Babyback Ribs

I want my babyback, babyback, babyback…

I hereby apologize for getting that stuck in your head like it’s stuck in mine. Misery loves company. We’ll leave aside the question of whether my compulsion to sing that song with this meal constitutes a form of echolalia, and get right to the recipe!

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I happened to get these pre-cut “fingerling” ribs, but the procedure is exactly the same for an uncut rack of pork ribs. Lay them out on a baking sheet covered with foil, and give them a decent sprinkling of salt and pepper.

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We’re going to be cooking these at a relatively high temperature so that we don’t have to leave them in the oven all afternoon. But in order to do this, we have to trap the moisture in around the meat so it doesn’t dry out. So make a foil tent over the pan, sealing it around all the edges but leaving an inch or so of airspace above the meat. Then just throw the pan in a 400 degree oven and walk away for an hour. Surely you have something else you want to do besides stand in the kitchen for an hour, right?

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When the timer goes off, carefully remove the foil tent, and take a moment to marvel at how well foil reflects heat. Once it’s off the (dangerously hot) pan, you can ball that sucker up with your bare hands to throw it away. Amazing!

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Now it’s time to baste the ribs in your favorite GFCF barbecue sauce. We like this brand called Sweet Baby Ray’s, but there are a number of options out there. [As always, the brands I use were GFCF at the time of posting, but manufacturers can change recipes without warning. Always check your labels!]

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Brush the sauce liberally over both sides of your ribs. (I mean your pork ribs, not your your ribs. Put your shirt back on.)

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Put them back in the oven, uncovered, and after about 20 more minutes you’ll have this awe-inspiring collection of tender, juicy ribs. This is one of my favorite meals to make when I’m super-busy, because while it’s an hour and twenty minutes in the oven, it’s only maybe 5 minutes of actual work. It doesn’t get much shorter than that.

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Happy Eating!