Ina's Foolproof Baby Back Ribs with Barbecue Sauce

One of Ina Garten's sensational summer recipes is her Foolproof Ribs with Barbecue Sauce, and her secret to perfect grilled ribs — cook them in the oven first! "There are two great benefits of this method: first, instead of fussing with the heat of the coals, all I have to do is put the ribs in the oven, set a timer and forget about them; and second, I can make them ahead! Early in the day, I'll roast the ribs, and just before serving, I'll fire up the grill and barbecue them". She created this recipe after making three types of barbecue sauces: one mustardy, one tomatoey, and one Asian. When she tasted them, like Goldilocks, the first one was too mustardy, the second was too tomatoey, and the third was too Asian! So she decided to try combining the three, and it turned out being the best sauce she'd ever tried. This is the result, and it's her favourite to this day — and our too!



Ina's Foolproof Baby Back Ribs with Barbecue Sauce
Serves 6-8
Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten

Ribs:
5 lb Baby Back or St. Louis Style Ribs 
2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper

Barbecue Sauce:
1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups finely chopped yellow onion
1 tbsp minced garlic, about 3 cloves
1 cup tomato paste
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup honey
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup hoisin sauce
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin


For the sauce, heat the oil in a large saucepan over low heat, add the onions and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the onions are translucent but not browned. Add the garlic and cook for one more minute. Add the tomato paste, vinegar, honey, Worcestershire, mustard, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Use the sauce immediately or pour into a container and refrigerate for several weeks.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the ribs meat side up, then sprinkle them with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Pour the BBQ sauce generously on each rack and cover the ribs loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 1/2 hours for baby back and 1 3/4 hours for St. Louis Style ribs, until the meat is very tender when tested with a fork. As soon as the ribs are out of the oven, spread them generously with additional BBQ sauce. They can be grilled right away or refrigerated to grill later.

About 40 minutes before you want to serve, heat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat, and brush the cooking grate with vegetable oil to keep the ribs from sticking. Place the ribs on the grill ribs-side down, and grill lid-down for 5 minutes. Turn the ribs meat-side down, put the lid back down, and grill for another 4-5 minutes, until nicely browned. Place on a cutting board, cover tightly with aluminum foil, and allow the ribs to rest for 10 minutes. Cut into ribs into serving portions and serve hot with extra BBQ sauce on the side. Delicious served with my tried-and-true Jalapeño Corn Pudding
 and homemade cole slaw.