Work From Home Ribs

slow cooking

So you’re fortunate enough to have a job, but you can’t go into the office?  What a great opportunity to do a long-cook recipe.  Since BBQ isn’t quite set-and-forget like a crock pot is, you gotta be around to check on it once in a while.  Having recently acquired a free Traeger grill while out on one of my runs, I utilized my electronics skills to diagnose and repair it.  It’s a little bit ugly, but it works!

timing

Now, you can’t just throw ribs in a grill and forget about them.  They need to be checked on periodically.  So doing this required my scheduling the cook time around my work schedule (not the other way around!).  I timed it so I got everything going during my lunch break, and set up a wireless thermometer to monitor things from my desk.  Then, I didn’t have to get up and check on them unnecessarily.

recipe

After talking with a friend that has a smoker (Traeger), and browsing through the numerous recipes Traeger has on their site, I ended up with a mishmash of recipes.  So I really sort of ended up with my own, I suppose you’d say.  Here it is.

meat

I used three whole racks of pork ribs for this.

rub

• kosher salt
• coarse ground black pepper
• paprika
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• chili powder

Some like to precisely measure these and mix them up prior to rubbing, but I prefer to sprinkle them on directly and wing it, honestly.  It seems to work out pretty well.

cook

• rub 5 hours in advance. return to fridge
• pull out of the fridge an hour before cooking
• heat grill to 225F for 15+ minutes
• cook approximately 3 hours, or until internal temp of 160-165F, meat side of the ribs facing up, directly on grill (I tried to keep them on the cooler side of the grill)
• get enough heavy-duty foil to full wrap the ribs and sprinkle brown sugar (or coconut sugar, which is all I had on hand), some butter, and some bbq sauce in the middle
• take the ribs off the grill and wrap them in the foil, with the meat facing down
• place back on the grill, still with the meat facing down, for approximately another 2 hours, or until the internal temps are around 195-200F
• remove the ribs from the grill and remove them from the foil
• coat both sides in your favorite bbq sauce (I used Kinder’s, but only because I couldn’t find my favorite: Bone Suckin’ Sauce)
• cook meat side up for another hour or so

results

In the end, I was able to work, check on my BBQ, and end up with great results by dinner time!  Everyone thoroughly enjoyed them.