Best Fat Boys Smoked Baby Backs Recipes

BABY BACK RIBS (SMOKER, OVEN, OR OVEN-TO-GRILL)

Steps:

• Make the Spice Rub: In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, salt, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, oregano, ground mustard, and cayenne pepper.
• Preheat the smoker to 225°F or the oven to 300°F. (If using the oven, set one rack in the middle position and one rack in the top position.)
• Remove the membrane that coats the underside of each rack of ribs. Using a butter knife, loosen the membrane around one of the end bones, scraping it away from the ribs. Once you get under it, grab the membrane with a paper towel and peel it off. If you're lucky, it will come off all in one piece. (Alternatively, ask your butcher to do this for you.)
• Coat the ribs evenly on both sides with about half of the spice rub. Allow the ribs to sit for about 15 minutes to "sweat" and absorb the rub, then coat the racks with the remainder of the rub. It will seem like too much rub but it's not - use it all.
• Smoker Method: Place the spice-coated ribs in the smoker and cook for 2 hours. Remove the ribs from the smoker and double wrap each rack in heavy-duty foil. Return to the smoker for 1½ hours. Remove the foil-wrapped ribs from the smoker (hot grease may drip out of the foil, so be careful). Carefully unwrap, leaving the ribs on the foil, and brush to the top of each rack with about 3 tablespoons of the BBQ sauce. Fold the edges of the foil around the ribs, creating a makeshift "pan" for each rack. Place the racks back in the smoker on the foil and cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour more, or until the racks are tender. To determine if they're done, lift them from the center with tongs - if they bend easily and the meat "cracks" on top, they are ready. Let the ribs cool for about 10 minutes, then slice and serve.
• Oven or Oven-to-Grill Method: Line a baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place the spice-coated ribs on the prepared pan, cover the pan tightly with foil, and bake until tender, about 2 hours. Turn the oven to broil. Remove the foil from the ribs and brush each rack with 3 tablespoons of the barbecue sauce. Broil until the sauce just starts to bubble and caramelize, 2 to 4 minutes. Keep a close eye on the ribs while they're under the broiler; because of the sugar in the rub and sauce, they will quickly go from nicely caramelized to burnt. (Alternatively, you can skip the broiling and finish the ribs on the grill. Preheat the grill to medium and grill the baked racks for 10 to 15 minutes, brushing occasionally with the BBQ sauce until charred in spots and heated through. Adjust heat as necessary to prevent burning.) Let the ribs cool for about 10 minutes, then slice and serve.
• Reheating/Freezing Instructions:The cooked ribs will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days, or they can be frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw the ribs overnight in refrigerator if necessary, then place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush the ribs with another layer of BBQ sauce and cover tightly with foil. Warm in a 250°F oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until warmed through. Remove the foil and continue cooking for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the sauce to set and the bark to crisp up.

SMOKED BABY BACK RIBS

Steps:

• Prepare the ribs (see below). Combine the brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, cumin, mustard powder and 2 tablespoons salt in a small bowl. Rub the ribs all over with the cut sides of the lemon and then the spice mixture and place in a large roasting pan or resealable plastic bag. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Meanwhile, soak the wood chips in water 1 hour, then prepare your grill for smoking, filling the smoker box with one-quarter each of the wood chips and apple.
• About 30 minutes before smoking, remove the ribs from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature. Meanwhile, combine the apple juice, Worcestershire sauce and vinegar in a small spray bottle. Shake to mix.
• Once the grill reaches 250 degrees F, lightly brush the grates with vegetable oil and place the ribs on the cooler side of the grill, meat-side up. Spray with the apple juice mixture. Close the grill and let smoke 1 hour.
• Replenish the smoker box with another one-quarter each of the wood chips and apple. Flip the ribs so they're meat-side down with the opposite edge of the racks closer to the smoker box. Spray with the apple juice mixture; close the grill and let smoke 1 more hour. Repeat this process every hour until the ribs are dark brown and tender and the meat starts to shrink away from the bones, about 2 more hours. Remove the ribs from the grill and let rest 5 minutes before slicing.
• How to prep your ribs:
• Position the ribs meat-side down. Insert a paring knife under the membrane that covers the back of the rack. Loosen the membrane with the knife. Grab the membrane with your fingers and peel off completely.

BAKED BBQ BABY BACK RIBS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
• Mix ancho chile powder, white sugar, brown sugar, salt, black pepper, cumin, dry mustard, cayenne pepper, and chipotle pepper in a small bowl until combined.
• Place ribs meat-side down on aluminum foil. Prick back of rib rack several times with a knife.
• Generously apply coating of dry rub to all sides of rib rack.
• With rib rack meat-side down, fold foil around it to create a tight seal. Transfer to sheet pan.
• Bake in preheated oven until tender and cooked through, about 2 hours. Remove and cool 15 minutes.
• Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Open foil, drain and discard any accumulated juices and fat. Brush barbeque sauce on all sides of rack.
• Place rack meat-side up and return to oven, leaving foil open. Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven, and brush another layer of barbeque sauce on meat-side only. Repeat baking and brushing with sauce 4 more times, for a total of 50 minutes baking time.
• Cut rack into individual rib segments and serve with more barbeque sauce.