This weekend, I noticed an oversight. While I have repeatedly mentioned two books and given you recipes from them, I’ve never written about the wonderful Great Ribs Book and Great Wings Book themselves. These two slim volumes, by Hugh Carpenter and Teri Sandison, are little gems for meat consumers.
Today, let’s look at The Great Ribs Book. Why? Because I just came back from my local meat market with a medium rack of country style spareribs. You know the look: thick, meaty and offering the promise of a feast. And, here’s something really important about country style ribs: $2.29/pound. Yes, there is some bone and some fat, but dollar for pound, these ribs are a bargain. When prepared with care, ribs offer perfect meal satisfaction. A couple of ribs, some veggie sides, and a very cold beer constitute completeness.
All you need is a good recipe. And some technique. And, ideally, some time.
The Great Ribs Book takes you by the hand and leads you, ultimately, to the table. Here’s how to use this book chapter by chapter.
Great Ribs of All Types gives you a roadmap of the different rib offerings. Spareribs always refer to pork, never to beef or lamb. Baby Backs are called the Rolls-Royce of the rib world, but you can also consider Country-Style, Beef Back, Beef Short Ribs, and Lamb.
Preparation and Cooking Techniques begins with two suggestions, well one suggestion and one very stern pieces of advice. First, get fresh ribs from a real butcher if you can: fresh, not frozen is best. Second, never, never boil your ribs. Now, I recently posted a recipe where I did boil, because it cut the cooking time by 2/3. My ribs were good, but it’s pointed out here that boiled ribs will never absorb the marinade nor will you get the beautiful crusting that occurs from a long slow cooking time. There are instructions here for marinating, basting, when to cut the ribs apart [after you cook, not before, if you are smoking, grilling or roasting], the best way to barbeque, or, alternatively, how to oven roast or braise
Show-Stopping Asian Ribs begins the selection of recipes and you might wonder why we kick off with Asian ideas. What about Kansas City, for Pete’s sake. Well, there is room for tradition in this book, but you need to think of The Great Ribs Book as a reboot for ribs. What’s new, different, and exciting? And let’s face it, when I go to a Chinese restaurant, the first thing I look for on the menu is the eggrolls and the ribs. I want to be full before the main course arrives. Here you’ll find ideas like:
Best Chinese Baby Back Ribs in hoisin, plum, oyster and soy sauces
Mahogany Glazed Ribs featuring a classic Chinese mix of sweet, sour and spice
Spareribs with Hoisin-Peanut Butter Rub
Szechuan Fire Ribs
New Approaches for American Ribs offers the best and the brightest, and surely some of the newest visions:
Ribs with All-Purpose Dry Rub and Sweet-and-Sour Mop for layered spice
Ribs Louisiana Style with red bell peppers and Tabasco
Carolina Barbecued Ribs with homemade Carolina Mountain Barbecue Sauce
Ribs Marinated with Molasses-Chile Barbecue Sauce
Mexican and Southwestern Masterpieces offer you different and perhaps healthier selections of rib concepts. Here there is less sweetness and sauce, and more spice. Consider:
Ancho Chile-Glazed Ribs with chiles in orange juice
Sweet-and-Sour Fiery Ribs with adobo, cinnamon and vinegar
Southwest Barbecued Ribs where it’s all citrus zest and juice plus spice with just a touch of honey
Mediterranean and Caribbean Ribs offer you different rib journeys using some familiar flavors and some new ones, too:
Spareribs with Mustard, Garlic and Rosemary Marinade might make you think of Paris, or Provence
Middle Easter Ribs with Spicy Pomegranate Glaze will definitely put visions of palm trees in your head
Pork Baby Back Ribs with Jamaican Jerk Marinade will put fire in your mouth and belly
Tuscan-Style Barbecued Ribs employ lemon zest and juice, olives, rosemary, and anchovy
Fruit-Based Barbeque Glazes provide recipes for those of you who want that intense fruit crust fired into your meat:
Ribs Crusted with Apricot Glaze using apricot nectar but also Asian chile sauce
Sweet-and-Sour Raspberry Glazed Ribs uses Hugh’s signature combination of raspberry jam, vinegar, soy, and chile sauce.
Spicy Cherry-Glazed Ribs lets you test a flavor, cherry, that too often appears only in desserts
Succulent Braised Ribs let try out the braising technique, for long, slow cooking with the meat just covered in some glorious bath of flavor:
Southwest Chile Glaze
Chinese Black Bean Sauce
Soy and Ginger
Thai Green Curry Paste
The Great Ribs Book does take you around the planet. There’s an abundance of ideas here that will have you turning to these recipes again and again. You’ll develop favorites, I’m sure, but the temptation to experiment will still be there.
Now, I mentioned that I just returned with some country style ribs. What am I going to do with them, which recipe? You’ll find out in a couple of days, I promise. I will be following Hugh’s sage advice: my ribs will marinate for 8 hours before I cook them long and slow. It’s the definition of succulent.