Spares in two hours?


 
R

Robert C

New member
Hello to all! This is my first post here and I have really enjoyed watching the site over the last few years. I just saw a Cherry Cola Spare recipe that was well reviewed by hundreds (epicurious) where the ribs were wrapped in foil at 325 for two hours and finished sauced up over direct for a few minutes. Doesn't two hours seem too short a time even for a high heat cook? The wrap just for moisture or?
Thx,
Robert C
 
sounds plausible. Foil helps conduct heat.

for 3 2 1 ribs, most of the change to tender occurs during the 2.
 
For spares you will have cooked ribs in 2 hours but it may not be tender. I don't know how much the foil will help. I've done bb is 3 hours(less meat). Try it out an let us know.
 
Two hours at 325F sounds right for tender but you are losing huge flavor by not smoking before foiling with a braising liquid. It's almost as bad as boiling your ribs. Very few chefs really understand BBQ they don't teach it at CIA.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">It's almost as bad as boiling your ribs. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Right. They're basically steaming the ribs. Quick, but sad. How could the taste compare to our usual Q? No contest!
 
J. Purvience put recipes like this for both spares and baby backs in his new Weber "Time to Grill" cookbook...with even shorter cook times.

What's a waste of charcoal to me is probably the most straightforward approach for a chef that's told he has to braise ribs on a grill and then sauce 'em so they're considered "grilled" or "bbq-ed". Sure, this has nothing to do with bbq and the spares are going to have a lot of fat left on them, but the common ground I'd have with the chef was the concern over the sauce. Come up with a great paste for braising the ribs to tender and then ruin 'em with what's essentially a condiment? That's the part I can certainly identify with!
 
Another way to get them fall off the bone tender is to boil them for 30 minutes. Pour sauce over them and then grill them for 10 minutes.

Perfectly soft ribs that taste like sauce.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Russell Y:
Another way to get them fall off the bone tender is to boil them for 30 minutes. Pour sauce over them and then grill them for 10 minutes.

Perfectly soft ribs that taste like sauce </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Exactly. Back in the day, this is how I used to cook ribs. My ex-FiL described my ribs as "yeasty", because I boiled them in beer/water before putting on the grill to sauce & finish.

I have reformed from my evil rib boiling sinner ways in the ensuing years, learning how good ribs can be cooked the whole time on the smoker or using the 3-2-1 method. No comparison to boiled ribs at all.
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First, welcome, Robert! Secondly, what was the cooking process? Was it on a grill? In an oven? Doesn't sound like smoker technique at all. On a smoker, as has been said, the 3 2 1 method, which means smoke for 3 hours, foil for 2, then unfoiled for 1, is very popular for those [like my wife] who like it FOTB.
 
I've done STL cut spares in 45ish mins @ 450° on my Performer a couple of times. This method won't win any comps, the ribs are nowhere near as good as lo' n slo'. But when you have the shakes from 'que withdrawal, and you need a quick fix, they sure hit the spot!
 
Well I tried it with baby backs (in a time jam) and as you might expect and many described here, the end result was not really Q. Michael the recipe called for foil in oven or since they were foiled could have been grilled indirect. The only good thing was the family seemed to like them. There was really no or very little bark, very little smoke flavor and pretty much bland. Given a time constraint again I would go as ashish mentions above. The Cherry Cola sauce however was awesome...thanks for the comments.
 
Robert, I have foiled them (double wrapped)indirect for 45 minutes. I then take them out of the foil add some wood chunks(hickory) then put them back on direct and sauce them.They get a great smokey flavor and a wonderful bark. I know it is not traditional but friends rave about them.
 
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<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Perfectly soft ribs that taste like sauce. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
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The Jamie Purviance braised method is what the Weber Grill Restaurants do with their ribs now. Maybe in the interest of saving time. I tried them once and that was enough.
 
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