Struttin Sauce For Kansas City Sloppy Ribs Recipes

KANSAS CITY RIB SAUCE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add garlic and cook over medium-high heat for 20 seconds. Take care not to burn the garlic.
• Add the remaining ingredients-ketchup, water, cider vinegar, brown sugar, paprika, chili powder, and cayenne, and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer on low for 13 to 15 minutes until thickened. Stir occasionally. Watch for burning and reduce the heat or take it off of the burner, if needed.
• Remove the sauce from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes before using on ribs.
• Prior to using the sauce on the ribs, set some sauce aside for a table sauce.

KANSAS CITY SLOPPY RIBS (INCLUDES AN AWESOME DRY RUB RECIPE)

Steps:

• The night before you plan to grill, combine the rub ingredients in a bowl. Apply about one-third of the rub evenly to the ribs, reserving the rest. Place the slabs in a plastic bag and refrigerate them overnight.
• Before you begin to barbecue, take the ribs from the refrigerator. Sprinkle the ribs lightly but thoroughly with rub, reserving the rest of the mixture. Let the ribs sit at room temperature for 30 to 40 minutes.
• Smoke the ribs, or grill them, turning and sprinkling them with more dry rub about halfway through cooking. In the last 45 minutes of cooking, slather the ribs once or twice with Struttin' Sauce (recipe posted separately).
• Allow the ribs to sit about 10 minutes before serving with more sauce alongside.
• Note: cooking time is approximate grilling time. Since not everyone has a smoker, I allowed for that -- smoking will take much longer. I also like to parboil the ribs a bit before grilling as it makes them more tender -- obviously before marinating and applying any rub.

RIBS WITH KANSAS CITY BARBECUE SAUCE

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Combine the garlic, chili powder, cayenne, allspice, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a bowl. Whisk the ketchup, 1 cup water, the vinegar, mustard, molasses, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce in a separate bowl. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic mixture and cook, stirring, until the oil turns brick red, about 1 minute. Add the ketchup mixture and bring to a gentle simmer; cook, whisking occasionally, 30 minutes.
• Make the ribs: Soak 1 heaping cup hickory, mesquite or apple-wood chips in water, at least 30 minutes. Prepare a grill for indirect cooking over medium-low heat (about 250 degrees F): On a charcoal grill, bank the coals to one side; on a gas grill, turn on only one side of the burners. Cover the grate on the cooler side of the grill with aluminum foil. Close the grill lid. Position the ribs on a cutting board, meat-side down. Slip a small knife between the bone and membrane, then gently pull off the membrane. Sprinkle the racks with 1 teaspoon each salt and black pepper on both sides. Drain the wood chips. For a charcoal grill, scatter the chips directly over the hot coals; for a gas grill, put the chips in a smoker box and position over direct heat. Put the ribs meat-side up on the foil on the cooler side of the grill. Close the grill lid; bring the temperature back up and cook the ribs, undisturbed, 3 hours. (For a charcoal grill, adjust the vents, or add more hot, ashed-over coals as needed to maintain consistent heat.) Remove the ribs and close the lid. Wrap each rack tightly in foil, then return to the cooler side of the grill, meat-side down; close the lid and grill 2 more hours. Remove the ribs and carefully unwrap. Return to the cooler side of the grill, meat-side up; cook, basting generously with the sauce halfway through, until the meat is tender, about 1 more hour. Remove the racks and let rest a few minutes before slicing. Serve with the remaining sauce. Photograph by Con Poulos

KANSAS CITY-STYLE BBQ SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, chili powder, paprika, red pepper, allspice, and cloves and cook, stirring, until paste is dark brick red, about 3 minutes. Add the ketchup, water, vinegar, molasses, brown sugar, salt, soy sauce, Worcestershire, mustard, black pepper, and bay leaf. Adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the flavors come together, about 30 minutes. Remove and discard bay leaf before using.

"STRUTTIN' SAUCE" FOR KANSAS CITY SLOPPY RIBS

Steps:

• In a saucepan, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute' until they are softened, about 5 minutes. Mix in the remaining ingredients, reduce the heat to low, and cook the mixture until it thickens, approximately 30 minutes. Stir frequently. If the consistency is thicker than you prefer, add a little water. Use the sauce warm or chilled. It keeps, refrigerated, for a couple of weeks.

