I like to think this recipe for ribs was the natural outcome of making porchetta. To make porchetta, a pork middle is deboned and seasoned with salt and pepper, fresh herbs, and fennel seeds. The belly is wrapped around the loin with the skin still attached and the whole roll is slowly roasted. But what of the ribs? They got the same seasoning and were taken home by the butcher. Now we have the convenience of just buying the ribs and starting from there.
1 rack of baby back or St. Louis cut spare ribs.
Remove the membrane from the ribs and salt both sides. Place the ribs on a rack (uncovered) and allow the salt to penetrate overnight. Rub the ribs with olive oil (best grade not necessary) and apply the following rib seasoning (adapted from Bruce Aidell’s “Complete Book of Pork”):
2.5 g Black pepper (1 t)
1.5 g Red pepper flakes (½ t)
1.3 g Fresh sage (½ T)
2.25 g Fennel seeds (2 t)
1.3 g Fresh rosemary (1 T)
1.5 g Paprika (½ t)
Cook on a grill or smoker with indirect heat at 120-150 C (250-300 F), with smoke from wood applied during the first hour. On a kettle grill, this will take 4-5 hours.
At about the third hour, the ribs will start to release moisture to the surface, and the collagen will be breaking down. When the ribs are tender and the rib meat is retracting from the bones, remove from the grill and allow to rest for 15-20 minutes.
After cutting into individual ribs, apply a vinaigrette of:
Olive oil
1 Garlic clove minced
1 g Rosemary minced (2 t)
1 Lemon juiced (2T)
Barbecue set up
Phil here. I asked Paul what his setup was for this cook. I know he used a Weber Kettle Charcoal Barbecue and that he cooked the meat by the indirect method – not directly over the coals. He said: “The ribs were cooked with a Minion-type process; I lit 12 charcoal briquettes and put them on top of 8 unlit ones. I added a handful of apple chips to provide smoke. Then every hour or so, I added 8 more briquettes.“
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