Today on SASTV: 3-2-1 Ribs

Sue-Ann's BBQ rib odyssey continued this weekend with an Instagram Live video featuring 3-2-1 Ribs! Now that restrictions are lifting and we can entertain a few more people at home, consider making these luscious ribs for family on Father's Day. 

Sue-Ann chose pork side ribs for this recipe, specifically, the meaty St. Louis cut. 3-2-1 refers to the process: 3 hours of smoking, 2 hours of wrapping (and rehydrating) and 1 hour for mopping with sauce on the grill. 

But let's begin with the rub and the sauce (recipe sourced from from Hot Sauce Williams, Cleveland). Sure, you can buy bbq sauce, there's a million great ones on the market, but it's super satisfying to make it yourself at home. Plus it makes the kitchen smell great!!

Rub

• 2 tablespoons coarse ground salt
• 1 tablespoon light brown cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1 teaspoon fine ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Store mixture in an airtight container in a cool dark place.

Barbecue Sauce

• 2 cups ketchup
• 1 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup dark brown cane sugar
• 1/4 cup white worcestershire sauce (note: we have no idea where to find WHITE worcestershire sauce, so she used the regular sauce instead)
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 3 whole lemons

1. Combine the ketchup, vinegar, butter, sugar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce and lemons in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. Squeeze the juice from the lemons into the sauce through a sieve, to remove the seeds and add pulp and zest to the mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring with a wire whisk. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lemons before use.

Barbecue Bath (you need 1 cup of liquid total per rib rack)

• 1/2 cup of peach juice 
• 1/2 cup of Fancy Farm Girl Frivolous White Riesling

To prepare the ribs, Sue-Ann massaged them all over with the rub and let them sit (covered, or wrapped in foil) overnight in the fridge. 

Soak 2 cups of cherry-wood chips in water for about 20 minutes before draining. Place drained chips in an aluminum foil pie plate and seal with more foil OR make a foil pocket that that you can seal. Pierce the foil several times to allow the smoke to escape. 

About 6 hours before serving, light the grill and heat to 250F. Put the foil wrapped chips on the grill. When the chips begin to smoke, put the ribs on the grill as close to the chips as possible. Close the grill and leave it alone for 3 hours. 

After 3 hours, remove the chips and discard. Take the ribs off the grill and place in a new foil pouch, then add the Barbecue Bath and seal the pouch tightly, then place back on the grill for 2 hours, still at 250F. This is seriously low'n slow cooking. 

After 2 hours, remove the ribs from their Barbecue Bath pouches and place directly on the grill, still at 250F for 1 hour. Spend the last hour generously and frequently mopping the ribs with your delicious sauce, while enjoying the rest of the Fancy Farm Girl Frivolous White. As Sue-Ann's Dad used to say, "baste the chef as often as you baste the meat"!

Serve with cornbread and coleslaw and chilled bottles of Sue-Ann's VQA wines :)