When the fire alarm went off, I knew I had gone too far.
I'm sure you've had a ”perfect” idea only to find out later that perhaps some things should never be attempted.
Let's back track.
I like living in my ”small-ish” inner city pad. But hate the fact that the balcony is enclosed.
Just before the recent blog dramas, I decided to make barbecued ribs.
I had gotten one of those tiny barbecues that suit the inner city apartment dweller.
The cravings for smoky, chargrilled barbecued ribs were driving my taste buds insane. Call it umami withdrawals.
Even with the windows wide open the smoke made its way inside. Ok. It wasn't thick, black ”burning down the house” kind of smoke.
But it was "intense".
And then the fire alarm went off. And I'm sure you can figure out the rest.
My face was redder than the marinade!
Part two of my barbecued rib experiment relied on using the oven. I know my oven. I love my oven. I trust my oven.
It's what I should have done in the first place.
So how do you go about making "barbecued" style ribs in the oven?
The ribs you need to use for this are pork baby back ribs. They are sometimes referred to as ”American style” ribs.
Boil the ribs for about five minutes before marinating them. It removes any impurities and makes the cooking time quicker too.
For the ever important marinade, I used my favourite ingredient in this. Petimezi. A nice Greek touch don't you think?
Petimezi is absolutely the perfect partner for this dish. It's naturally sweet and plays well with other ingredients too.
The longer the you marinate the ribs the more intense the flavour will be. Overnight achieves the best results.
And make sure your oven is smokin’ hot (ok bad choice of words). A hot oven will allow the ribs to caramelise and cook quickly.
No smoke.. No dramas. And no firemen...
*A note about the recipe. I used 2 smaller racks of ribs. Perfect for a couple. Any larger ribs will require the marinade to be adjusted and baked for a little longer*
Oven Baked BBQ Ribs
Ingredients
- 2 racks baby back ribs, pork
- 250 ml molasses
- 180 ml soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sriracha
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tsp liquid smoke
- 1 tsp smoked paprika, Spanish variety if possible
Instructions
- Place the ribs in a pot of cold water - ensuring the water covers them, over a medium heat. Allow the mixture to come to a boil.
- Drain the ribs and set them aside to cool. Once cooled place them in a ceramic baking dish.
- To make the marinade, combine the remainder of the ingredients in a blender and pour over the cooled ribs making sure they are covered.
- Cover your tray with aluminium foil and place in the fridge to marinate for a minimum of eight hours or overnight. Be sure to turn them over and nudge them a few times.
- Preheat your oven to 230 deg C and place the ribs on a wire rack over baking tray. Reserve the remainder of the marinade.
- Cook for 10 minutes and then baste them with the marinade, before placing them back in the oven for 10 more minutes. The ribs are cooked when they have darkened in color.
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