Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Not Doing Ribs at Home Again

We are picking up our eighth of beef within the month, so I am trying to deal with the random cuts I have left from last year. To wit, ribs.  I have never made ribs before.  I'm not someone who orders ribs at restaurants and I don't really know the difference between short ribs, spare ribs, beef ribs, and pork ribs.  But I had about five pounds of "beef ribs" (that's how the Amish butcher labeled them) in my freezer.

I used the Kitchn's recipe and method, recommended by Rebecca.


The flavor was fantastic, but (there are so many buts) the ribs were really tough even after 3 hours in the oven.  Furthermore, so much fat and bone went into the trash; I didn't think even my cleaning method could get that fat clean enough for soap and even though my family thought barbecued stock from the bones was funny-cool, I didn't save the bones for stock.  Plus, I used a lot of ingredients to get that fantastic flavor and because of all the stuff in the trash and the toughness of the end product, I'm unwilling to try that again.

I did not order ribs again from the butcher, and maybe I'll become one of those people who actively seeks out professional rib joints because it's such a rigamarole at home.

6 comments:

AP said...

Hmm, the recipe you posted was for pork ribs; I usually think of beef ribs as a completely different animal (pun intended!) At least in the midwest, when people say 'ribs' they usually mean pork. I think beef ribs really benefit from a long moist cooking like a braise, possibly finished by a quick broil to caramelize. That would automatically give you a nice stock too! That said it's not my favorite cut of beef either.

Unknown said...

http://amazingribs.com/recipes/beef/BBQ_beef_ribs.html - If it's helpful

Margo said...

well, darn. My research did not reveal a difference between pork and beef ribs, and when I discussed it with Rebecca, I thought it was fine to go ahead with the Kitchn's version. Thanks for the extra information, AP and Foo Bar. Maybe I should try again!

Becky said...

We love ribs, but I rarely attempt them at home. I do know they need to cook all day - I used to live across the street from one of the best rib joints in the entire state of Alabama. Slow and low is the way to go.

jenny_o said...

I never cook ribs or order them while out, because, as you found out, they ARE mostly bone and fat! Much like bacon, I categorize them as fat, not meat. This is a useful distinction that I learned when I was pregnant with #1 and had gestational diabetes.

Anonymous said...

I always boil beef ribs for 2 hours of so. Then I bake them in a moderately hot oven 325 of so for a couple of hours with foil covering them. Then I baste them with bbq sauce and continue to bake them, uncovered for 20 mins or so. Usually this results in tender beef ribs. Good luck Penny S.