Pork Spare Ribs

Pork Spare Ribs

Let’s talk barbecue. The best way to get good at smoking meat is to practice with ribs. At around $13.00 per rack, they are a good way to learn your techniques without messing up more expensive slabs of meat like brisket.

Today we are going to learn the “3, 2, 1 method” of smoking Pork Spare Ribs. The 3, 2, 1 method stands for 3 hours of smoking, 2 hours wrapped in foil, and 1 hour developing a good caramelized bark / crust.

If you’ve ever had ribs that were tough, it’s because they didn’t have the opportunity to braise in their own juices during the foil phase.

*Notes:

The colder the meat at the start of the smoke the better. In general, the smoke ring will stop developing in the meat somewhere around 135ºinternal meat temperature. Therefore you don’t want to bring the meat up to room temp prior to smoking (40ºmeat will have longer to absorb smoke to 135ºthan say… 70ºmeat).

There are endless flavor combinations / rubs / sauces / etc. (through experimentation my recipe below has a beautifully sweet and spicy flavor without being overpowered by either).

Once smoking, NO PEAKING!!!

Super Strength Reynolds Wrap is the only foil I have found that will consistently hold up to accidental tears and punctures.

Recipe

Pork Spare Ribs (3-4 servings per rack)

1 rack of Pork Spare Ribs
2 cups Vinegar
2-3 teaspoons Kosher Salt
Aluminum Foil (Super Strength Reynolds Wrap)
Apple Jelly
Sriracha Sauce
Barbecue Sauce (the sweeter the better for a good caramelized crust)

Instructions

• Set up your smoker for a 6 hour smoke.
• Keep ribs in refrigerator until the very last minute.
• Rinse ribs off with vinegar.
• Pat ribs dry with paper towels.
• Salt both sides of ribs liberally.
• Place ribs on smoker for 3 hours at 225º.
• Rip off 3 ft. of aluminum foil.
• Place 3 dollops of apple jelly.
• Drizzle with Sriracha Sauce.
• Remove ribs from smoker and place on aluminum foil bone side down.
• Place 3 more dollops of apple jelly and drizzle again with Sriracha Sauce.
• Roll long sides of aluminum foil together creating a good tight roll.
• Tightly roll open ends of aluminum foil toward rib ends.
• Place ribs back on smoker for 2 hours.
• Remove ribs from smoker and take out of aluminum foil.
• Slather ribs liberally with barbecue sauce.
• Place ribs back on smoker for 1 hour.
• Remove ribs from smoker and serve.

Three Racks Ready to Go 

Apple Jelly & Sriracha Sauce 

More Apple Jelly & Sriracha Sauce

Roll Long Side Together Tightly

Tightly Sealed

How to Smoke on a Weber Kettle

Being that it's Memorial Day, let me take this opportunity to remind everyone to take a moment to remember those who lost their lives protecting our great nation. I served as a Medic in the United States Army for nearly 6 years and I still have no words to describe my love for those who’ve served.

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

For he to-day that sheds his blood with me

Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,

This day shall gentle his condition:

And gentlemen in England now a-bed

Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks

That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

Henry V - William Shakespeare

Each year, as summer approaches, many begin to dust off their barbecues in preparation for grilling season (unless you’re lucky enough to live in Texas where it's always grilling season).

If baseball is America’s pastime, then I could argue that Texas’ pastime is cooking meat with fire.

Today, I’m going to show you how to set up a Weber Kettle Grill for smoking. Why a Weber you ask? Because most people with multi-thousand dollar smokers don’t use them often enough to get good at smoking. I truly believe that if you really want to master a skill, you should start with the basics and build from there. Hell, a 22” Weber can be had for $100-$150.

I've received some bizarre looks at BBQ competitions when I bust out my Weber Kettle Grills, but the judges can't tell that I don't have a professional set-up (and I've won a few local awards to prove it).

Setup

You’ll Need

• Weber Kettle Grill - 22” or larger
• 4 Fire Bricks - Acme 9" x 4" x 2.5"
• Aluminum Drip Pan (I prefer Weber 13" x 9" x 2")
• Charcoal Briquettes (I prefer Kingsford)
• Wood Chunks (I prefer Oak or Hickory)
• Weber Chimney Starter
• Paper Towels
• Vegetable Oil

Set bottom vents to 99% closed - This will allow the fire to smolder ever so slowly.

