Just because I make my living as a personal chef doesn’t mean every meal I cook at home is a crowd pleaser.
My three little angels—Brendan, Gillian and Jacob—have devilishly picky palates. Luckily I have several never-fail recipes, like these Oven Barbecue Baby Back Ribs.
The rub is low in sugar, and a lean cut of pork guarantees my family gets plenty of protein. Serve these ribs at your next picnic or to spice up a weeknight meal.
Ingredients
2-4 slabs baby back pork ribs
For the rub:
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
¼ cup seasoned salt
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1½ teaspoons celery salt
¼ cup sweet Hungarian paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1¼ teaspoons dried sage
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon cayenne
1 pinch ground cloves
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 275ºF.
2. Put all rub ingredients in the food processor and pulse to combine.
3. Sprinkle the spice rub amply over both sides of the ribs.
4. Lay ribs on aluminum foil sheets in a single layer. Wrap completely with foil and place on a baking sheet in the oven. Cook for 90 minutes.
5. Turn the ribs over and return to oven for another hour.
6. Remove foil and cook 30 minutes more, uncovered. To see if the ribs are done to perfection, tug on one of them. You should be able to pull the meat apart easily.
