When it comes to ribs, butchers can cut them so many ways that you can get lost in them. Short ribs, Flanken, Baby-back, Korean, St. Louis, Dino, the list seems endless. For my money, I tend to go with the biggest rack of ribs I can find! When it comes to Beef ribs, I like to buy the entire plate (rack) of short ribs and smoke them like traditional pork ribs. It's difficult to find a whole plate of beef ribs because butchers are cutting these racks horizontally, across the bones, into thin strips called "Korean" or "Flanken" ribs. I detest the very idea of these paper-thin ribs! They are often fried or stir-fried and they fly in the face of traditional BBQ, but.........
Recently a friend of mine found some very VERY thickly cross-cut beef ribs! Just look at them! The marbling is fantastic. Clearly we need to get these onto the smoker...
You Will Need:
- A full "plate" of beef short ribs, cross-cut into 2.5 inch slabs
- Yellow Mustard
- Your favorite hot-sauce
- Beef Rib Rub, equal parts of:
- Kosher Salt
- Coarse Ground Black Pepper
- Light Brown Sugar
- Smoked Paprika
- Chipotle Chili-Powder
- 1 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Cup Juice from a jar of candied or pickled Jalapenos
- Your favorite BBQ Sauce
First, we prep! There's a membrane on the back of a beef rib that should be removed. Lots of places leave the membrane on, I get it. It's extra work, especially if you're a restaurant that serves hundreds of them every day. BUT, It keeps your rub and the smoke flavor from penetrating the meat, and your belly can't digest so in my kitchen, it HAS TO GO! Just insert the point of your knife under it, grab it with a paper towel and strip it right off.
Next, we rub! Mix your mustard with your hot sauce and stir it together, then spread some on all sides of the ribs. Shake on a fairly generous amount of your rub. Set it aside while you tackle the other ribs.
Once you have each rib section slathered and rubbed, you'll want to take the time to wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap. This is one of my "secrets" that I always do while I leave the meat on the counter to come up to room temperature. It gives the spices in the rub a chance to mingle with the liquid in the mustard and make a "goo" that starts to penetrate the meat. Leave the plastic covered rib sections there to contemplate their future for a few hours while you pre-heat the pit.
Once the BBQ pit is pre-heated to about 250 degrees, lay the cross-cut sections out on the grate (don't forget to cut away the plastic)! Close the lid and walk away for 90 minutes. When 90 minutes is up, you should see the meat starting to slightly pull away from the rib bones. This is perfect, good things are happening!
Place the slabs into an aluminum pan and pour in the vinegar and Jalapeno juice! Don't be afraid to pour it right on top of the slabs. Cover the whole thing as tightly as you can, pinching the seams and edges. The liquid will simmer and create a flavorful steam that will aid in the cooking process. It will also create a bit of pressure that will help break down all of that chewy collagen. You'll be on your way to "Tender Town!" Close the lid, check your fire, and leave the foil pan in there for one hour.
Time to reveal the goodness! Open the lid on your aluminum pan and gaze upon what you have created! Gently move them back onto the rack in the grill and brush on your favorite BBQ sauce. We'll "set" the sauce by leaving them in the pit for another hour. I use a Cherry Bourbon BBQ sauce of my own creation... more on that, later.
Finally! After an hour, the sauce should be set, and it should darken a bit. I moved the slabs to a cutting board so I could slice between the bones to make bite-sized portions. Ok... maybe the "bites" are a bit over-sized? We can call them "Multi-bite-sized portions" if it makes you feel better, but aren't they just the cutest things??
Each one has a small bone "handle" to grab. They were absolutely incredibly delectable! They were super tender, delightfully sticky, full of "Big Beef" flavor, and a unique BBQ dish to enjoy!
