In case you have been living in a hole (or a place where they don't care about American football), it was the Superbowl this past weekend. While most people were attending large gatherings or small parties, 
Even though our gathering was small and uneventful, my wife had asked me earlier in the week if I wanted to do anything special. It was soon decided that I would grill some ribs (for me) and chicken (for her) for us to enjoy.
After checking the freezer and realizing that we didn't have any, we made a quick run to Sam's Club and picked up their three pack of ribs. Typically when we buy the three pack of ribs I open then up when I get them home, cut the racks into half sections and remove the sliver skin from the back of them. Then I vacuum seal the half racks back up individually so I can freeze them and enjoy them at a later date. I love me some ribs, but I didn't need three full racks!
Inflation has been one of the big stories in the news lately as well as the rising cost of everyday goods and services. I was a bit shocked to find that the 3 pack of ribs I normally get for about $2.99 to $3.99 per pound USD was now selling for $5.50 per pound. At first I was a bit taken back about spending $60+ for the ribs, but I eventually relented as I realized that those three racks would supply me with several meals. Plus by now I was just craving some ribs, so it was basically a done deal.
Sometimes I choose to go the cheat route and cook my ribs in the Instant Pot (pressure cooker) and then finish them on the grill. It's an amazing process if you don't have a ton of time and you want some tasty ribs (from frozen) in less than an hour.
I had just about all the time in the world so I decided to split the difference between slow smoking them for 6 to 7 hours and pressure cooking them. Instead, I set my grill up for moderate heat and what would end up being a three hour cook.
In the past year or so I have gotten into the habit of snuffing out my coals instead of letting them burn out when I am finished grilling. I then take those left over coals and put them on top of some fresh charcoal to do my next grill. I feel like it adds extra flavor and it is a bit "greener" in the fact that I am not needlessly burning charcoal while nothing is cooking. It also helps my pocketbook because each bag of charcoal lasts longer this way.
Here you can see my trusty chimney starter with fresh coals in the bottom and partially used coals at the top.
Back when we used to get the newspaper, I would ball some up and stuff it in the bottom of the chimney. Now that we don't get it anymore, I have started to use these small parafin cubes. You get something like 24 of them for about $10 USD and they can be lit even if it is raining.
The cubes do have a slight fuel smell to them, but that burns off before it gets to the coals. It is still a much healthier (and tastier) choice than spraying lighter fluid all over the charcoal you are going to use to cook your food.
It only takes about fifteen minutes for the coals to get ready when you use a chimney starter. I have a couple of them and I use them all the time now. I honestly can't imagine how I ever grilled without one before.
While I was waiting for the coals to get ready, Jovi and I hung out on the couch watching some college basketball. This is one of the rare moments that she stays in the same room with us these days.
Like I said, after about fifteen minutes it was "go time". I dumped the coals and setup my drip pan and top grate to get ready for the ribs. This is the point where I did things a little different than usual and it made a huge difference. Instead of just dumping the coals and throwing my food on, I dumped the coals and then waited for the temperature of the grill to even out. Usually I am not patient enough to do all of that, but after doing it this time I can see how big of a difference it makes.
So after dumping the coals and setting up the drip pan and grate, I placed my wireless thermometer probe in the grill and closed the two vents to hopefully get the internal temp down to the 270 to 300 degree Fahrenheit range.
While that was happening I came inside and started prepping my ribs. I started by squirting a good deal of mustard on the ribs and rubbing that in. Then I covered it with my Kinder's spice rub that I had bought at the store. There are literally thousands of different spice rubs out there, but I like the Kinder's stuff because it is easy to find most places and the flavor is good if not a little salty sometimes.
Now, you might be thinking... "I can't stand mustard, why would I want to smear it all over my pork?" Trust me, I get it. I don't mind mustard, but I was a bit hesitant about this step too. Believe me when I say, you don't taste it. Plus it makes the rub stick to the meat better. Like I said, I was skeptical, but when they say you don't taste it, they really mean it. These ended up being some of the best ribs I have ever made and I think part of it was thanks to this rub method.
With my temp sitting at a pretty good spot I decided it was time to head out and throw the ribs on.
I had to go out a couple of times and adjust the vents to keep the temperature steady. At one point my temp was dropping pretty significantly so I threw a hunk of apple wood on the coals to bring the temp up and add some smoke flavor to the ribs.
If it had been summer I likely would have just sat out in my lawn chair and had a beer. It's not summer though and with the mercury dipping below the freezing mark I decided to do my waiting inside.
After about two hours in the 270 to 300 degree range, I came out and wrapped the ribs in aluminum foil to help keep them moist. I then got my chimney starter going again so I could add some coals to grill the chicken and potatoes that we were also going to have.
Here you can see the ribs over on the left, the chicken in the middle (obviously), and the packet of potatoes and onions over on the right.
After another hour or so I pulled the ribs out of the foil to finish them off. I was debating whether or not I wanted to add some sauce to them, but I decided to hold off this time so I could see how they turned out. I figured I could always add sauce after the fact if I wanted.
Now for the money shots...
I used my instant read thermometer to check the temp of the chicken and once it hit the 165 to 170 degree range I pulled it off.
I diced it up for my wife to use on her salads that she takes through the week for lunch and then I started cutting up the ribs.
It's a beautiful sight isn't it? I mean just look at that smoke ring. Talk about awesome. We even had some air fried asparagus to finish it off. I don't remember who it was that commented on my last post, but I am sure they will be happy to see that I have some green on my plate if they see this one.
I've gotta say, the ribs came out just about as close to perfect as I could have hoped. The meat pulled away from the bone fairly easily which is a sign of some good bbq. Usually if you have ribs where the meat is falling of the bone, it means they baked them, pressure cooked them, or some other method and simply finished them on the grill. BBQ purists expect the meat to stick to the bone and require a bit of a tug (with your teeth) and then pull away cleanly from the bone.
I just love ribs, so I can appreciate them whether they are falling off the bone or done the traditional way. It's all good as far as I am concerned. I have a picture I was debating sharing that shows how cleanly the meat came away from the bone, but honestly it is a bit gross since it shows my partially gnawed rib bones. Instead, you will just have to take my word for it!
All pictures taken by myself or
