New Year’s Day was a bit grim and damp, and that’s not a great start to a whole new year. It made me feel a bit down, especially since I couldn’t decide what to make for supper.
My husband kindly offered to make his special dry rub barbequed ribs. I leaped at the opportunity and whisked him off to the nearest grocery store to purchase a pack of ribs. This is a meal that cannot be made in a hurry as it takes about 4 hours of slow cooking…nice for the weekend or holidays.
He went out and fired up the barbeque. Then I watched:
First, he trimmed off the excess fat and membrane:
Then he combined the following:
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon lemon pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt (or seasoning salt)
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 6 tablespoons brown sugar
He rubbed the spices together to break up any lumps in the sugar, then spread it over the ribs:
He then put together a pouch of wet and dry hickory wood chips, folded it over and pierced it on both sides by repeatedly stabbing it with a fork.
Next he toddled out to the barbeque and placed them both on the racks, using indirect heat to avoid flare-ups. Â Temperature was about 265-280F. After a couple of hours, it looked like this:
In the meantime, I prepared fried rice and spinach salad to serve with it.
The spinach salad consisted of:
- spinach (naturally)
- sliced mushrooms
- chopped hard-boiled egg
- fried, crumbled bacon
- grape or cherry tomatoes
- cheese dressing (made with a couple tablespoons of mayonnaise, four tablespoons sour cream, a dash of lemon juice, salt, pepper, about 2/3 cup grated cheddar and just enough milk to thin it enough to dribble over the salad)
At the end of four hours, dinner was served:
Bon appétit!
(The ribs can be cooked on a rack placed on a large cookie sheet in the oven. Do NOT use a pouch of wood chips in the oven, however. Bake at 275F for about 4-5 hours)