BACK TO BASICS PORK RIBS

Time to get back to basics, and let's talk about some good old home cooking utilizing pork ribs. Pork ribs? Hey man I'm confused, I see all kinds of shit out there in the meat section, and they label it "pork ribs" but I don't' see no bones, I see different looking stuff man.

Yeah junior I know, I know. So let's go over some things shall we? Ok, pay attention. Pork like beef, or cattle, is basically the same. Yes, they look different but I meant they are both quadrupeds, they walk on all fours, and generally the rib sections are pretty much tender, I said generally. Okay I'll go over some of the rib cuts of the pig right here, and I'll borrow some pics from Google which is what my blog is powered by, and I am making this statement, "I am not making money off of this blog post, just sharing with my foodies."

Below is two slabs of baby back ribs, it is sold anywhere from 8 to 13 bones, or rib bones. Younger hogs are generally the ones used for baby backs, weighing around the mid 200 pounds class. The baby backs are also called loin ribs, back ribs, they are from the top of the rib cage between the spine and the spare ribs, below the loin muscle. The appearance of these ribs looks like they are wide at one end and it becomes narrower towards the other end, this is attributed to the way the hog was designed naturally, look at a hog, the animal does look wider at the front of its body and narrower towards the end. The meat in-between the bones are not really tender, so slow cooking them is the way to go, or any method that creates steam. 

One way to cook these is to slather them with your favorite BBQ sauce, and place them on a hot grill creating a crust, then on to a lower heated grill and slow cooked for a couple of hours. Or just slather them with a rub, and using foil, wrap them up tight, and roast it in the oven for a couple of hours, the meat just falls off of the bones.

This tip can help you in the kitchen, pork baby back ribs are great cuts, my mom actually made soup with them, that's right, some culinary t.v. star may frown on that, but shit, she knew how to cook em up, the meat fell off of the bone, and the broth was awesome, because of the bones, it was great! So try them out, ask questions at the butcher shop, get to know the hog.

Until next time, have a great life!

Ron Sambrano

               

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