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I just came home with from the grocery store with 15# of pork spare ribs. They were on a great sale, and we have family coming, and I thought it would be great to grill some ribs.
But I've never grilled ribs, and think I bought the wrong kind anyway. What I intended to get was baby back ribs, but having never bought them, I didn't notice that this huge package was of SPARE ribs.
I've been reading about how to make ribs, and found directions to roast them low and slow, and then grill them with the sauce. Do you think that'll produce something edible, with these big ol hunks of meat???

I often find that grilling the larger pork spare ribs requires parboiling them to make them tender and to have the meat just falling off the bone after grilling.
In a big pot - like a lobster pot, parboil them for about 30 min and then put them in a big tub or roasting pan, pour your favorite BBQ sauce all over them to marinate and brush some more on when they are grilling - if they were sold to you as full sides of ribs you should use a big knife and maybe a cleaver to cut them into individual ribs between the rib bones before you cook them.
Good luck - they are a meaty tasty treat if you get them tender 1st.

I don't know a lot about pork, I didn't eat or cook it until well into my 30s, but I believe there is connective tissue between the ribs and this is tough. The tissue breaks down with long, slow cooking, making the rib meat more tender.

My first few attempts at cooking ribs were a total loss.

When I make ribs, I always cook them in the oven (plain or I suppose you could use a rub) and then finish on the grill. I wait to sauce then until right before I take them off the grill. If the grill is too hot, the sauce may burn.

Mornin Minde--

First of all you're making me hungry! I love this recipe, if you have the time give it a try. The Neelys are experts on ribs and we used this recipe last summer. The ribs literally fell off the bone, they were so tender. Good luck!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/neel ... index.html

Thanks! I'm reassured by your responses! When I noticed that they were spare ribs, my mind went to those Chinese restaurant ribs, and I was aiming for BBQ! These slabs are almost 2 feet long (2 of them), so there's no way I'll have room in the crock pot, though I've done that before with "country style" ribs. They're also too big to fit them all on our grill.

I think I'm going to use the Neely's rub recipe with some garlic, and refrigerate, then oven roast and grill finish.

I'll have hot dogs or something on hand as back up, in case they're awful. It's Blaine's family that's coming, from S.C. If you're going to mess up dinner for a crowd, this is the crowd to do it with. Good people !

mindehankins wrote: I think I'm going to use the Neely's rub recipe with some garlic, and refrigerate, then oven roast and grill finish.

I think you will have good results. I have tried just cooking ribs on the grill but I can't seem to keep a consistant low temp so I gave up and do them in the oven first.

Minde,

I find ribs turn out more tender if you remove the membrane before grilling. Using a rub is also a good idea. I apply the rub and then coat with a thin layer of prepared mustard. This makes a nice coating and keeps the rub from disappearing. You will not taste the mustard in the finished product.Cooking low & slow is always good advice for ribs. I prefer to not add the BBQ sauce while cooking but like to serve a few different kinds on the side for my guest to pick their own favorite.

Good luck!

AH

If your not sure you could always throw them in a crock pot with a jar of your favorite BBQ sauce, let them simmer for about 6 hour then drain that sauce with all the fat and pour on another bottle of fresh sauce, let that simmer on low for another hour - YUM, fall of the bone perfection every time

Im going to pick up some ribs now!

I season them good with rub/garlic...wrap them in foil and put them in the oven on 200 for about six hours and then throw them on the grill to crisp them up...throw barb-q sauce on them....delish...I just made some last weekend....

I did some on monday I smoked them for 5 hours then rapped them in foil with some apple juice put then back on the smoker for 2 hours but without smoke just heat then pulled them out of the foil sauced them and put back on the smoker for 1 hour with smoke.

You didn't buy the wrong kind, just a different kind

Spare ribs are less expensive than back ribs, but they are still good and honestly most people don't even know the difference.

Spare ribs and back ribs are from the same ribs, just different parts.

Here's a visual:



#4 in the picture, loin meat, is pork chops, which can be bone-in and include a rib or boneless and have the rib-bone removed.

15 pounds of ribs will definitely not fit in my crockpot, but that's how I've done "country style" ribs before. I don't trust my grill at holding a low temp, and 15# won't fit there either. I like the foil in the oven idea...they WILL fit in the oven!

Teresa Rae, thank you very much. That's a really easy diagram. Where do "country style" ribs come from? There's probably a joke in there, but I'm curious.

There seems to be an expert (or three) on every topic, in this forum! How cool!

Minde,
I use a large roasting pan with cookie cooling racks on the bottom..season the ribs with your favorite seasons..(Mayzye's meat rub).. pour a bottle of beer in the pan with an equal amount of water.
Cover with aluminum foil and make a tight tomb of it.
Put on upper rack on grill 2 of 3 burners on.
cook nice and slow for 2 1/2 hours.
meat will fall of the bone..
finish on lower grill with your favorite BBQ sauce (Dinosaur BBQ)
fool proof recipe..

Scoob

mindehankins wrote: Teresa Rae, thank you very much. That's a really easy diagram. Where do "country style" ribs come from? There's probably a joke in there, but I'm curious.

There seems to be an expert (or three) on every topic, in this forum! How cool!

Look at the second picture above, #5 shows you where country style ribs come from on the animal.

I'm a meat scientist so I'd better be able to answer this types of questions

Thank you again. I see it.