Fire Brick Placement

Single Layer of Medium Wood Chunks

Layer of Briquettes

Layer of Smaller Wood Chunks

Layer of Smaller Wood Chunks

Final Layer of Briquettes

Upside Down Chimney Starter

Drizzle some wadded up paper towels with a bit of vegetable oil then place under chimney.

Five Briquettes

Light 'em Up

10 to 15 Minutes Later

Evenly Disperse Lit Coals

The combination of placing just a few lit coals on top and setting the bottom vents to 99% closed allows the fire to slowly smolder on down to a perfect smoking temperature of 225º.

Final Configuration

While the smoldering coals keep the overall temperature low, the fire bricks act to protect your smoking meat from direct heat.

Now plop some meat on that cooker and sit back with a cold one while it works its magic.

Stay Tuned for my Famous Pork Spare Ribs


*Notes:


Never, ever use lighter fluid!

Never, ever use "match light" charcoal briquettes!

Always leave the top vents wide open.

This set-up will easily smoke for 6+ hours untouched.

You can get Fire Bricks from a local Acme dealer, they're only about $3 each.

The Weber 13" x 9" x 2" Aluminum Drip Pan fits precisely on the cooking side of the fire bricks.

While I usually prefer "Lump Charcoal" over Briquettes while grilling, I find that Lump burns too hot on my rig during smoking.

Ranch Style Beans

Ranch Style Beans

A frijole by any other name… Baked Beans, Charro Beans, Ranch Style Beans, Frijoles de Olla, Refried Beans…. the options are endless.

Beans were one of the cornerstones of the American diet prior to European exploration. One could argue that beans and corn were our greatest contribution to modern food. Hell, to many across the globe, beans still represent the perfect comfort food because they are just as at home on the table during hard times as they are during good times.

Many will tell you that in order to make beans the right way you must adhere to a few steadfast bean rules such as soaking the beans overnight, or only adding salt at the end of cooking. Call me a rebel, but I’m all about doing things the old fashioned way (I’m not guessing that the chuckwagon cook was soaking his beans overnight).

This is Cast Iron Texas y’all. I’m gonna show you how Dutch Ovens earn their keep with three little words… Low and Slow.

*Notes:

You can make this recipe with just about any variation you’d like (Ham Hocks, Jalapenos, and Tomatoes are just a few ingredients you can customize with).

DO NOT follow the cooking instructions on the package of beans. Soaking the beans or using the “quick” method listed will result in blown out mushy beans. Beans cooked slowly at a low temperature come out perfect every time.

DO add the salt at the beginning. Contrary to lore, beans won’t explode just because you add salt prior to cooking. If you waited to add the salt at the end of the cook, you would end up needing to double the salt because the beans just don’t soak it up once they’re cooked. Plus, the small amount of sugar that I add help the beans retain their shape and texture.


Add additional boiling water every few hours if needed to keep the beans submerged.

There are plenty of cooking vessels appropriate for bean cookery. Traditionally beans were cooked in a clay “bean pot” called an olla. However, a modern cast iron Dutch Oven does a great job keeping the heat nice and even. If you wanna be super fancy, you could use an enameled cast iron “French Oven”. If you’re in the Central Texas area, HEB carries a very economical ($30) alternative to the pricey Le Creusets or Staubs. The enameled options are really good for longer cooks like Ranch Style Beans.

 

Onion & Garlic

Bacon Lardons

 Recipe

Ranch Style Beans (9-13 servings)

1 lb. Pinto Beans – Dried

1 lb. Bacon (approx. 9 pieces) – Cut Into Strips / Lardons

1 Yellow Onion (approx. 2 cups) – Chopped

6 cloves Garlic – Minced or Pressed

4 cups Low Sodium Chicken Stock

4 cups Water

2 tablespoons Chile Powder

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

2 teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper

2 ½ teaspoons Sugar

Instructions

• Pre-heat oven to 250°.
• Sort & rinse beans, removing any debris.
• On stovetop, fry bacon in dutch oven until crispy. 
• Remove bacon with slotted spoon.
• Add onion & salt then sauté for 4 minutes.
• Add garlic then sauté for 20 seconds. 
• Reduce heat to low & cover for 4 minutes.
• Add chicken stock & water.
• Stir in chile powder, black pepper, & sugar.
• Add beans & bacon.
• Bring to a simmer.
• Bake in 250° oven for 6-8 hours with lid on 
• Add additional boiling water every few hours if needed to keep beans submerged.

