Tyler's Ultimate Barbecued Ribs

Tyler Florence is amazing. I have always liked his shows and his recipes, and lately have been on a kick to try his "ultimate" recipes from Tyler's Ultimate.

I have yet to be disappointed. Last night, I made the Ultimate Ribs. They were AMAZING. The sauce alone...OMG. Incredible. Sweet, sticky, a tiny bit of spice...exactly what a good barbecue sauce should be. These take some time (two hours total) and I did them in the oven since we were out of propane and the directions call for oven cooking.

There's a video of him cooking the ribs on the Food Network site. I made these exactly as the recipe said (I know, for once I followed a recipe exactly, LOL). And they were the best ribs I've ever cooked, probably the best ones I've had. I'm not a huge fan of ribs (not a fan of messy meals, really) but I couldn't stop eating these ones. It was only me and DH last night for dinner (he loved them too) so no kid opinions.

Tyler Florence's Ultimate Ribs

NOTE: For mine, I used red vinegar and had Dijon mustard so I used that, not the dry mustard. It makes more sauce than you need, which is great for another dinner. I'm going to put it on some chicken next week. But truly, I loved the sauce so much I could eat just that, LOL.

2 slabs baby back ribs (about 3 pounds)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 bacon slices
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 onion (NOTE: NOT CHOPPED UP, just leave it whole or cut it in half)
3 smashed garlic cloves
2 cups ketchup
1 cup peach preserves
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard or 1 tablespoon dry mustard
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground paprika

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Put the ribs on a baking sheet, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Stick them in the oven, and let the ribs bake, low and slow for 1 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Wrap the bacon around the middle of the thyme sprigs and tie with kitchen twine so you have a nice bundle. Heat a 2-count of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the thyme bundle and cook slowly for 3 to 4 minutes to render the bacon fat and give the sauce a nice smoky taste. Add the onion and garlic and cook slowly, without coloring (NOTE: I THINK HE MEANT STIRRING), for 5 minutes. Add all of the rest of the sauce ingredients, give the sauce a stir, and turn the heat down to low. Cook slowly for 20 minutes to meld the flavors. Put some sauce in a separate bowl for basting, reserving the remaining sauce for serving.

Baste the ribs with the sauce and let them continue cooking, basting twice more, for 30 more minutes. When the ribs are cooked, take them out of the oven. You can let them hang out like this until you're ready to eat.

When ready to eat, preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and broil the ribs, basting with the sauce. They should become crisp and charred, about 5 minutes on each side. Pick the onion and garlic out of the sauce and serve with ribs. (NOTE: I broiled 5 minutes on one side, 5 on the other, then basted once more on the "pretty" side and broiled another 3 minutes).

I've had great success with the Tyler Florence's recipes. My whole family loved the Ultimate Chicken and Dumplings. I'm dying to make that one again! I saw he has a Fried Chicken recipe, so that one's going on my list to try. FYI, he also has a blog and website. What I like most about his "ultimate" recipes is that they are rarely complicated, and become those kind of stand-by dishes you'll make over and over again.

The Ultimate Chicken Cordon Bleu was also awesome. The only change I made was serving it with a cherry chutney, which was truly the perfect complement to the dish. It's another dish I'm already craving again! I haven't posted his Ultimate Roast Chicken yet but trust me, it was INCREDIBLE. I highly recommend it. I made two at a time, so I had a ton of leftover chicken for other dishes. And then I made stock out of the bones. Yum all around!

Today I'm making a Tyler wings recipe for an appetizer. I'm figuring they'll be just as fabulous as all his other dishes. That man can definitely cook :-)

Shirley