There’s a secret to perfect BBQ back ribs. One that will get you awesome ribs every time. Every time. It’s not hard. Internal temperature. That’s it.
Cook your ribs until an instant read thermometer inserted between the ribs (never touching the bon though) reads 195F.
Perfect internal temperature for perfect ribs – every time
A good dry rub and a BBQ made from scratch help too, of course. Every little bit helps. But internal temperature is the big one.
Miss that and no sauce will save your ribs. Not even the bourbon BBQ sauce below. It’s good. But nothing is that good…
A smoker makes this pretty easy but it takes forever. Somewhere around 5 hours for baby back pork ribs. This recipe gives you perfect BBQ back ribs in about 2 hours. Still slow but not crazy slow.
Anywhere between 190F and 200F is in the zone but 195F is the magic number. Below 190F and they will be tough and chewy.
Much above 200F and they will start to dry out. 195F gets you perfect BBQ back ribs. Tender but firm with that little bit of pull when they come off the bone. Championship ribs.
There’s art to BBQ. But there’s science too. Tending your fire. Timing. Just the right amount of smoke. That’s art.
Cooking to a specific internal temperature. That’s science. BBQ takes meat way past the normally recommended internal temps and yet it can be moist and tender. That’s magic.
perfect bbq back ribs
Ingredients
- 1-3 racks meaty back ribs around 3 lbs each
Rib Rub
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp chili powder - pure. Like New Mexican or ancho
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp coarse black pepper - butcher’s grind is perfect
- 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
- 1/2 tsp mustard powder
Simple Bourbon BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup chicken stock or water
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp pure chili powder
- 2 tsp bourbon
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp Franks red hot sauce (optional)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp granulated onion or onion powder
- 2 dashes liquid smoke (optional)
Instructions
Prepare your grill
- Bank lump charcoal or pure charcoal briquettes along opposing sides of a Weber kettle. Place a drip pan between the banks of charcoal. Light one bank of coals. Control your airflow so the kettle settles at around 325F.
- If you are using a gas grill light one burner and prepare your wood chips. Place your drip pan along side the lit burner.
Prep the ribs
- Remove the skin from the rib side of the rack. Use a paring knife to separate a bit of the skin from a bone, then slide a finger between the rib and the skin and start to pull up. Get a grip on the skin and pull carefully from the rack. This can be easy or a real hassle - just seems to vary rack to rack. I have no clue why…
- Rub the ribs all over with the dry rub.
Cook the ribs
- Place the ribs on the preheated grill above the drip pan. Keep the ribs away from direct heat. Cook, rib side down. Rotate the ribs 180 degrees end-to-end every 15 to 20 minutes. When the fire starts to burn out, light the lump charcoal on the opposite side. Continue to cook, turning the ribs every 15 to 20 minutes.
- After about 1 hour start checking internal temperature using an instant read thermometer. Measure in a few places between the ribs. Make sure the probe doesn’t touch the bone. If it does, it will read wrong.
- Cooking time can be as little as one hour if it’s a lean rack. A meaty rack can take up to 2 hours.
- When the ribs reach an internal temperature of 190-195F sauce and cook another few minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
A great shrimp cocktail sauce makes shrimp cocktail. Pure and simple. And it’s so easy to make your own at home. Fresh. Brimming with flavour. Delicious.
There really is nothing to making shrimp cocktail sauce. Mix up a few ingredients. Let stand for few minutes. Good to go.
So I really don’t understand why people buy it. The jarred stuff is a little dull. Lifeless. It’s been sitting on a shelf for months. Shrimp is not cheap. Why would you waste it using mediocre shrimp cocktail sauce.
Three key ingredients for great shrimp cocktail sauce
Shrimp cocktail sauce is mostly ketchup. And that’s actually not a bad thing. It works well in here. Something about its sweet tang just tastes right.
It’s what you do with the ketchup that matters. The other ingredients. And there’s no magic here. Three simple additions to ketchup make it great cocktail sauce. cost people have ketchup n the refrigerator.
Horseradish – when it’s fresh, jarred horseradish has bite. Sinus clearing bite. A little goes a long way. But it makes the sauce. That’s the taste you are looking for here. But it starts to fade the day you open the jar. So buy a fresh bottle. It matters.
Pure chili powder – Pure chili powder is not the stuff they sell at supermarkets labeled “chili powder” or “chili mix”. It’s the ground version of a real dried chili. Look for New Mexican red or ancho. It brings a bit of complexity to the sauce.
Fresh lemon juice – Don’t use stuff from a bottle. Fresh lemons are pretty easy to come by. There’s really no excuse for using that pre-fab stuff. It’s not the same. You want the fresh, bright acidity only the real thing delivers.
That’s it. A little salt and pepper and it’s done. Easy. And so much better. Try this – you’ll never use bottled cocktail sauce again. Serve it with foolproof shrimp cocktail . You’ll be glad you did.
classic cocktail sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup good tomato ketchup
- 1 Tbsp prepared horseradish - get a new bottle. That old bottle in the back of the fridge will kill this recipe…
- 1 tsp pure chili powder - e.g New Mexican Red or Ancho
- 1/3 tsp salt
- 1/3 tsp pepper
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice or more to taste
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients and let sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.
