You don’t have to drive to the Carolinas or Memphis to enjoy the best Smoked Ribs. This recipe will allow you to make them wherever you are. The rib rub has some serious sweet heat – so be sure to have your favorite beverage nearby when you eat them.
Rain or Shine it’s time for ribs. Not just any ribs. My husband’s Smoked Ribs. You’re in luck because I am sharing his special recipe with you. Cooked right, they will more than likely be thebest smoked ribs you have ever eaten.
Why You Should Make Your Own Rib Rub
The advantage of making your own rub for Smoked Ribs is that you control the quantity of the individual ingredients that go into the mix. If you or someone you love has hypertension, you can always cut back on the salt. My husband’s rub has only one tablespoon of salt = 7200 mg of sodium.
According to the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs): Tolerable Upper Intake Levels chart, for most people the maximum amount of sodium we should consume each day is 2300 mg. (The American Heart Associationhas a good article about sodium if you would like to learn more.)
Now with the above information, you may think that there is too much sodium in the rub, but keep in mind that this rub will cover at least two slabs of ribs. Though they are fantastic, you really should not eat two slabs of ribs by yourself.
A quick look at other rubs, our recipe has at least half the sodium. Bobby Flay’s recipe calls for 2 tablespoons. A copycat recipe of Famous Dave’s Rib Rub calls for ¼ cup of salt – that is 4 tablespoons. Are you surprised at how much sodium they have?
Ingredients
To make the best ribs at home, you need the following:
4slabs of pork ribs
Mountain Dew
¾cupbrown sugar
2TablespoonsPaprika
1Tablespoonblack pepper
1 ½teaspoonsalt
1Tablespoongarlic powder
1Tablespoononion powder
1Tablespoon + 1 ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1bottle of Sweet Baby Ray’s Original BBQ Sauce
Wood chips
Charcoal
Instructions
To make these smoked pork ribs, you actually get started the day/night before.
The night before you plan on smoking, the first step that you need to do is to remove the thin membrane (it looks like silver skin) from the underside of the ribs. Soak the ribs in Mountain Dew overnight in the refrigerator in a large container. (I buy JUMBO ZipLock bags to do this.) Soak wood chips in water.
Though you can make the dry rub the day that you smoke the ribs, I recommend that you go ahead and prepare it the night before. It’s one more way to help ensure that you have all of your ingredients.
The Day of Cooking: Drain the Mountain Dew from the ribs. Combine the spices and rub over the ribs and let them sit in the refrigerator for a few hours.
Heat coals in the smoker. Once it is at the ideal range, place the ribs in the smoker on the top rack. (We place chicken drumettes on the bottom rack to get the most use out of the charcoal.)
Smoke the ribs for approximately 4 hours. During the last half hour, generously apply Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce. Check to ensure that the internal temperature reaches 165° Fahrenheit.
When the ribs have finished cooking, remove them and let them cool for about 10 minutes before cutting. We like to place the ribs on a rimmed baking sheet to make transporting them from the smoker to the kitchen easier. It also helps contain the barbecue sauce and minimize the mess.
Here are some dessert recipes that pair well with these sweet ribs:
Homemade Banana Pudding
Old Fashioned Tea Cakes
Key Lime Pie
Paula Deen’s Ooey Gooey Butter Cake (Clone)
Small Batch Lemon Cupcakes
The Best Smoked Rib Recipe
Forget Memphis and St. Louis. You can enjoy the best ribs AT HOME with this recipe. The rib rub has some serious sweet heat – so be sure to have your favorite beverage nearby when you eat them.
4.71 from 27 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Dishes
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 4 hourshours
Total Time: 4 hourshours20 minutesminutes
Servings: 4slabs
Calories: 826kcal
Author: Lynda – Southern Kissed
Ingredients
4slabspork ribs
Mountain Dew
¾cupsbrown sugar
2tablespoonsPaprika
1tablespoonblack pepper
1 ½teaspoonsalt
1Tablespoongarlic powder
1Tablespoononion powder
1Tablespooncayenne pepper+ 1 ½ tsp
1bottleSweet Baby Ray’s Original BBQ Sauce
Wood chips
Charcoal
Instructions
Night Before: Remove membrane from underside of ribs. Soak ribs in Mountain Dew overnight in refrigerator. Soak wood chips in water.
