barbecue competitions.

Ingredients (serves 6 - 8):

4 racks spareribs (total 2-3 kg)
1,5 l cider, plus a little more for spraying the ribs
Juice of 2 lemons
150 Barbecue Rub (e.g. Stockyard Kansas City All Purpose BBQ Rub or Swing Grill and Spit Roast Spice Mix)
750 ml Barbecue Sauce (Crazy Cow BBQ sauce or Kansas City Cowtown BBQ sauce)
2 handful of smoke pellets (e.g. Hickory smoke pellets or Brandy BBQ Smoking Chips)
1 spray bottle filled with cider

Preparation:

1. Prepare the ribs: Remove the thin, papery membrane from the back of each rack of ribs by inserting a slender implement, such as a butter knife or the tip of a meat thermometer under it. Then pull it off in a sheet with your fingers. You can use the corner of a kitchen towel to gain a secure grip, or with pliers.
2. Place the ribs in a large baking bowl and pour the cider and lemon juice. Marinate the ribs in the refrigerator for 1 - 2 hours, turning several times so they marinate evenly.
3. Pat the ribs dry with paper towels. Generously sprinkle 100 grams of the rub on both sides of the ribs, rubbing the seasonings onto the meat. Let the ribs cure in the refrigerator, covered, for further 1 - 2 hours.
4. Set up the grill for indirect grilling (the meat is placed next to, not directly over the fire): preheat to medium temperature. When the coals glow red, dump or rake them in two piles at opposite sides of the grill. Place a foil drip pan in the center of the grill. Add the smoke pellets to the coal just before grilling.
5. Place the racks of ribs, bone side down, in the center of the grate over the drip pan, cover the grill, and cook for 2-3 hours. Start spraying the ribs with the cider after 30 minutes and spray them again every 30 minutes until they are done. After 1 hour replenish the coals and add some more smoke pellets.
6. 20 minutes before the end of cooking time, sprinkle the ribs lightly with barbecue sauce (glaze). You can use a pastry brush or a special mop brush. When the ribs are done, the meat will have shrunk back from the ends of the bones and will be tender enough to pull apart with your fingers.
7. Put the Spareribs on a plate and sprinkle again with the BBQ Sauce and rub and let them rest for a few minutes.

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