Easy Grilled Baby Back Ribs

I saw that ribs were on sale shopping at Meijer last Saturday, but to my disappointment, they were spare ribs. I prefer baby back. As I was looking at the cooler full of ribs, I noticed a lone rack of baby backs in the pile. I grabbed them for a closer look and sure enough, the rack was priced the same as the spare ribs! It was my lucky day.

I threw it in my cart and off I went.

I had already planned a meal for that evening but I decided that I would cook the ribs that night, then finish them on the grill for lunch the next afternoon. It's a technique I learned while being a prep cook at the Texas Road House.

I did a variation of that technique for these ribs.

First a rub is liberally applied, then the ribs are wrapped in foil. I then bake the ribs for 90 minutes. At this point they can be cooled and refrigerated or taken right to the grill for the finish. I put mine in the fridge for the night and grilled them the next day. The grill not only heats the ribs through and flavors them with a grill flavor, but this is when the barbecue sauce is applied. The heat will help caramelize the sugars in the sauce, which for me is the icing on the cake.

I busted out some of Steve's Oink-n-Squeel barbecue sauce for this rack. It's made in Evansville, Indiana by a work collegue's father. I love its flavor and it has the perfect consistency for basting meat over the flames.

It took 15 minutes to heat the ribs through and get some caramelization of the sauce. The end result was a juicy, tender and well flavored rib — which made a mess of my hands and face — but most importantly filled my belly.

Eat well, cook often ...

EASY GRILLED BABY BACK RIBS
Serves 2, 2 hours
1 rack of baby back ribs
rib rub (recipe follows)
1/2 BBQ sauce
Tools: Aluminum foil, baking sheet fitted with backing rack, oven and a grill

Preheat oven to 350°

Thoroughly season ribs with rib rub on all sides.

Wrap in aluminum foil. Place on baking sheet fitted with baking rack. When oven is ready place on in center. Let ribs cook for 90 minutes. Remove ribs from oven let cool. Can finish on grill at this point or refrigerate in foil for a day or two and finish later.

Remove ribs from foil, slather with BBQ sauce and sear on grill until sugars in sauce caramelize, turn once or twice, basting with more sauce. 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from grill and serve. 

RIB RUB
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs smoked Paprika
2 Tbs salt
1 Tbs chili powder
1 Tbs cumin
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp oregano

Mix spices together. Store in a container with a tight sealing lid.