There are 4 different cuts of ribs on a hog – Baby Back Ribs, Spareribs, St. Louis Cut Ribs and Rib Tips. They all come from the rib area, below the tenderloin and just behind the Picnic and Shoulder Butt sections. But there is a world of difference in the four cuts.
Baby Back Ribs have become extremely popular with home chefs and at many restaurants. They are fairly tender, easy to cook and eat, but my favorite cut is the St. Louis Style Ribs. St Louis cut ribs are basically spareribs but trimmed up a little more. This cut of rib is preferred on the competition circuit, as it is neat and tidy for presentation.
The meat is pretty much the same as that you would find on spareribs, minus the cartilage and gristle found at the bottom. The name St. Louis Ribs comes from the cut of the meat, not the seasoning or sauce used. This cut became popular when meat packers from St Louis first started to cut their ribs in this manner.
St. Louis Style Ribs are meatier, juicier and offer more meat for the money. But they are tougher than Baby Backs so they must be cooked slower and longer.
Grocery stores usually have Baby Back Ribs, but they don’t always don’t always have the St. Louis Ribs. I buy them when I see them and on a recent trip to Kroger’s and they had St. Louis Ribs on special. I bought a nice rack for about ten bucks – more the enough for the two of us. They were yummy!
Here’s how I cooked mine.
First, take off the membrane from the back of the ribs. Pat them dry and apply a healthy dose of dry rub. I made my own with roughly equal parts of garlic powder, salt, pepper, onion powder, paprika and about 3 T of brown sugar. There is no right or wrong way to make and apply the rub. It just adds flavor during the cooking process.
Wrap the bibs tightly in foil meat side up – that keeps them moist and eliminates having to worry about “how long factor”.
Put them in a 285 oven for about 5 hours, take them out and apply your favorite BBQ sauce. Any leftovers make an amazing BBQ sandwich the next day.
St. Louis Ribs
1 Rack St. Louis Ribs (serves 2 people)
1 t each of garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper
3 T brown sugar
Garnish with your favorite BBQ sauce