Bring to a Simmer

The Perfect Steak

The Perfect Steak

Beef. It’s what’s for dinner. Well… steak that is. And by steak, I mean a thick cut USDA Prime Bone-In Ribeye. This is Texas, son. We eat beef. We eat good beef. Steak is the national meat of Texas.

I don’t mess around when it comes to cooking steak. Let’s face it, these things aren’t cheap. Please, do yourself a favor by cooking it correctly. Don’t be goin’ off and embarrassing yourself in front of all of your friends and family by ruining $20 chunks of awesomeness.

Don’t be all sizzle and no steak!

Today is going to be a guide on how to knock cooking a Fred Flintstone slab o’meat out of the park in just a few easy but precise steps.

*Warning:

I do not list cook times for Medium Well or Well Done steaks. If you have to ask why, then well… maybe this isn’t the site for you.

*Notes:

Today’s guide is meant for cooking with a stovetop and oven. Firing up the grill is another baby altogether. Watch for that recipe this summer.

You’re gonna need at least a 12” cast iron skillet. Steaks are meant to be cooked using cast iron or over a grill. Anything else just won’t do.

When buying your meat, 1” is as thin as I’d go (I prefer 1 ½” steaks). Greenhorns can share a steak if it's too big for them.

Let’s talk about meat grades. If you’re dropping coin on over an inch of steak, then USDA Prime is the only way to go. It’s worth every penny of the $5 more per pound than the cost of USDA Choice. At this level, cutting corners changes the finished product drastically.

Do yourself a favor and throw away all of your "iodized" table salt. That’s right… drop it right on in that trashcan there. That’s it… just walk away. What we’re gonna do here is switch on over to Kosher Salt. Why? Some salt is fortified with iodine so as to prevent dietary deficiencies. Well that was a smart move around 1900, but today’s American diet has plenty of iodine containing foods (dairy, eggs, yogurt, saltwater fish, and shellfish). Kosher Salt is easier to pinch and it doesn’t have the funny taste that some say iodized salt has. The little coarse flakes of Kosher Salt allow for a far more even distribution on steak, mainly because it doesn’t dissolve on contact, which allows you to see where the salt is falling.

One word on cooking oils. You’re gonna need an oil that can handle a lot of heat. Personally, I keep a bottle of “Extra Light Olive Oil” on hand because you can get a big ol’ bottle of it for pretty cheap at the grocery store. This is not to be confused with Extra “Virgin” Olive Oil. Extra Light Olive Oil can take a lot of heat because they have filtered out all of the stuff that makes Extra Virgin Olive Oil yummy. Some other good neutral tasting oils that can handle the heat are Safflower, and Peanut Oil.

High Temp Cooking Oil

The table lists TOTAL cook time: i.e. all times added together (2 min sear + 1 min sear + 4 min roast + final roast minutes = Total Time).

                                                  Steak Cook Times

Recipe

Steak

Ribeye (1 ½” Thick, Bone-In)

Kosher Salt

Extra Light Olive Oil or Safflower Oil

Instructions

• 45 minutes prior to cooking, place a dry cast iron skillet on middle rack of oven.

• Pre-heat oven to 400°.

• Pat steak dry with paper towels.

• Salt steak liberally (1/4 teaspoon or more per side).

• Allow steak to rest at room temperature for 45 minutes while skillet & oven heat.

• 5 minutes prior to cooking, transfer skillet to largest burner at its highest setting.

• Turn on exhaust fan and open some windows.

• While skillet heats on stovetop, pat steak dry again then brush both sides with oil.

• Sear steak for 2 minutes, flip & sear for 1 minute.

• Place skillet in oven WITHOUT flipping steak again.

• Allow steak to roast for 4 minutes before flipping one last time.

• Roast 5 more minutes for rare, 7 for medium rare, or 10 for medium (see Table for total cook time for other steak thicknesses)

• Remove skillet from oven & place steak on a baking rack to rest for 5 minutes.

Smokin' Hot Skillet

Resting Peacefully

Steak & Ranch Style Beans

A Perfect Medium Rare