Plants, Pitties, and Power Foods

Summer is here and grilling is all around us. Everyone has a preference on the type, preparation, seasonings, and sauces for their ribs. Here is my preference – I love me some baby back ribs. Preparation is another big step – I use a fork and peel off the back of the skin that is attached to the back of the ribs to allow any spices, smoke, etc penetrate the back of the ribs and into the meat. Sometimes its super easy, other times its a chore. Then I rub them down with a little extra virgin olive oil, and use a dry MSG free seasoning, usually McCormicks Montreal Seasoning but sometimes I create my own from scratch (garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, salt, pepper, minced garlic). I rub the ribs down with this dry rub after the olive oil and make sure I get both the meat section and now peeled rib sections real good. I use a charcoal grill but not for the entire process….only the last part of crusting the ribs and providing with a smokey flavor. I place the ribs (typically 2) on a baking sheet with a grate to raise it up from the bottom of the baking sheet, ribs down, meat side up. Cover in foil fairly well. It doesn’t have to be air tight but needs to protect the meat from the oven. I set my oven to 275 degrees and bake them for around 2 hours. The foil is there to help keep the moisture in the meat while cooking yet the grate is helpful so the rib ends don’t just soak in the juices and provide heat and slight air flow all the way around the meat. About 30 minutes before the ribs are done, start the charcoal grill. Get it nice and hot, between 300-350 degrees is perfect. Make sure the coals are evenly dispersed as this will affect the char on the ribs when they go to the grill. After about 2 hours, I pull the ribs from the oven. At this point, they should technically be fully cooked. Uncover and lather in GF BBQ sauce. I have come to the realization that I like more sauce on the ribs because it helps to give the char on the meat than skimping but personal preference. Lathered ribs go on the grill, I usually start with meat side up/bone side down, however I don’t know that there is really a perfect or correct way to start. Charcoal grill is now set to only half airflow so they don’t just burn up and leave on for 7-12 minutes, then flip. At this point I close all airflow so the meat side down doesn’t just burn up. Another 7-12 minutes or until you get a nice char on the ribs. Pull from the grill and let rest for a few minutes. Ribs should fall apart when trying to cut. Enjoy!! Some of the best summer meat!