Ribs for my father..

[DennisLinkletter]

Looking out at my father's Komodo, I knew I could not sit just there, had to cook.. Went out and grabbed the biggest, fattest baby backs I've ever seen from a premium German butcher. The meat was much thicker and wider than I'd ever seen... This had been one happy piggy. They were about 16-17" long and from a pig much larger than what I'm accustomed to buying in Islamic (read pig-less) Indonesia.

They were priced very differently too.. The grand total was $42.68 for the two racks, yeowch! $7.99 a lb. The two racks totaled 5.3 lbs or 2.65 lbs each.

I made up a basic brine (1/2x3), I needed a bit more to cover so I dissolved 3/4 cup coarse Kosher salt, 3/4 cup brown sugar in hot water with big squirt maple syrup. Then added ice cubes to cool and make up the full 3/4 of a gallon (3/4x3). I also added a couple table spoons of rub that had a little heat. Pulled the membranes off with paper towels and tossed them zip lock bagged in the brine in the fridge from about 8:00am to 1:20pm. I rinsed them off and dried them before slathering them with regular French's mustard and Pappy's rub, thicker on top than on the bottom.

At 1:30 I then tossed the cold ribs into the pre-heated (body fully heat soaked) cooker which read about 280º dome (TelTru) and 255º grill on top of tin foil (cheapo Maveric)

As they were a bit longer than the drip pan was wide so I smunched them together a bit to about 15" but thicker of course. I had added a big handful of apple wood chips which I don't like as they burn so quickly so I also made up a tin foil pouch of chips and threw them in with the holes down.

Four hours later I took my first peek and bathed them apple juice. At five hours I peeked again and bathed them apple juice with maple syrup. The extra sugar starts to build a glaze.

I grab the ribs with big tongs about 2/3rds across and give them a big bounce to see how they move. I'm looking for the meat to tear. This happened at about 6 hours and I needed to push them against the grill to get them to tear as they were so thick,

probably cause I smunched them together.

Pulled the out and wrapped them in tin foil for 10 minutes to rest, then cut them so there was full meat left and right by removing every other bone.

The meat still stuck to the bone but pulled off clean and was tender and juicy. The apple smoke was present but not overpowering, as was the rub with just a hint of maple sweetness.

They were the home run I was hoping for and the four of us ate them all..

I usually cook twice a week but can't remember it all coming together as well as these ribs.

Every bite was a special treat with everyone grinning talking about how good they were.

The Supreme front gas draft door with the airflow on the left has been standard for a while now.

I'll stay whole but will always have a big hole in my heart. Thank you all for your kind and thoughtful posts during this tough time.

[primeats]

Hey!!! These look like the ribs I custom cut! The price even for this neighborhood is a bit high(I'm at 7.29, so not that much different). Spent most of the day at the shop,so couldn't bbq any for this evening, dang!Good work Dennis, I would have expected no less from you.

[tcoliver]

They look awesome Dennis. Hope you are hanging in there. We are thinking of you.

[trish]

Wow....I could almost taste those....spectacular. Ribs are one of my dads' favorites as well. I have never brined ribs before, but I will have to try that.

He will forever be in your heart no doubt.

[Saucier]

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wuz tri ing 2 tipe, butt da drool frommm lokin et dem ribz haz damnged mi kee bored

[Sanny]

Oh, Saucy! We need to get you a bib for typing in.

[Fetzervalve]

Okay, who's gonna tell him ya don't need no basting or foil in a KK?

[trish]

He BBQs bugs man....who wants to discuss tin foil. Those ribs looked so good I'm not going to question technique.

Dennis....if you get a chance, ask the butcher if that was Berkshire Pork, or one of the 'boutique' porks.. http://berkshirembonline.com/ ... http://www.boston.com/ae/food/articles/ ... of_flavor/ . Some of these non-production type porks are gaining a lot of poularity, but they are a little pricey.

Primeats....i'm sure you are familiar with what I am talking about. I saw an article that some of the trendy restaurants are starting to include more pork on their menu from these lines. Supposed to be more like old time pork....bigger and not as lean I think.

[primeats]

Berkshire pork is a very strong tasting breed of swine, some call it the Kobe style of pork or black pork. I personally don't care much for it, I have however tried another breed called Duroc, very similar in that it has a little more fat distribution, but not as pungent of a flavor. We have been selling it on a limited basis. Lately I have been using a product that is the result of a small co-op of regional farmers that practice more sustainable husbandry practices, and don't feed the animals junk, including hormones ,growth stimulants(used to be called high octane feed)or regular subtheraputic antibiotics. not that I'm a big "greeny" but it just tastes better. The company is called Prairie Grove Farms, and farms are located in Illinois and Iowa.

[DennisLinkletter]

Ahh the confusion.. needs clarification!

Okay' date=' who's gonna tell him ya don't need no basting or foil in a KK? [/quote']

First of all the basting was to add my apple/maple glaze.. Gives them just a hint of maple and a shiny crust on the bark. The sugar also burns a bit and darkens things up a bit.

The foil was after it was pulled off and resting.. NOT in the KOmodo..

He BBQs bugs man....who wants to discuss tin foil. Those ribs looked so good I'm not going to question technique.

Dennis....if you get a chance, ask the butcher if that was Berkshire Pork, or one of the 'boutique' porks..

I'll be going back later this week hopefully and I'll ask.