KANSAS CITY SWEET-AND-SMOKY RIBS

Steps:

• 1. Trim each rack of ribs or have your butcher do this for you.
• 2. Place the ribs in a large nonreactive roasting pan. Pour the cider over the ribs. Squeeze the juice from the lemons over the ribs, catching the seeds with your fingers. Turn the ribs a couple of time to coat all over with marinade. If desired, let the ribs marinate in the refrigerator, covered, for 4 to 6 hours, turning several times.
• 3. Drain the ribs and blot dry with paper towels. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the rub on both sides of the ribs, patting it onto the meat with your fingers. Let the ribs stand in the refrigerator, covered, for 1 to 2 hours.
• 4. Set up the grill for indirect grilling and preheat to medium. If using a charcoal grill, place a large drip pan in the center. If using a gas grill, place all the wood chips in the smoker box or in a smoker pouch and preheat to high until you see smoke, then reduce the heat to medium.
• 5. When ready to cook, if using charcoal, toss 1 cup of wood chips on the coals. Place the ribs in the center of the hot grate, away from the heat. Cover the grill and cook the ribs for 2 to 3 hours. After 30 minutes, spray the ribs with apple cider and continue to spray every half hour until ready to brush with the sauce. If using a charcoal grill, you'll need to add 12 fresh coals and 1/2 cup wood chips per side after each hour.
• 6. Lightly brush the ribs with 1 cup of the sauce 20 minutes before the ribs are done. When the ribs are fully cooked, the meat will have shrunk back from the bones about 1/4 inch, and the meat will be tender enough to tear apart with your fingers. But don't overcook; the ribs should have some chew to them. If the ribs start to dry out, wrap them in aluminum foil for the last hour of cooking.
• 7. Transfer the ribs to plates or a platter. Sprinkle the ribs with the remaining rub and lightly brush again with barbecue sauce. Let the ribs rest for a few minutes, then serve with the remaining barbecue sauce on the side.
• VARIATION:
• You can also cook the ribs in a smoker. Smoke them for 4 to 5 hours at 225°F
• ALSO GOOD FOR:
• This is a wonderful way to prepare baby back ribs. In this case, you'll need to allow 1 to 1 1/2 hours for indirect grilling or 2 to 3 hours for cooking in a smoker.

KANSAS CITY SPARERIBS

Steps:

• Make dry rub:
• Mix brown sugar, paprika, coarse salt, black pepper, onion powder and cayenne pepper in small bowl for dry rub. Sprinkle 2/3 cup dry rub all over spareribs. Cover ribs with plastic wrap; refrigerate overnight. Cover remaining dry rub; store at room temperature.
• Unwrap seasoned spareribs; sprinkle all over with half of remaining dry rub. Let spareribs stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
• Following manufacturer's instructions and using natural lump charcoal and 1/2 cup drained wood chips for smoker or 1 cup for barbecue (see box at right), start fire and bring temperature of smoker to 200°F. to 225°F. or barbecue to 275°F. to 300°F. Arrange ribs on rack in smoker or barbecue. Cover and cook ribs 2 hours, turning occasionally. Add more charcoal as needed to maintain temperature and more drained wood chips (1/2 cup for smoker or 1 cup for barbecue with each addition) to maintain smoke level.
• Sprinkle ribs evenly with all remaining dry rub. Cover and cook 1 hour 15 minutes. Brush ribs generously with barbecue sauce. Continue cooking until meat is very tender and brown, about 30 minutes longer. Maintain temperature by adding more lump charcoal; maintain smoke level by adding more drained hickory wood chips as needed.
• Transfer ribs to large serving platter. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut rib racks between bones into individual ribs and serve immediately.

KANSAS CITY-STYLE RIBS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix brown sugar and seasonings; sprinkle over ribs. Refrigerate, covered, at least 1 hour., For sauce, in a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender, 5-6 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat., Wrap ribs in a large piece of heavy-duty foil; seal edges of foil. Grill, covered, over indirect medium heat until ribs are tender, 1-1/4 to 1-3/4 hours., Carefully remove ribs from foil. Place ribs over direct medium heat; baste with some of the sauce. Grill, covered, until browned, 8-10 minutes, turning and basting occasionally with remaining sauce.