When you come to the table with the ribs still piping hot, make sure you have an appetite. And be prepared to get your hands (and your shirt) all dirty. There’s no way to eat barbequed spare ribs without getting the sauce all over you. That’s how people have enjoyed and that’s how it shall remain.
Eating spare ribs like this makes sense. Can you imagine using a fork to wrestle the meat out of the bone? You’d look quite ridiculous doing it. When you’re at home and having ribs, feel free to use your hands. You’re about to enjoy a rustic meal so eat like the rustics do – with bare hands, informal and watching everyone do the same thing.
There’s something about barbequed meats that bring together people and good conversation. When I make this, I always invite some of our friends over. They’d bring beer or a side dish and we’d make a small party out of the afternoon. It helps that this recipe is basic-to-basics simple. A lot of the ingredients you already have on your kitchen cupboards. What I like to do is source the meat from a butcher because they know the prime cuts for barbeque. Here’s an advice: Make sure your butcher knows what the meat is for.
Having this recipe is reminiscent of tailgating parties where everyone is just hungry for a big meal. With beer to flush it all down, nothing can go wrong.
Ingredients
- 4 pounds pork spareribs
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup rum
- 1/2 cup chili sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 dash ground black pepper
Description
- Cut the meat into bite-sized portions ahead of time and thaw if you just took it out of the freezer.
- Then preheat your oven to 350°F (about 175°C).
- Wrap the meat into a foil. It’s best to double wrap it in this case and bake the meat for an hour and a half. Take it out and drain the fluids. (I keep this in the freezer to use in a soup dish later on. And then place the ribs on a roasting pan.
- In a large bowl, mix on the dry ingredients first: dry mustard, brown sugar and pepper. Next, add all the wet ingredients such as ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and rum. Give that a little mix. Lastly, add the crushed garlic and chili sauce. Coat the meat generously with this sauce and marinate at room temperature for an hour. You can also refrigerate this overnight.
- Prepare your grill and preheat. Set the proper temperature or about medium heat. Next set your grates in position, about 4 inches away from the heat source.
- Brush grill grate with oil so the meat doesn’t stick on it. Place the ribs and cook for about 30 minutes on each side. Baste it with the marinate sauce to prevent it from drying out. Serve immediately after taking it out from the grill.