5 Hour Smoked Ribs

Like a lot of people, Sunday for us has to include a nice family meal where we spend plenty of time in the kitchen leisurely cooking and chatting then sit down at the table and savour every bite with a bottle of wine – even if it is just the two of us! In the winter it is comforting roasts or stews like Coq au Vin, Beef Bourguignon or my delicious Barbecue Beef stew, that are cooked slowly for a long time, filling the house with their delicious aromas. Summer is no different except for the fact that the majority of the time the meat is cooked on the barbecue by Mr. Vanilla while I cook the sides. With the weather starting to change and the need for a little comfort food, this Sunday was all about low and slow….Mr. Vanilla smoked some beef ribs on the barbecue over indirect heat for 5 hours and I cooked up a pot of barbecue baked beans. The end result had us still talking about it the next morning which in my opinion is a good indication of just how much we enjoyed it!

5 Hour Smoked Beef Ribs

I have to give Mr. Vanilla full credit for these ribs (as much as I would love to take the credit myself) – he did himself proud! We have eaten a lot of smoked ribs over the years and we both agreed these were the best yet! Sticky and almost chewy on the outside and then buttery, melt-in-your-mouth beef underneath. The meat was so tender it practically fell off the bone and was perfectly smoked and then finished with the lovely sweet and tangy barbecue sauce. Yes, he did well and so I will give him all the credit, especially because he spent 5 hours smoking them! This recipe is an absolute must if you like ribs, just make sure you have a dry day, plenty of time and of course a beer or two to help you on your way!

Serves 4

2 kg approx. of beef ribs
(That was more than enough for the 4 of us but it just depends how hungry you are and whether you would be happy with any leftovers! The ribs we bought were called beef ‘grilling’ ribs – see what you can get.)

For the dry rub:
5 tbsp paprika (I use 3 tbsp of ordinary paprika & 2 tbsp La Chinata sweet paprika)
3 tbsp onion powder
3 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tbsp mustard powder
1 tbsp salt
2 tsp ground black pepper

For the BBQ sauce:
1 cup of bbq sauce of your choice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp onion powder
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
¼ cup olive oil

Since the barbecue is Mr. Vanilla's domain the instructions for getting the barbecue ready to go are a little on the brief side! Hopefully though it will be enough to get you going. One piece of advice though is that Mr. Vanilla always uses a thermometer – it’s the only way to make sure the temperature stays consistent. Light the barbecue and let it come to temperature – Mr. Vanilla kept it at 275F for the full 5 hours to ensure long, slow smoking and used natural lump charcoal (hardwood) with natural briquettes which give the lovely smoky flavour.

While the barbecue coals are smouldering away start getting the ribs ready. Mix all of the dry rub ingredients together in a small bowl. Place the beef ribs on a large baking tray and sprinkle over the dry rub. Rub the mix well into the ribs so that they are evenly covered on both sides. Set the ribs aside until you are ready to start cooking them.

When your barbecue has reached the right temperature place the ribs onto the grill. Leave to slowly smoke for 4 hours checking every hour or so (check more at the start to ensure they are smoking very gently).

While the ribs are smoking make the BBQ sauce by placing everything together into a small pan. Bring to a simmer then continue to simmer gently for a couple of minutes then remove from the heat and leave to cool.

After 4 hours baste the ribs with the barbecue sauce then leave to smoke for another 30 minutes before basting again. Leave for a final 30 minutes then remove from the barbecue and place on a large plate. Leave to rest for 5 minutes then roll up your sleeves, get the fingers bowls ready and enjoy!

BBQ Baked Beans

The key to these beans is to cook them low and slow. A perfect weekend recipe when you have time to let them slowly simmer away and infuse with all the delicious flavours.

I used Chipotle BBQ Sauce for a change which definitely added a nice kick to the beans. If you would prefer not to have any spice use normal BBQ sauce and instead of using hot paprika use sweet or ordinary paprika instead.

Drizzle of olive oil
6 rashers of streaky bacon, snipped or cut into small pieces
1 onion, finely chopped
1 fat clove of garlic, crushed
2 tins of navy or cannellini beans
250ml passata
4 tbsp BBQ sauce (I used Chipotle BBQ sauce for a little extra kick)
250ml chicken stock
2 tsp light brown sugar
1 tsp hot paprika (La Chinata if you can)
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 sprigs of thyme
1 sprig of rosemary
1 bay leaf – either fresh or dried
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large medium-large pan then added the bacon pieces and cook until they are just turning crispy. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes until the onions have softened then add the garlic and cook for another minute before adding the beans. Stir well then add the passata, BBQ sauce, stock, sugar, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, rosemary, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Mix everything together well then cover and leave to simmer over a very low heat for 1 hour, stirring from time to time.

After 1 hour remove the lid and continue to simmer for another 30 minutes. Just before serving remove the thyme, rosemary and bay leaf and taste to check the seasoning.