Barbecue - Ribs

Barbecue ribs - that most American, and most succulent of dishes - should not be cooked quickly over a high heat but indirectly over low, slow heat.

To avoid making charred meat sticks, the simplest system is to precook the ribs to speed up the process, which has the beneficial effect of increasing the tenderness of the meat. This means you need to either boil the ribs for about thirty minutes or place them in a slow cooker for at least two hours - once you are ready to grill, season the ribs and cook them indirectly until ready. The disadvantage of this method is that the ribs will not absorb the flavour of the smoke as they will already be part-cooked and sometimes the flavour of the meat. is impaired by boiling.

Alternatively you can oven roast the ribs for several hours at a temperature of between 200 and 225 degrees F. The best way to precook ribs, if you have the opportunity is on a barbecue smoker at a low temperature for several hours as this will render them very tender.

It is important to avoid adding barbecue sauce to ribs too early in the cooking process. Most barbecue sauces, whether commercial or homemade, contain some kind of sugar which causes meat to burn, even meat not cooked over direct heat. Instead, try using a good rub before you grill and maybe a barbecue sauce after the grilling is done. If you really insist on using a sauce, try a thin barbecue sauce (mainly vinegar or water, without tomatoes which are a rich sauce of fructose or fruit sugar) brushed on during grilling to help maintain moisture and to add flavour. If you want to buy such a sauce you'll find it is usually called a barbecue mop or barbecue baste. Barbecue ribs photograph by mteson, used under a creative commons attribution licence.

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