Sticky, spicy, sweet and smoky pork ribs

Embarking on a BBQ journey that stretches from the smoky realms of Kansas City to the spice and vinegar flavors of the Carolinas, one quickly realizes that the world of barbecue is diverse and somewhat confusing. Just understanding the terminology around BBQ can be enough to scare even the most experienced backyard cook away from trying to make delicious homemade ribs. While you may never get a pit boss from Memphis or Texas to agree on who has the best BBQ, you can become your own pit boss with a method we use for smoking pork ribs here at the Swiss Kitchen.

Choosing your meat

Pork: You will typically find two types of pork ribs, both cuts coming from the ribcage.

• Baby-back ribs are from the part of the rib connected to the backbone and are typically shorter than spare ribs. They may have a little bit of the tenderloin attached to them, which makes them more tender and typically more expensive.

• Spare ribs come from the part of the rib connected to the breastbone and typically have more meat in between the bones than baby-back ribs.

• St. Louis-style ribs are the same as spare ribs, except they have the rib tips removed. The rib tips are a flap of meat containing small bits of cartilage and bones.

Beef

• Back ribs are a similar cut to pork baby-back ribs and, like their pork cousin, may contain some of the tenderloin, which typically makes them the most expensive.

• Chuck short ribs come from the 1st through 5th rib of the cow and are commonly found in the market.

• Plate ribs, on the other hand, come from the last ribs of the cow and are preferred by many due to their fat marbling, which renders tremendous flavors when cooked slowly.

Method

• We start our ribs with a dry brine. Mix two parts brown sugar to two parts kosher salt and one part ground black pepper (For two ribs, this will measure roughly ¼ cup or 50 g of sugar, ¼ cup or 60g of Kosher salt, and 1 tablespoon or 7g of pepper). Generously coat both sides of the ribs and leave them uncovered in the fridge overnight.

• Counting backwards from when you want to serve your ribs, subtract 4 hours. For example, if you want to serve at noon, you need to start your ribs in the oven at 8 am. We want to render any connective tissue or fat in the meat, so the key is to cook low and slow. Preheat your oven to 300°F/150°C. On a parchment-lined baking sheet, place your ribs loosely wrapped in aluminum foil (Wrapping them too tightly will create too much steam, which can lead to tough meat, the exact thing we are trying to avoid!). Cook the ribs for 2 hours or until an instant-read thermometer registers 175°F/80°C.

• Start your smoker at least 30 minutes before you are ready to move your ribs from the oven to the smoker. Your smoker should read between 200-225°F/95-105°C. Remove the ribs from the oven and dispose of the foil covering. Place the ribs on the smoker and leave the lid closed unless you are checking the temperature of the ribs. The total smoke time should be around 2 hours, and when ready, the ribs should read 200°F/95°C on your instant-read thermometer. It is only necessary to turn the ribs once, about halfway through the smoke. Towards the last 15 minutes of the smoke, baste both sides of the ribs with our Jorat BBQ Sauce.

• Once your ribs reach an internal temperature of 200°F/95°C, place them on a cutting board to rest for approximately 15 minutes. Cut and serve with extra Jorat BBQ sauce on the side.