There are more recipes for making ribs than hot sauce brands. Folks have fights over dry rubs, wet rubs, mop sauces, finishing sauces, to smoke or not to smoke, etc…..but all we wanted were tasty ribs without baby-sitting a smoldering fire all day. We know this is a sacrilege to the pit masters, but if we want authentic slow smoked ribs, there are plenty of places to get take-out without wasting all day.
We’ve tried many variations on fuss-free ribs, especially if we need to make a bunch of other food for a party/tailgate. The cooking science was all essentially the same – a slow cooking method with a bit of acid (vinegar, lemon, lime) and salt was needed to break down the tough connective tissue. Flavor can be infused before, during, and after slow cooking.
We used a braising step followed by a grilling step to get the right texture, and maximize flavor, featuring two of our favorite ingredients: beer and the Serious Foodie gourmet sauces.
If you want a bit of extra flavor, you can dry-rub the ribs (Serious Foodie Kentucky Bourbon Rub was our favorite), wrap in plastic, and refrigerate overnight.
We also tried a pressure cooker to cut the time down, versus a slow roast. While you can get away with this method in a time crunch, the texture of the ribs was not ideal.
While we encourage you to use our Serious Foodie sauces (Pomegranate, Mango, Fig/Orange, and Mirasol Mole work best), you can use almost any store-bought sauce to finish
Pork Spare Ribs with Pomegranate Glaze
- 2 slabs St. Louis cut ribs (or baby back ribs)
- Dry rub (optional)
- Salt and pepper
- 1 bottle of beer (we like a brown ale, but a fruity pale ale will do)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 cloves garlic, rough chopped
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 10 ounce jar Serious Foodie Pomegranate Finishing Sauce (click HERE to purchase online). We’ve also made the same recipe using the Serious Foodie Tamarillo Grill Sauce and the Korean Sauce – and they were both amazing.
- Place each slab of baby back ribs on a piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil, shiny side down. Sprinkle each side generously with salt and pepper to taste (or the optional dry rub which should have salt and pepper included). Pat the dry rub into the meat. Refrigerate, preferably overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. In the meantime, make the braising liquid by stirring together the beer, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, honey, garlic, and soy sauce in a medium sauce pan. Heat over medium flame for about 5 minutes, but do not boil.
- Remove the ribs from the refrigerate, and place in a baking dish. Make an envelop with the aluminum foil, with one end open. Add the braising liquid to the ribs, and seal the end tightly. Braise the ribs in the oven for 2 hours.
- Remove the ribs, and allow to cool (you can do this one day in advance, and refrigerate the ribs overnight). Coat meaty side of the ribs with the Serious Foodie Pomegranate Sauce (or your other favorite sauce). Place on a pre-heated grill (medium to medium high), sauce side up, for 5 to 10 minutes or until the sauce caramelizes. (Alternatively, you can place the ribs under a broiler). Slice each slab into 2 rib bone portions, and serve with a side of the Pomegranate sauce.