Salt & Pepper Babyback Ribs with Apricot-Bourbon BBQ Sauce
What You Need
Ingredients
Preparation
These sweet and tangy ribs are simply seasoned with salt and pepper to let the meat’s flavor come through. Instead of a tomato-heavy sauce, they’re brushed with a lighter, slightly fruity blend of apricot preserves, bourbon, sautéed shallots and just enough ketchup, mustard and vinegar to evoke classic barbecue. Rubbing a cut lemon over the ribs before seasoning subtly brightens the flavor without adding any citrus taste. For a fun, colorful twist on standard peppercorns, opt for a rainbow blend with red, white and black.
*This recipe originally ran stateside on HexClad.com.
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Bake ribs. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C with a rack set in center. Rub ribs all over with lemon, gently squeezing to release some juice. In a small dish, combine sugar, 1 tablespoon salt and 2 teaspoons pepper. Rub well over both sides of ribs. Wrap each rack tightly with a double layer of aluminum foil and place in a single layer in a large HexClad Hybrid Roasting Pan.
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Bake until tender (but not falling apart) and a fork slides into meat and twists without resistance, about 2½ hours. Carefully open foil and transfer ribs to a wire rack set over a baking sheet.
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While ribs bake, make BBQ sauce. In a HexClad 2QT/2 L Hybrid Saucepan over medium, heat oil. Add shallots and cook, stirring constantly, until tender and lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Carefully pour in bourbon and simmer until reduced by about half, 2 minutes. Stir in preserves, ketchup, ¼ cup/60 ml water, vinegar, mustard, chili garlic sauce and 1 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to medium-low to maintain a slow simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. You should have around 1⅓ cups/350 ml. Set aside half for serving.
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Grill ribs. Preheat grill on medium-high (about 450°F/230°C) for at least 15 minutes.
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Place ribs meat-side up on grill and brush with some half of remaining sauce. Cook until ribs are sizzling and sauce has lost some shine, 3 to 5 minutes, using tongs to carefully move ribs to avoid flare-ups. Flip and cook meat-side down until sauce is lightly charred and caramelized, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip and brush meat side with remaining sauce and cook until sauce is matte, 3 to 5 minutes.
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Carefully transfer ribs to a large cutting board. Let sit a few minutes, then cut into 2- to 3-rib sections. Serve with reserved sauce.
MAKE AHEAD TIPS
Refrigerate barbecue sauce in an airtight container up to 4 days in advance. Gently warm, thinning with a splash of water if necessary, before using.
Ribs can be slow-baked up to 1 day in advance. Transfer to a clean baking sheet, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature for while the grill heats.
NOTES
To remove and discard membrane, flip ribs over so they are meat-side down. Using a butter knife, loosen the thin membrane (if there is one), peel off and discard.
