An episode of Diners Drive-Ins and Dives left me salivating in the middle of the night last night. Guy Fieri's Triple D visited a place in Southern California that featured a barbecued sparerib sandwich. The eatery, of course, smoked their signature-cut of St. Louis-Style ribs, removed the meat from the bones, fried it up on a flat-top (kinda like burnt ends) then piled it high on a nice soft bun with slices of sweet onion and bread-and-butter pickles -- my kinda sandwich. As luck would have it, I had a package of St. Louis-Style ribs in my freezer, which have thawed on my counter most of the morning, and, I'm making these sandwiches for dinner tonight (sans the smoker).
When it comes to purchasing pork spareribs, we cooks almost always have a choice to make: babyback (sometimes labeled "pork back ribs"), or, St. Louis-style (sometimes labeled "breastbone-off, pork ribs"). To the eye, babybacks are smaller (which appeals to many home cooks because they're more manageable), but, please know, this has nothing to do with the size of the pig (meaning, for those spreading false information: they're not taken from baby pigs).
Babybacks are cut from where the rib meets the spine after the loin is removed. Each rack weighs about 1 1/2-2 pounds and averages 10-13 curved, 4"-5"-long ribs. In our house, one rack will feed 2 people. St. Lewis- Style refers to the way the ribs are cut, not a style of barbecue. They are larger, meatier, and cut from the belly after the belly is removed. They get trimmed in the style of St. Lewis butchers, by cutting away the breastbone and cartilage to form a rectangular shape. Each rack weighs about 2 1/2-3 pounds and averages 12-14 flatfish, 6"-7"-long ribs. When serving these, I plan on one rack feeding 3-4 people. If you're so inclined to make a rack for the sole purpose of making these sandwiches, plan on feeding 6-8.
My broiled & baked method for cooking St. Lewis-Style ribs:
1 rack St. Lewis-style spareribs
freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend
2 cups water
1 1/4-1 1/2 cups barbecue sauce of choice, used in 3 increments (6-8 tablespoons, 6-8 tablespoons and 6-8 tablespoons) throughout recipe
~ Step 1. Remove ribs from packaging and pat dry in paper towels. Flip the rack, bottom side up and place it on a large work surface. Using a chef's knife or a pair of kitchen shears either remove the flap of meat that's up against the bone or trim it of excess fat. This choice is yours -- I trim off the excess fat and leave it on. Using a sharp-tipped paring knife, gently raise and loosen the membrane (called the silver skin) from the first rib, then, using a paper towel or two to get a grip on the membrane, slowly, but firmly, tear it off.
~Step 2. Insert a wire rack into a 20" x 12" x 4" disposable aluminum broiler pan and place a piece of parchment atop the rack. Transfer the ribs to the parchment, placing them bottom side up. Generously season with freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend. Place the pan on an oven rack that has be positioned 8" underneath preheated broiler. Broil ribs until golden, 18-20 minutes. Remove from oven. Flip ribs over, season top side with sea salt and peppercorn blend and return to broiler 18-20 more minutes.
~ Step 3. Remove from oven and reset the oven to 350°. Without moistening the ribs, add 2 cups of water to bottom of pan. Using a pastry brush, generously paint the rack of ribs, on both sides with the barbecue sauce, using about 6-8 tablespoons per side. Cover and tightly seal the pan with aluminum foil -- if the foil rips or tears, start over with a new piece of foil. Return ribs to the oven and bake 1 hour.
~ Step 4. Remove pan from oven, reset the oven to broil, and position the oven rack to 6" underneath the heat source. Paint top of ribs with the last 6-8 tablespoons of the barbecue sauce. Place the pan under preheated broiler and broil the ribs again, until sauce is bubbling, turning golden brown (caramelizing) and, showing slight signs of charring across the surface, about 5-6 minutes. Watch carefully. The sugar in any type of barbecue sauce can and will go from brown to burned very quickly.
Remove from oven & transfer to a large board:
Slice ribs while hot, warm or at room temperature:
Remove meat from rib bones & chop into bite-sized pieces:
Place 3/4-1 cup rib meat, tossed w/2 tablespoons barbecue sauce (per sandwich), in a nonstick skillet, on the stovetop.
Sauté over medium-high heat for 1-1 1/2 minute:
Assembly = roll + onion slices + meat + bread & butter pickles:
Broiled & Baked St. Louis-Style Sparerib Sandwich: Recipe yields Recipe yields 1 rack of perfectly-cooked, large, meaty St.-Lewis-style spareribs/enough meat for 6-8 sandwiches.
Special Equipment List: paper towels; chef's knife or kitchen shears; paring knife; 20" x 12" x 4" disposable aluminum roasting pan; wire cooling rack; parchment paper; 2-cup measuring container; pastry brush; aluminum boil
Cook's Note: Country-style spareribs are taken from the rib end of the pork loin, and, like baby backs and St. Lewis ribs they are fatty, flavorful, and, very meaty. While all three are suited perfectly for the dry, high heat of the grill, country-style ribs take to the oven like ducks to water. I love them, but, more importantly, so does my entire family. ~ Broiled & Baked: K.C. BBQ'D Country-Style Ribs ~.
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2021)
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