To kick off our Pork Week we’re having Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Taylor Spronk show us how easy it is to cook up some smoked ribs.

Spronk Family Ribs

Ingredients

Ribs – Spareribs or Baby back*

Yellow mustard

KC Rub

• 1 cup brown sugar
• ½ cup paprika
• 2 ½ T black pepper
• 2 ½ T salt
• 1 ½ T chili powder
• 1 ½ T garlic powder
• 1 ½ T onion powder
• 1-2 t cayenne

BBQ sauce (whatever your preference)

*Spareribs vs baby back ribs:Spareribs are the bottom end of the whole rib. They have some cartilage in them and lay flatter than baby backs, and you must pick around more than just a single bone to eat them. They’re generally lower cost than baby backs. Baby backs are the top 3-4” that would ride at the top (back) of the pig. Baby backs are generally more sought after, meatier, and expensive. I like both and don’t really think it matters. They cook the same.

Method

Lots of people are intimidated by ribs, but they’re not difficult. The guys that want you to think they’re hard are just inflating their own master smoker status. The entire reason I love barbeque is because the swag factor is HUGE—if you don’t have ingredients on hand, who cares? Use something else! If your fire drops too low for a while, who cares! Have another drink and increase cooking time. Smoker got too hot? Who cares! Get the fire under control, add some liquid back by shifting from a dry BBQ to a mop BBQ, or just spray some fruit juice on your meat. It LITERALLY doesn’t matter.

I’d call this our family’s rib recipe because it’s what we’ve been using and modifying for 20+ years, but its basis is honestly the Kansas City rub recipe from Smoke & Spice, and it comes up a dozen times when you Google KC rub.

 I’m doing it “by the book”, we’ll work backwards from when we want to eat and plan from there:

You’re going to have your ribs on the smoker at 225*F for 3 hours plus minus 30 minutes. Light your smoker 30 minutes before putting ribs on so that it’s up to temp. If serve time is 6:00PM, light your smoker at 2:00PM and load it at 2:30PM.

We want to dress (rub) ribs 6-18 hours prior to smoking them (whatever works best in your schedule, 12 is probably optimum). I’d be lying if I said I’ve never dressed ribs immediately before smoking. So, we’re dressing these ribs around 10PM the night before or 8AM day of.

DRESSING (“Dusting”, “Rubbing”)

Get your ribs out, your rub and some mustard. I like cheap easy French’s yellow mustard. Squirt a line of mustard across the top side of the ribs (curve “up”) and slather it in by hand. The vinegar in the mustard will help tenderize the meat, and the paste helps rub stick to the ribs.

“Dust” your ribs with your favorite rub. You can sprinkle it on by hand or use a flour sifter to fine out the clumps of brown sugar that invariably form. Heavy rub (can’t really see meat anymore) will melt the sugars and caramelize into a nice “bark” if you will, but a lighter rub can let the meat and smoke flavor therein shine. Totally up to the chef or his audience. I just do the top side.

Lightly cover your dusted ribs and refrigerate overnight. They can go straight from the fridge to the smoker the next day.

SMOKING

Light your smoker well in advance. We’re using wood and time to add smoke flavor to the meat. Wood choices are vast. As an example, Apple, Cherry, Hickory, Mesquite… the list goes on. (Fruit woods are milder and sweeter, savory woods are more forward). Experiment and find what you like.

Being rushed isn’t any fun. We’re this far in, the wood or propane or pellets won’t break the bank. Most of my smokers take about a half hour to reach temp, so if I want a 3-hour cook time plus a half hour fudge room, I light 4 hours in advance.

Once your smoker is at temperature (225F), put the ribs on. There’s not much to do after that besides monitor temperature.

Place ribs on the smoker 3.5 hours prior to serving. We’re hoping to smoke ribs for 3 hours and leave a half hour for wiggle room. Set them up and forget them. Tend your fire or our pellet box to maintain 225F.

Leave them alone if you like a tender rib that really has a “dry rub” feel.

Spray apple juice or other fruit juice once or twice an hour if you want a stickier rib and are worried about dryness.

Toss a mop or sauce of your choice on in the last hour if you like sloppy ribs.

Don’t peek every ten minutes. Let the smoker do its thing.

I don’t use temperature to determine if ribs are done. They will darken and sweat noticeably in the last hour, and if you pick the rack up, they will sag (“frown”) noticeably. If you manage 225F for 3 hours they’re going to be done. Experiment by smoking longer or shorter to find the “mouth feel” you like. If I had to guess, they’re probably going to be around 200F when they’re done.

I like to cut the ribs from the underside as it’s easier to see and avoid the bone.

Grab a drink and enjoy!