Dad will devour these baby back ribs
Make your dad smile a barbecue-sauce-smeared grin this Father’s Day with this recipe for the best baby back ribs you’ve ever tasted. The secret? Both a dry rub and a homemade sauce.
After removing the tough membrane from the back of the ribs, you’ll rub the fragrant mixture of brown sugar, chili powder, dry mustard and onion powder into the flesh to let it seep in and flavour the meat, ideally overnight.
That and cooking the rack nice and slow in the oven — for a good couple of hours — before it hits the grill will guarantee fall-off-the-bone tenderness.
All that’s left is to slather on the delectable sauce (apple jelly makes all the difference), grill the rack to perfection, and get messy with it! The Best Barbecued Ribs 3 Ricardo Tested Dry Rub: 2 tbsp brown sugar 1 tbsp chili powder 2 tsp salt 1 tsp ground pepper 1 tsp dry mustard 1/2 tsp onion powder 5 lb (2.3 kg) baby back ribs Barbecue Sauce: 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp onion powder 1/2 tsp garlic powder 2 tbsp butter 3/4 cup (180 mL) ketchup 3/4 cup (180 mL) apple jelly 1/4 cup (60 mL) apple cider vinegar 2 tbsp (30 mL) molasses 1 tbsp (15 mL) Dijon mustard 1 tbsp (15 mL) Worcestershire sauce Tabasco sauce, to taste For the dry rub, in a bowl, combine all the ingredients.
On a work surface, use paper towels to peel away the white membrane (silverskin) on the back of the ribs. Place the ribs on a baking sheet and rub both sides generously with the spice rub.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
With the rack in the middle position of the oven, preheat the oven to 325 F (160 C).
Wrap the ribs, two racks at a time, in heavy-duty aluminum foil.
Transfer to a baking sheet. Bake for about 2 hours, or until the meat is tender.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the spices in the butter for 1 minute. Add the remaining ingredients, bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes or until the sauce becomes syrupy. Season with salt and pepper.
Preheat the grill, setting the burners to medium. Oil the grate. Remove the ribs from the foil and grill for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, brushing with half of the barbecue sauce. Serve with the remaining sauce.
Makes 4 servings.