Life Is...Succulent (so are these Baby Back Ribs!!)

[Side note:  I told you I had some posts waiting to be published, so here is one from Memorial Day -- the day our big walnut tree in the backyard blew over from the storm that came through late in the afternoon.  Enjoy!]

Speaking of downed tree ...

Walnut Tree Blown Over and Pulled Up By The Roots and All!

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Life is what you make it.  This year on Monday, Memorial Day, I decided to make it ... succulent.  I am talking Slow Roasted Baby Back Ribs with a Bourbon Glaze.  My mouth starts to water every time I think about it.

This is not a recipe that you can throw together and eat an hour later.  We are talking a few hours here.  It is, however, easy to make, but patience has to be your virtue and I guarantee you the pay off is well worth it.

Dry Rub on the Ribs

At 7:00 a.m. I got the meat out of the refrigerator -- two whole slabs of pork baby back ribs -- rinsed them off, patted them dry and laid them each out on on a jelly roll pan that I had placed a long strip of aluminum foil on (long enough to have about two inches left on each end.  Next I began to put together the dry rub.  This is simple and easy to do.  Five minutes max and you are generously sprinkling it over one side, patting the dry rub in and turning each over to do the same on the other side.  Once the dry rub is on, I covered the top of each with aluminum foil and placed them in the refrigerator (on their pans) to rest and soak in the dry rub.

Putting on the braising liquid

Since I had lots of work to do outside, making the time go by in between pampering the ribs, was no problem.  

I pre-heated the oven to 250 degrees and started mixing up the braising liquid.  An hour later, I took the ribs out of the refrigerator and placed it on the counter.  I unfolded the top of the foil to expose the long slab of ribs.  Next, I took the braising liquid and poured half over each slab, carefully lifting up the ribs from the foil while doing it so that some went underneath the ribs, too.  Once this was done, I prudently folded up the foil to make packets to keep the liquid in and placed them in the oven to slow-roast for 2-1/2 hours.

Coming out of the oven after a slow roast and ready for the grill

I went back outside and tended to my gardens and planted some pots with annuals.  Time flew by and before I knew it, it was just about time to take the ribs out of the oven.  I went inside and washed up and started mixing up my bourbon glaze.  Once completed and my 2-1/2 hours of slow roast time were up, I took the ribs out of the oven and placed them on another pan.  I decided to cut each slab into two sections which was just easier to handle when placing on the grill, etc.  They already smelled delicious.  Now they needed a little extra special touch.

Putting them on the grill

Off to the grill we went.  I fired up my gas grill, lighting my front and back burners on a low to medium heat.  Next I took my brush and started swabbing the glaze on one side (a spoon can be used just as easily).  Once I had one side done on all, I placed each on the center part of the grill rack, glazed side down, and begin swabbing the top side.  I closed the grill and let them grill for a good 7-8 minutes, then turned them over to let the other side grill.

5-Cheese Creamy Garlic Baby Red Potatoes

In the meantime, I set the table, took out of the oven my 5-cheese creamy garlic baby red potatoes that had been baking for a couple hours to let them rest, grabbed my cut up fruit and a tortellini salad leftover from Sunday, some dinner rolls and everything was ready to go by the time I went out to take the ribs off the grill.  They had just the right grilled touch to them and I couldn't wait to get to it.  By the time I took them inside and let them rest for about 5 minutes, we were ready to plunge in.

Ready to come off the grill and into our mouths!!!

And believe me, these ribs did not disappoint.  They had just a nice tinge of of sweetness and spiciness.  My hubby does not go for spicy, and these are not.  Now, if you wanted to, you could definitely switch this a little bit and go for more of a barbecued flavor instead of the bourbon glaze.  Either way, these tender ribs are ready to be eaten however you want to serve them up.

I have included the recipe below, which is a combination of a few different recipes I found, all put together to my likes.  Enjoy!! 

Slow Roasted Baby Back Ribs with a Bourbon Glaze

2 whole slabs pork baby back ribs

DRY RUB:

8 T light brown sugar

3 T kosher salt

1 T chili powder

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp Caribbean Jerk Seasoning (if you don’t have–use 1 extra tsp chili powder)

1/2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning

1/2 tsp ground thyme

1/2 tsp onion powder

BRAISING LIQUID:

1 cup white wine

2 T white wine vinegar

2 T Worcestershire sauce

1 T honey

2 cloves garlic, chopped

BOURBON GLAZE:

8 T honey

1/4 cup bourbon

2 tsp white wine vinegar

1 T Dijon mustard

1-1/2 T molasses

1-1/2 tsp soy sauce

1-1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

In a bowl, combine all dry ingredients and mix well. Place each slab of baby back ribs on a piece of aluminum foil. Sprinkle each side generously with the dry rub. Pat the dry rub into the meat. Refrigerate the ribs for a minimum of 1 hour. In a microwavable container, combine all ingredients for the braising liquid. Microwave on high for 1 minute. 

Place the ribs on a baking sheet. Open one end of the foil on each slab and pour half of the braising liquid into each foil packet. Tilt the baking sheet in order to equally distribute the braising liquid. Fold up the aluminum foil around the ribs. Braise the ribs in the oven for 2 1/2 hours. Take out of oven after 2-1/2 hours and place on grill. Brush with bourbon glaze on both sides. Turn once to grill each side for total of 10-15 minutes.