Purists must have charcoal to burn. In an ideal world, all ribs would be slow-smoked
into another dimension. But there’s a reason so many smart
cooks take shortcuts. Ribs are very adaptable. As long as you wind
up with smoke, you can cheat on the fire. The quick secret of ribs with that singular contrast between sweet and smoky, crusty and tender is to tackle them in two stages: precooking with plenty of seasonings, followed by only the briefest touchdown on the grill for heat and char. Lots of cookbooks will tell you to just parboil or bake them as the first step, but that doesn't go far enough. All it does is shorten the cooking time without adding any flavor -- you might as well fire up the microwave. And slathering one one of those commercial barbecue sauces wno't help. It just leaves the meat cloying and one-dimensional. Pork plays well with an amazing array of seasonings, from curry blends to chilies. The trick is getting them onto, and into, the ribs in the first place. You can start by either cooking the ribs in liquid -- steaming, braising or poaching -- or by marinating and baking them. Any of those techniques will leave the meat cooked through safely but not to leather. But the liquid or the marinade has to be aggressively spiced. Plain old parboiling leaches out flavor. Cooking with aromatics adds nuance and fragrance.
The liquid for Chiu Chow ribs is almost as intense:
soy sauce spiked with ginger, garlic, star anise and pepper. I borrowed
the idea from a recipe for goose I discovered in Hong Kong, where
I got hooked on Chiu Chow cooking, a regional style best described
as Cantonese with serious flavor. Usually a whole bird is poached
in the soy base, then served cold in slices with a sweet sauce of
vinegar and garlic for dipping. But it works just as well with ribs
to be grilled and eaten warm. A tandoori-style marinade has somewhat the same
effect. Ribs are not usually associated with curry, but I once had
them in a maverick Indian restaurant and have been haunted by the
way the sweet-hot spices crusted to the meat. I adapted a recipe
for tandoori chicken using yogurt with cayenne, ginger, turmeric
and three kinds of jazzy seeds: mustard, cumin and coriander. The
mixture almost tenderizes the meat as it marinates overnight and
then as it bakes for an hour or so. All but the traditional ribs need one more step,
right out of the purists’ playbook. The meat should be treated
first with what’s called a dry rub, either plain salt or a
combination of salt and spices, and left for at least 20 minutes.
It’s a way of preseasoning, or laying down another layer of
flavor. No matter what the method, cooking ribs is pretty
much best done by feel. When the meat starts to pull back from from
the bones, it’s ready to grill. (If you’re the nervous
type, a reading of 155 to 165 degrees on an instant thermometer
puts you in the safety zone.) It can take as little as 30 minutes
or as long as 90. Ribs of either variety come pretty close to
ready to cook when you buy them, but you can still improve on them.
The membrane on the underside should definitely be removed. Not
only is it a flavor barrier, keeping seasonings from the meat, but
it also makes eating ribs, and looking at them, less pleasant, to
put it daintily. To get rid of it, lay the rack of ribs meat
side down on a cutting board and slide a small sharp knife under
the membrane over the rib at the thickest end. Slip your finger
under and carefully slide the film loose, working your way from
rib to rib. TRIPLE-CHILE RIBS
1. Toast chilies in large dry skillet until softened
and aromatic. Set aside. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add
garlic, onion, oregano, cumin and about 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring,
until soft, about 10 minutes. Break chilies into pan and saute briefly.
Add 2 cups stock and simmer untl chilies are soft, about 10 minutes. 2. Transfer mixture to blender, add chipotles and
puree until smooth. Press through a sieve into a deep, wide saucepan.
Add remaining stock and mix well, then bring to a simmer. 3. Rub ribs on all sides with salt. Lay meat side
down into sauce. Cover pan and cook 15 minutes, then turn ribs over,
cover again and cook 15 minutes longer. Add more stock or water
if necessary. Repeat until ribs are tender, about 1 hour to 1 hour
15 minutes. Transfer to a platter. Strain sauce to remove fat and
keep warm. 4. Heat grill. Lay ribs on and cook, turning, until
crispy/charred, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with sauce on the side.
MAPLE-BOURBON RIBS
Total time: 90 minutes 1. Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add
minced onion and jalapenos and saute, stirring, until soft and starting
to brown, about 10 minutes. Blend in bourbon and cook 2 minutes
to reduce slightly. Add ketchup, vinegar, mustard and Worcestershire
sauce and mix well, then add maple syrup. Simmer, stirring often,
for 30 minutes, until flavors are melded. Season with salt and pepper
to taste. 2. While sauce is simmering, fill a large steamer
with water. Strew thyme sprigs, bay leaves and sliced onion over
bottom. Bring to a simmer. Lay ribs onto rack over simmering water.
Cover and steam 30 minutes. Transfer to shallow dish and pour hot
sauce over. Let stand 15 minutes. 3. Heat a grill until smoking. Brush excess sauce off ribs. Grill, basting lightly with sauce, until done, turning often to keep from charring too much, about 10 to 15 minutes total. Serve additional sauce on side. CHIU CHOW-STYLE RIBS Total time: 2 hours, 15 minutes 1. Rub kosher salt into all surfaces of ribs. Set
aside for 1 hour. 2. Combine soy sauce, brown sugar, star anise, peppercorns,
ginger and garlic in stockpot. Add 10 cups water and bring to a
boil. Lower heat to a simmer and add ribs. Simmer 45 to 60 minutes,
until flesh starts to pull away from bones. Set aside to cool while
heating grill. 3. Combine vinegar with minced garlic and sugar and
set aside. 4. Lay ribs on grill and cook 10 to 15 minutes, turning
often, until charred and tender. Separate into ribs and serve with
the vinegar sauce for dipping.
TANDOORI RIBS
Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes plus overnight marination 1. Using sharp paring knife, cut tiny slits into meat
of ribs and set aside in a shallow dish. Combine salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons
cayenne and lime juice and rub into meat on both sides. Set aside
at room temperature for 20 minutes. 2. Combine mustard, cumin and coriander seeds in small
skillet over medium heat and cook just until mustard seeds pop and
others release their fragrance. Transfer to blender and add yogurt,
garlic, ginger, turmeric and remaining cayenne. Process until smooth.
Pour over ribs in dish and turn to coat top and bottom. Cover with
plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. 3. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lift ribs from marinade
and lay on a rack in a baking dish, flesh side up. Scrape remaining
marinade over and smooth out. Bake 30 minutes, then turn over and
cook 30 minutes longer. 4. Heat grill. Brush rack lightly with oil. When hot, remove ribs from oven and transfer to grill, flesh side down. Cook until charred/crisp on both sides, about 15 minutes total.
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