Country Style Ribs

Country Style Western Ribs on my Traeger

Country Style Ribs, off the shoulder/loin area of the pig, are not really ribs; but they are fabulous when cooked correctly. It takes some care to smoke them to that fall apart tenderness that cannot be achieved if the cook is in a hurry. Been there . . .

Plan for five hours.

Ingredients:

3 - 5 lbs Country Style Ribs
2 C        BBQ sauce
1 C        Apple Juice, Beer, Regular Coke or Dr. Pepper
1/2 C     Vinegar
tsp         Paprika
tsp         Black ground pepper
tsp         Onion Powder
3 - 4 tbl Brown Sugar


Procedure:
1.  Smoke the meat for 30 - 45 minutes, hickory wood.
2.  Set temp to 225 degrees: cook about an hour, until the meat is 155 -160 degrees
     Blend the sauce ingredients, put on simmer until the next stage.
3.  Place the meat in a saucepan, pour the sauce in enough to cover the bottom of
     the pan, more is ok (good), foil and return to smoker
4.  Two plus hours, at 180 - 190 degrees, the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.
     Replace the meat to the grill, layer with remaining sauce on each side 5 - 7 mins.
5.  Place meat on a serving tray, foil, let rest for 5 - 10 mins.

These types of ribs are done at 165 degrees, but they aren't tender.  The higher temps will melt the collagen in the meat rendering perfection in the tenderness.

Enjoy

Bourbon-Glazed Ribs

The recipe is on page 69 of Smoke & Spice, the pre-mo smoken' cookbook of the age. Yesterday was my second attempt at this "smokin'" meal, and I think it came out like, "wow."

I didn't use the rub in the recipe, the one that calls for paprika and chili powder. I used Traeger's "Salmon Rub." Salmon rub on a slab of ribs? I licked my finger and touched it to the rub and rubbed it across my tongue. Yeah, it was good, real good. I checked out the Traeger site and found since they developed this rub, they have found it works on pork, beef, veggies and just about everything else. Next time I use this recipe, I'll use it again!

The mop is fun! 3/4 cup bourbon and 3/4 cup cider vinegar mopped on at 1 1/2 and 3 hours. What I like is the odor of the bourbon and way it sizzles when added to the meat.

In the past I have tried to use intuitive judgement as to how to manipulate the temps as Smoke & Spice always calls for 200 to 240 degrees, and Traeger recipes move from a few minutes on "smoke" (140 to 180 degrees), to starting on medium (225 to 300) or high (325 -450). I've decided to go with the Smoke & Spice temps until I know better.

What I really like about this recipe is the sauce: it calls for butter, vegetable oil, onions, bourbon, ketchup, cider vinegar, orange juice, maple syrup, molasses, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. The recipe is created for 3 slabs of ribs and that's probably close enough. Yesterday, for some odd reason, I was thinking last time it wasn't enough. Well, the reason is because rather than cook on low for "about 40 minutes" to thicken the mix, I cook it on low for about 4 hours, stirring frequently and getting it thick; like those bbq sauces you buy in the store.

At about 3 hours and 15 mins of smoking at 220 - 240 (as called for in Smoke & Spice) you apply the sauce at least once, maybe two or three times, until 4 hours. It carmelizes beautifully. I brushed the sauce on three times.

At 4 hours, I took the ribs off the smoker and into the kitchen where I let the meat rest for about 10 minutes before cutting the individual ribs and stacking them in a plate. Once stacked, I brushed on more of the sauce and had plenty left over.

Was it good? My oh my...it was simply, to die for.

Apple City Baby Back Ribs

Ok, so I have a little experience under my belt with the new Traeger Smoker. I've done ribs a few times and received rave reviews from family and friends. A few weeks ago, using a recipe from the Smoke & Spice cookbook, I put together one fine bunch of ribs called, "Apple City Baby Back Ribs."

The soak is made up of 1 1/2 cups of apple juice; the Rub has brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and dry mustard; and the mop contains 1 1/2 cup of apple cider or juice and 1/2 cup of cider vinegar.

Apple pellets light the fire and the smoke was heavenly to smell.

The ribs were, what can I say, marvelous. The apple brought out a flavor not many have tasted and it was worth all the effort.

All that being said, we agree the Bourbon-Glazed Spare Ribs are the BOMB!! Check the next post to find out more about them.