So you’re Brad Pitt? That don’t impress me much, but these Smoked Cheerwine Baby Back Ribs sure do. I’m throwing these into the mix for Thanksgiving and will not be surprised at all if they steal the show from Mr. Turkey. As always, the magic comes from the low and slow smoker. Pay attention to the spritz/wrap, and you just may have found your go to pork recipe.
Tips / Suggestions
- To me, the easiest way to pull off the membrane on the ribs is to use a paper towel and start on the smaller end of the rack. Use the paper towel to pinch the membrane until you are able to pull some of it up. Then grab it with the paper towel and start pulling slowly until it all comes off. If you need to, use a small knife to get under the membrane.
- I trim the ribs a little before I smoke them. Cut any loose fat off and if need be, trim the ends off a little if the rib bone / meat is too small or skinny. This part usually burns anyways, so unless you like that, just remove it from the rack.
- As I noted in the recipe, a great way to measure the doneness of the ribs is the bend test. Using tongs, pick up each rack in the middle and look for a slight bend that causes the meat to tear a little. This typically means they are done and ready to eat.
Smoked Cheerwine Baby Back Ribs
4
servings30
minutes5
hoursBaby back ribs smoked low and slow and smothered with an insanely tasty Cheerwine BBQ sauce.
Ingredients
2 2 racks of baby back ribs (membrane removed)
8 tbsp 8 yellow mustard
pork or BBQ seasoning of choice
8 tbsp 8 hot honey
6 tbsp 6 butter non-salted (cut into 12 slices)
- Spritz
1 cup 1 apple cider vinegar
1 cup 1 water
2 tbsp 2 worcestershire sauce
- Cheerwine BBQ Sauce
12 oz 12 Cheerwine (1 bottle)
1.5 cups 1.5 ketchup
1 tbsp 1 molasses
1/4 cup 1/4 brown sugar
1 tbsp 1 worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp 1 pork or BBQ seasoning of choice
Directions
- Remove the membrane from the ribs. Coat the ribs all over with the mustard and then liberally apply the seasoning till every area of pork is completely covered. Set aside.
- Heat a pan over medium heat and add the BBQ sauce ingredients. Once it starts to boil, reduce to a simmer. and continue to cook (stirring frequently) until the sauce reaches your desired thickness. It was roughly 25 minutes for me. Set aside, and once cool, add to a squirt bottle.
- Heat your smoker (or grill) to 225 degrees F indirect. Add a wood chunk or two of your choice. I prefer apple or pecan.
- Smoke for 3 hours. Every 45 minutes spray the ribs with a mixture of even mixture of apple cider vinegar / water and 1 tbsp of worcestershire sauce.
- Take a sheet of aluminum foil and place 3 slices of butter on top. Add 2 tbsp of hot honey and then place one of the rib racks on top, bones facing upwards. Add 3 more slices of butter, 2 tbsp of hot honey, several sprays of the apple cider vinegar mix, and wrap the ribs tightly in the foil. Repeat this same process for the other rack.
- Place the ribs back on the grill, bone side facing upwards. Smoke (still at 225 degrees F) for roughly 1.5 hours.
- Remove the ribs from the foil, place the racks bone side down on the smoker, smother with the bbq sauce, and cook for another 30 minutes. The ribs are done when you pick them up in the middle of the rack and they bend, slightly tearing the meat.
- Remove the ribs from the smoker and wrap loosely in foil. Let rest for 15- 20 minutes. Then, slice up, serve with additional bbq sauce, and dig in.
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