Conference turris::cooks

    
    	I did the same thing last year for graduation.  I boiled them
    first, takes away some of the fat.  Also I didn't have the time
    after the ceremony to cook ribs entirely.  Be sure to have plenty
    of bar-b-que sauce *my sons request, and it was his party*.
    
    	Linda 

    
    My vote also; boil them first.
    
    IMO, boiling them first is what renders them leaner and more tender.
    
    It also shortens the cooking time when you finally barbeque them.
    I've tried doing ribs both ways in the past, and the results after
    boiling them first have been superb.  When I didn't boil them, I
    always found them to be somewhat tough and didn't like the texture
    of the meat.  Boiling also serves to cook off some of the fat content.
    I personally don't feel that you'll notice any loss of flavor as
    a result.  Most of the flavor of ribs has a lot to do with the way
    they're marinated - in this case, boil first then marinate after.
    
    I had posted a recipe for ribs as 995.0 and this is one of the tastiest
    recipes for ribs that I've used.  Check it out, it gives some good
    ingredients to use during the boiling process.  Although it calls
    for beef stock, I've found plain water or beef bouillion works almost
    as well.
    
    A rib fan - Larry
    

    
    re: .3
    
    One more thing,  if you decide to try the recipe in 995, it states
    to cut the ribs into individual pieces however this is just for
    convenience sake.  I would simply leave them whole and slice between
    each rib 2/3's of the way up - makes them easier to cut in the end.
    
    Since you'll be doing these on the grill,  I find what's helped
    is to cook them in the oven (after boiling, marinating ..) for 
    20 mins at 350, then transfer them to the grill for 20 minutes
    more or so.  This way they don't end up being reduced to charcoal.
    
    I've added mesquite wood chips to the grill and smoked the ribs
    while cooking them - delicious - now I'm getting myself hungry ;^)
    
    - Happy eating !!

    I agree will all the previous replys.  I also add some soy sauce
    and herbs to the "boiling" liquid.  I ran across a recipe in a
    Grill/Smoke book and have been using this method for a couple years.
     The ribs always turn out great!

    My family's rib recipe has you bake them for a while with a layer of
    sliced lemons and sliced onions on top, then dump the grease and
    barbecue them (my aunt's barbecue sauce recipe is the best!) until they
    are done - the onion and lemon juice makes them nice and tender.
    
    We don't eat much red meat these days; I can't remember the last time I
    made these, but they are real tasty!

    NO! NO! NO! don't boil them, I have been cooking ribs for 30+ years
    and have never never boiled them first. First of all you have to start
    the preparation early the day before. Trim of all visable fat and
    discard, keep the ribs whole. Take a pastry brush and brush a thin coat
    of vinagar all over them, take a bunch of your favorite spices and pat
    them all over the surface and refrigerate overnite wraped in foil. 
    Double wrap in foil and cook over moderate coals for about 2 hours,
    turning frequently, remove from foil baste with your favorite BBQ sauce
    and cook,turning and basting frequently, for another hour. Cut and
    serve with additional BBQ sauce. 
    
    Most folks don't take the proper amount of time to prepare ribs
    properly. The secret is long slow cooking and giving the flavors a
    chance to penetrate the meat. I also do this in the oven. Chicken can
    be prepared the same way. They are always tender.
    
    
    

    Ill second that "dont boil" reply....IMO, all boiling does is rob
    the meat of its flavor.....I usually put ribs in the over first
    then finish on the grill
    
    Rick

  If you're going to be coating them with lots of barbeque sauce after
  boiling, then the sauce will be giving a lot of flavor to make up for
  the loss due to boiling (which I agree happens). But boiling is very
  convenient, and it does a great job on removing excess fat and salt
  (if you want to do that).

I really wasn't going to get into this, but...


My grandmother's recipe for the most remarkable ribs does not including
boiling.  When cooking ribs on the grill, she always made a fire with
lots of coals...then wrap the ribs in foil after generously basting
them with a mixture of 1/2 lemon juice and 1/2 white vinegar (I personally
prefer cider vinegar, but this is Nana's recipe).  She would cook this
for an hour, turning frequently, and then unwrap the ribs - by now the
fire in your grill should be nice and steady and LOW.  Then cook for
an hour or so more, basting with the marinade.  Add barbecue sauce of
choice only for the last 30 minutes (it has salt which TOUGHENS the
meat if left on too long)..

I think ribs is sorta like magic...everyone has their own special 
magic potion, and they are all wonderful.  Eat hearty!

    re .10
    
    What excess salt, there is no salt on spare ribs, and as for the fat,
    it cooks off when you cook over the coals. IMO if you are only
    interested in the flavor of BBQ sauce why bother cooking on the grill,
    just boil some meat and coat it with sauce.

     The responses were read, all factors were considered, and a decision
    was made....and I must admit that after reading this a.m.'s additional
    responses, this report is done with some trepidation!! But I feel
    it's my duty to report on the results. My decision was to boil using 
    995's recipe as the base....and the results were EXCELLENT!! I
    received rave reviews from all who partook in the meal!! I should
    note that I WILL try the approach suggested in .8 (and subsequent
    notes)....but using this approach for 30 pounds, given all available
    resources, didn't seem feasible. 
     The bottom line is....thanks to all...it was a GREAT success!!
    and I now have alternatives for the NEXT time around!!
    

Last year we attended a cookout where the specialty was ribs. Through
wile and persistence I got the cook to give me his secret, which was: HOT
MARINATING. After sharing that with me, all the beer I had plied him with
took over and he fell asleep. I could learn no more.

So, this weekend I experimented with hot marinating, with about 5# of
pork ribs in two slabs. 

Basically, I marinated the ribs in a half bottle of red wine vinegar,
about four TBS of lemon juice, and 1 TBS of minced fresh garlic. I turned
them frequently, with this marinade cold, for an hour. Then I added a pot
of tea (one of my favorite tricks), a coarsely chopped large onion, a
shake of cayenne pepper, and put the pan in the oven on 180 for an hour.

Next step was to the gas grill, where I flopped the slabs of ribs over a
low heat for maybe a half hour, turning every ten minutes or so. Finally,
I slathered on Bull's Eye barbeque sauce right out of the bottle (no
gourmet touchups) and cooked them for another ten minutes.

My finicky son's evaluation: AWESOME RIBS!

They were the tenderest, juiciest ribs we've ever had.

Art

    Hello,
     I am a big rib fan. I always boil my ribs first, usually cut
    individually in a large pot. Also, try adding a little white vinegar to
    the water(This will aid in burning off most of the fat as well as
    retain or add some flavor to them as well). I picked that up fomr my
    late grandmother.
    
                             GOOD LUCK!!