One day, I stumbled across an Alton Brown rib recipe and thought I’d give it a shot. The actual cooking method was more what I was looking for, as I made a few changes to the actual ingredients. After a few attempts at modifying the dry rub ingredients to be just right, I think I found what is delicious enough for even me to like. Too bad our kids actually like them, though, because that means less for the parents.
Ribs are definitely a paper plate kind of food, you know what I mean? It’s just the right way to eat them. So grab a paper plate, pile it high with a stack of these tasty ribs, and go to town. A pile of bones is a true gesture of gratitude to your chef.
Braised Baby Back Ribs
Ribs are definitely a paper plate kind of food, you know what I mean? It's just the right way to eat them. So grab a paper plate, pile it high with a stack of these tasty ribs, and go to town. A pile of bones is a true gesture of gratitude to your chef.
Ingredients
- 3-4 lbs Baby Back Ribs, approx. 1-2 slabs
Dry Rub
- 4 Tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 1 1/2 Tbsp Sea Salt
- 1/2 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Chili Powder
- 1/4 tsp Onion Powder
Braising Liquid
- 1 cup Red Wine
- 1 Tbsp White Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Honey
- 1 Tbsp Blackstrap Molasses
- 2 cloves Garlic, minced
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine all dry rub ingredients and mix well. Make sure there are no coconut sugar clumps (crushing with a fork helps).
- Divide the dry rub evenly among all slabs, coating generously on both sides, patting it in.
- Place rib slabs in a large baking dish or other container and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 4 hours.
- Preheat oven to 225°F.
- In a microwavable bowl, combine all braising liquid ingredients. Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute.
- Place a large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil shiny side down (1 piece of foil for each slab). If your slabs are too long, cut them in half. Place one slab in the center of each piece of foil.
- Bring the long edges of the foil together over the top of the slab, gently rolling once (don't make this too tight, you'll need to open it in a minute). Roll the short sides up so that the creases are above the ribs. Make this seal as tight as possible. Repeat for all foil packets.
- Place the foil packets on a large baking sheet (or 2 baking sheets if you have too many packs). Open the top of the foil on each slab and pour the braising liquid into each foil packet, dividing equally among them all (ex: 1/2 cup each if you have 2 packets). Reseal the top of the foil, tightly this time.
- Place baking trays in the oven and braise for 2.5 - 4 hours. The longer they cook, the more tender they will be. Cook for no less than 2.5 hours.
- Remove the Baking tray and open the foil packets carefully. They will release steam and you don't want to spill the liquid. Remove the ribs from the foil and place on a broiler pan (I like to line mine with more foil so I don't have anything to clean).
- Pour all the remaining liquid into a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer until the liquid is reduced to a thin syrup. This can take up to 20 minutes.
- Turn the broiler on HIGH. Brush the glaze on top of the ribs and place under the broiler for a couple minutes until the glaze caramelizes and bubbles.
- Serve immediately. Keep the remaining glaze in a bowl in case you want to dip your ribs in it.
Aaron
Friday 17th of July 2020
I, too, have made the Alton recipe ... with some seasoning adjustments. But the biggest problem with Alton's (and I assume it's a problem here, too) is the ultra-low temperature. I cannot remember Alton's suggested cooking time, but I had to DOUBLE it at 225. When I did it again at 275 and added 30-45 minutes it worked better. Maybe the 4 hours here makes up for the low temp?