Crushed Peppercorn & Orange Glazed Ribs (Brontosaurus)
6 pounds beef back ribs or your favourite ribs
½ Tbsp red peppercorns
½ Tbsp black peppercorns
½ Tbsp white peppercorns
½ Tbsp green peppercorns
(If you don’t have all of these – just use white and black peppercorns – it still tastes great)
1 Tbsp orange zest
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice (pulp included)
½ cup hoisin sauce
¼ cup red wine vinegar
5 cloves garlic, finely minced
¼ cup minced green onions, (both green and white parts minced)
¼ cup fresh minced cilantro sprigs
1. Remove the membrane from the underside of the ribs. (See bottom for removing the membrane) Then place in a rectangular dish or baking pan or a large platter.
2. To make the dry rub: place the peppercorns in a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle, and grind them to a medium powder. Rub the pepper across the surface of the meat.
3. In a medium bowl, combine all the remaining glaze ingredients and stir well. Makes 1 1/3 cups
4. Coat the ribs evenly on both sides with the glaze. Marinate the ribs, refrigerated, for at least 30 minutes. For more flavour, marinate for up to 8 hours.
5. To grill the ribs, preheat BBQ to medium. Occasionally during cooking, baste the ribs with any extra glaze, stopping 15 minutes before removing the ribs from the grill.
6. Grill the ribs until the meat begins to shrink from the ends of the rib bones. If grilling with indirect heat – beef ribs – grilled on medium-low heat could take up to 90 minutes. You can smoke the ribs when they are on for this long, too!
7. If grilling over direct heat-on medium-low:-grill until the meat begins to shrink from the ends of the rib bones-approx cooking time 30-40 minutes. Check with a meat thermometer: Grill to 160 deg F. Remove from grill and let ribs rest 5 minutes before cutting. Serves 4
*Note from Anna* Removing the Membrane
All ribs have a tough membrane that covers the underside (the non-meaty side) of the ribs. This membrane is called the ‘fell’. For all cooking techniques, remove the membrane or the ribs will always be tough. Most markets sell the ribs without removing the membrane. If you don’t remember to ask the butcher to complete this task for you, here is a simple method for removing the membrane at home. Place the ribs, meaty side down, on a flat surface. Using your fingernail, or the tip of a paring knife, loosen a little of the membrane along the end of the last rib bone. Then, grasp the membrane firmly with a paper towel (so that the membrane doesn’t slip from your grip). Holding the ribs down with the other hand, pull the membrane away. If it doesn’t pull away in one piece, dislodge any remaining membrane, grip it with a paper towel, and pull the membrane away.
I received this recipe from Anna