Folks seem to like my BBQ ribs. Sometimes I wrap them, sometimes I don't. And I like the top to get a semi-caramelized look to it, although I do admit sometimes it gets a little tough on top and you need a sharp knife to slice through it without dragging it off the adjoining ribs for presentation. Very tasty though. Well today I noticed that the caramelized top is apparently a no-no on "the circuit".
I was watching BBQ Pitmasters this morning (they appear to be having a marathon showing) and three top rib cookers were competing for the big prize. And I saw two do something that never occurred to me and one of them also did something else.
Usually when I wrap up the ribs I add some sort of citric liquid, like apple juice, orange juice, pineapple juice... it adds a subtle flavor and helps tenderize the meat by gently steaming. What two of the competitors did was add a layer of brown sugar and honey to the foil and put the ribs on meat side down. I am going to try this. They add their sweetness during the wrapping stage, whereas I always try to make a sweet/hot sauce for finishing.
And the one guy, who ended up winning BTW, did something I have never seen before. I have seen guys mop their ribs, but he used squeeze butter and gave the ribs a few lines up and down. He added that this was to prevent them from getting that tough layer on top and he did this at the one hour mark while they were still on the smoker.
Anyway, I saw a couple new methods I thought I would try out.
Does anyone else do this; brown sugar/honey glaze while the ribs are wrapped? Or "mopping" with squeezable butter?
I was watching BBQ Pitmasters this morning (they appear to be having a marathon showing) and three top rib cookers were competing for the big prize. And I saw two do something that never occurred to me and one of them also did something else.
Usually when I wrap up the ribs I add some sort of citric liquid, like apple juice, orange juice, pineapple juice... it adds a subtle flavor and helps tenderize the meat by gently steaming. What two of the competitors did was add a layer of brown sugar and honey to the foil and put the ribs on meat side down. I am going to try this. They add their sweetness during the wrapping stage, whereas I always try to make a sweet/hot sauce for finishing.
And the one guy, who ended up winning BTW, did something I have never seen before. I have seen guys mop their ribs, but he used squeeze butter and gave the ribs a few lines up and down. He added that this was to prevent them from getting that tough layer on top and he did this at the one hour mark while they were still on the smoker.
Anyway, I saw a couple new methods I thought I would try out.
Does anyone else do this; brown sugar/honey glaze while the ribs are wrapped? Or "mopping" with squeezable butter?