Pork Ribs are used in true traditional barbecue. There are many styles of barbecue pork ribs, but they all start with the same meat and smoke them for a long time. The secret with pork ribs is to not over flavor or over smoke them. They need to be cooked to the point where they will nearly fall apart but not to the point where they crumble. Good pork ribs should be carved with a knife but not require too much effort to eat them. To prepare Pork Ribs properly I suggest a good covering in yellow mustard to hold your spices in place and create a wonderful crust.
Beef ribs are great for barbecue. Smoked low and slow you get a tender and tasty treat that will be a great success at your next cookout. Use a sweet or savory rub, a complimentary sauce, and the only problem you will have is finding a platter big enough to serve them on. Really, these ribs are easy to prepare and delicious to eat. The biggest challenge with beef ribs is smoking them long enough to melt away all the connective tissues. Beef Ribs can take longer, but the amount of meat and the size of the ribs make for a real belly full.
You can make great ribs on your grill if you don't have a smoker. They may not turn out as tender and you will lose some of the smoke flavor, but with a few tricks you can set up your grill, whether gas or charcoal, to turn out some pretty darn good ribs. You will need to use indirect grilling, a smoker box, wood chips and a water pan for moisture. With some practice you're sure to get it right. Ideally, this should be done on a charcoal grill because most gas grills have trouble holding a low enough temperature to keep the ribs from burning before they are tender enough to serve.
There are as many different rubs, sauces and recipes for barbecue ribs as there are people who love to smoke them. If you skim through my list of recipes I am sure that you will find something that sounds perfect for you. If you don't then I suggest asking on the Bulletin Board, or dropping me an email. Together we can make the best list of rib recipes on the Internet.
