The rib recipe experiment last week on Chinese Spare Ribs was pretty awesome. I would like to say that I’m totally ribbed out and won’t be eating any more of them for at least a month. However, the fact of the matter is they were really, really good and I’d eat more tonight if I had them.
“Grilling will always add to the flavor. You can also finish all the oven-cooked ribs on the grill, and that would be my second choice.”
If you remember, I had a total of five half racks and I followed three recipes exactly. When I did the taste test, I cooked two of each recipe the same way so I could judge the flavor. After that initial batch, however, I used the same methods as the recipes indicated. In all, I used the four slightly different methods of cooking the ribs as used in the recipes plus one more.
All of the recipes but one called for cutting the ribs into individual pieces for cooking. I also cut them all into individual ribs instead of cooking off any as a rack. The main differences in the cooking methods were the temperature and whether or not water was used in the pan. Most of the recipes indicated that the ribs be cooked off at either 225 F or 350 F with some at both temperatures using water and some not. I originally found two recipes that boil the ribs first. I do know people who boil first and all I can say is, “No way.” You might get tender ribs, but I think you sacrifice on flavor.
The setup for all methods is the same. Place a wire rack over a sheet pan and either put water in the pan or not. Pretty simple. Lining the sheet pan with foil will help with cleanup if you don’t use water.
Grilling adds flavor
I haven’t mentioned a grill. All but one recipe used the oven to cook, with some using the broiler to finish. You can set up your grill to cook with indirect heat, which, if you have the time to do so and can do so safely, I would suggest you do. Grilling will always add to the flavor. You can also finish all the oven-cooked ribs on the grill, and that would be my second choice.
Without or without water?
These are my thoughts: first, the water when cooking low and slow, at 225 F, didn’t really do much except dilute the flavor a little. Low and slow cooking at 225 F with no water for at least 6 to 8 hours is the way to go, depending on how meaty the ribs are. Low and slow cooking gives the connective tissues time to break down so the ribs are tender, but still have a little bite to them.
At 350 F, the water did help a little more to tenderize and to prevent overcooking and over drying. But, again, I got more flavor without the water. Start checking the ribs after an hour and pay attention. Basting once in a while is a good idea, especially at the hotter setting. However, the winner of all the cooking methods was, hands down, low and slow with no water.
I know some of you like your ribs to fall off the bone so you can almost slurp the meat through a straw. If that’s what you like, use a deeper roasting pan with a rack. I like to stand the rack of ribs on end, using toothpicks to keep the racks separated. Use water in the pan, but keep it below the ribs. Cover the pan with foil and cook low and slow. Eight hours later, the meat will melt off the bones. Finish on the grill or under the broiler with a final basting to caramelize the outsides. Again, this last step is something you will probably want to do anytime you cook ribs low and slow.
There is one more way I tried that also came out great. I started with the oven preheated to 450 F. I placed the sheet pan with the ribs on the wire rack in the oven. After 10 to 15 minutes, I turned the oven down to 225 F. They took about one to two hours; the size will dictate the time. The high heat seared them right away and they were tenderer overall than cooking them at a straight 350 F. There was no need to finish them under the broiler or on the grill. Enjoy.