Day of Cooking: Drain the Mountain Dew from the ribs. Combine spices and rub over ribs and let sit in refrigerator for a few hours.
Heat coals in smoker. Once at ideal range, place ribs in smoker on top rack. (We placed chicken drumettes on bottom rack to get the most use out of the charcoal.)
Smoke for approximately 4 hours. During the last half hour, generously apply Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce. Check to ensure that the internal temperature of ribs is 165° Fahrenheit before removing from the smoker.
One advocates smoking ribs using the 3 2 1 method. This low-and-slow ribs method requires a smoking temperature of 225° F. The ribs are smoked at this temperature for three hours, tenderized in a wrap for two hours, and then finished, unwrapped, for one hour. Voila!
I like to cook with a water pan in a pellet grill or offset, which is a personal preference. We also use a spritz while the 3-2-1 ribs are smoking. The added moisture to the cooking chamber really helps with color on the smoked ribs and keeping the texture moist.
If you want your ribs to be more flavorful and juicy, boiling them will render out a lot of the fat. This will also cause the natural juices of the ribs to release into the boil.
Soaking meats in a solution of water or other liquids, salt and sugar leads to incredibly moist cooked meats and poultry. The process, called brining, requires advanced preparation, but is usually worth the wait. Brining these ribs overnight makes them extra moist, but the step can be eliminated if time is short.
Place ribs bone-side down in smoker at 225 F /110 C and cook for three hours. Remove ribs from the smoker and wrap tightly in aluminum foil to form an airtight seal. Return to the smoker bone-side up and smoke for two hours. Unwrap the ribs and return to the smoker bone-side down for one more hour.
Smoke your ribs low and slow - Smoking your ribs at a low temperature (around 225-250 degrees) and for a longer time (around 4-6 hours) will help to tenderize the meat and infuse it with smoke flavor. Use the right wood - Different woods will give your ribs a different flavor.
Faster Cooking Time: Wrapping the ribs in foil helps to trap in moisture, which can result in a faster cooking time compared to smoking the ribs without foil. This is because the steam generated by the moisture helps to cook the meat more evenly and quickly.
Remove the ribs from the refrigerator about 1 hour before you are going to smoke them. They will be closer to room temperature by cooking time. 7. Heat your smoker to 250 degrees F.
Essentially, the vinegar solution "cleanses" the meat and makes the flavors shine through without any "gamey" flavor. According to Elizabeth, you don't need a charcoal grill to achieve deliciously-barbequed ribs.
The best time to spritz your meat while smoking is just after the bark has formed. The bark on meat generally forms about 1:30 to 2 hours into your cook. It is important to spritz the meat every half hour to 45 minutes to prevent it from drying out.
Place the racks of ribs in the refrigerator overnight to let the dry rub flavors penetrate the meat. If you can't rub the ribs the night before, add the rub at least 1-2 hours prior to smoking. Smoking ribs is rather easy once you understand the basic formula.
I think the best rib rubs start with sugar as a base. Pork and sweet were just made to go together. From there, you'll see recipes with salt and pepper plus a mix of things that are custom to each pitmaster. I like to add in smoked paprika for a boost of wood-fired flavor as well as a gorgeous red color that pops.
Wrapping the meat in foil will limit the amount of smoke on the surface of the meat thus yielding a better color and flavor on the final product. It also adds moisture and speeds up cooking time. Wrapping should be done about half way through the cooking process or when internal meat temp is 150-160 degrees.
You can coat the ribs with olive oil or mustard first to help it stick. Then, use your hands to spread it evenly on the surface of the ribs. The thick coating of the rub will keep the meat moist and tender while giving it a flavorful exterior.
Say it with me: wrap baby backs in foil after 2 hours, spares after 3 hours, let them cook for 2 hours, then unwrap and cook for 1 more hour. This makes ribs that are juicy. They're tender.
Introduction: My name is Chrissy Homenick, I am a tender, funny, determined, tender, glorious, fancy, enthusiastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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