Ribs: Slow

Start with the dry rub. I had two different types of ribs to cook, one was already cured. If I was going to do this over again I would have avoided adding salt to the dry rub as there was enough in the meat to begin with.

Here's what I used for the dry rub:

• Black pepper
• Celtic sea salt - skip this if the ribs are already cured
• Garlic powder
• Cayenne pepper
• Onion salt
• Dried oregano
• Dried cumin seed
• Fresh thyme
• Fresh chives

To start with get rid of the membrane on the back of the ribs. This allows the flavours to penetrate into the meat. This was the first time I’d done this. The tip from bbqpitboys.com is to use some kitchen towel to grab the fatty membrane; it worked really well. Check out their videos to see how to do it.

After the dry rub is applied, the ribs go onto the grill opposite the coals for some slow, indirect heat. As usual a drip tray under the ribs filled with water keeps things moist inside and collects the fat that begins to drip from the ribs.

After about an hour of cooking, turning the ribs occasionally, I prepped the marinade for basting. I like my whiskey, but have never been a bourbon fan. Glad to put some of this bottle to a good use at last! I won’t repeat the recipe here; you can find the original recipe for Pepper Bourbon Sauce on their site.

It took a few minutes to melt the butter and get everything ready to go using the heat from the coals. Baste both sides of the ribs and continue to do so for about another hour.

The next tip is to use some tin foil as we call it over here (nobody calls it aluminium foil in Ireland!) to wrap the ribs in for the next phase of cooking. This step will allow them to be steamed with their own juices and a healthy dollop of the bourbon marinade.

Leave the ribs in the foil for about forty-five minutes to tenderise. I decided to roast a few vegetables alongside and began to add them round about now.

After unwrapping the ribs, resist the temptation to eat them right away. Best to give them another thirty to forty minutes, basting regularly. Enough time to get the vegetables just how you like them.

Great recipe and a nice way of slow cooking ribs. Next time I will try to avoid the already cured ribs as that extra level of saltiness was just a bit too much. I might have to buy another bottle of bourbon after all!