I don’t know about putting this into recipe format; it is just so damn lazy, and so damn easy. I’ll try, I guess.
1.5 lbs boneless pork loin chops, or more; it’s totally scalable.
Meathead’s pork rub
Meathead’s KC Sauce
Obviously you can use whatever rub and sauce you want. I used these because it was easy, they’re good, and I already had them in my pantry! But use Black Swan if you want, or whatever. Make your own. For me, though, the whole point of this is how easy it is.
You will also need:
A rig capable of two zone cooking
A foil pan, like those made by Weber or Kingsford
Aluminum foil to cover
I was tossing this around in my mind for a few days. People love to make complicated appetizers for cookouts and bbqs… but I don’t. Lotsa reasons. My back hurts. I forget to buy stuff. I need to have the oven at 350° for this, and also at 450° for that, while the BGE is doing ribs and the Weber is doing wings. Whatever, I don’t have time for Scotch eggs, or ABTs, or whatever. I’m not stopping my day to stuff shrimps and wrap them in bacon.
What if there was an appetizer that fit into the schedule perfectly, that was simple, that basically made itself while you did all the other stuff? Well, I’m here to tell you, that it is Boneless Baby Back Rib Bites
These are country style ribs, so it’s the loin cut, NOT the butt steaks. My local market sells them with and without the little hook shaped bone at the end. I get them without the bone, because they’re the same price per pound and I don’t eat the bones. They come as a solid square slab, so the first thing you do is cut them into strips.
Heat your rig for direct grilling to the 400°-450° range: high, but not ripping. When it gets nice and hot, toss a couple wood chunks in there. Take your strips and coat them on all sides with Meathead’s Amazing Smoked Pork Rub, then grill them on all sides until they’re done, and kinda crispy on the edges (crispy edges bring good luck). This takes maybe 10 minutes.
Remove the strips from the heat, and change your setup to indirect 250°. (If you have a kamado, this can be accomplished entirely by inserting the ceramic deflector plate, which will sink all the excess heat.) Cut them into squares, put them in a foil tray, and cover them with Meathead’s K.C. Barbecue Sauce. Seal the tray with aluminum foil, put it over indirect heat, and let the meat braise in the sauce for a couple hours. (It can go 3 hours, but if it goes much past that, evaporation of the sauce and juices will make the meat salty.)
During those two-t’ree hours, you will have prepped all your other stuff, and these bites will be coming off the heat right as the burgers and dogs, or steaks and wings, or whatever else you got going, lobsters maybe, are going onto the grill, giving your guests something to snack on and marvel at while you get the main course going! Serve in a bowl, with toothpicks. They’re saucier than ribs, and my guests actually fished them around into the sauce/juice mixture.
Seriously, these are ridiculously simple, and eye-popping delicious. Calling them boneless baby back bites just covers up the fact that they are country style ribs.
tl/dr: cut some country styles into strips, cover them with rub, grill them on all sides, cut them into cubes, braise them for a couple hours in bbq sauce. Serve and accept compliments.
Edited to add: there's actually no reason you couldn't do the braising in the oven, for that matter. Or in a covered sauce pan on the stove or a side burner. So, you don't even need a two zone setup if your logistics don't allow for it.
1.5 lbs boneless pork loin chops, or more; it’s totally scalable.
Meathead’s pork rub
Meathead’s KC Sauce
Obviously you can use whatever rub and sauce you want. I used these because it was easy, they’re good, and I already had them in my pantry! But use Black Swan if you want, or whatever. Make your own. For me, though, the whole point of this is how easy it is.
You will also need:
A rig capable of two zone cooking
A foil pan, like those made by Weber or Kingsford
Aluminum foil to cover
I was tossing this around in my mind for a few days. People love to make complicated appetizers for cookouts and bbqs… but I don’t. Lotsa reasons. My back hurts. I forget to buy stuff. I need to have the oven at 350° for this, and also at 450° for that, while the BGE is doing ribs and the Weber is doing wings. Whatever, I don’t have time for Scotch eggs, or ABTs, or whatever. I’m not stopping my day to stuff shrimps and wrap them in bacon.
What if there was an appetizer that fit into the schedule perfectly, that was simple, that basically made itself while you did all the other stuff? Well, I’m here to tell you, that it is Boneless Baby Back Rib Bites
These are country style ribs, so it’s the loin cut, NOT the butt steaks. My local market sells them with and without the little hook shaped bone at the end. I get them without the bone, because they’re the same price per pound and I don’t eat the bones. They come as a solid square slab, so the first thing you do is cut them into strips.
Heat your rig for direct grilling to the 400°-450° range: high, but not ripping. When it gets nice and hot, toss a couple wood chunks in there. Take your strips and coat them on all sides with Meathead’s Amazing Smoked Pork Rub, then grill them on all sides until they’re done, and kinda crispy on the edges (crispy edges bring good luck). This takes maybe 10 minutes.
Remove the strips from the heat, and change your setup to indirect 250°. (If you have a kamado, this can be accomplished entirely by inserting the ceramic deflector plate, which will sink all the excess heat.) Cut them into squares, put them in a foil tray, and cover them with Meathead’s K.C. Barbecue Sauce. Seal the tray with aluminum foil, put it over indirect heat, and let the meat braise in the sauce for a couple hours. (It can go 3 hours, but if it goes much past that, evaporation of the sauce and juices will make the meat salty.)
During those two-t’ree hours, you will have prepped all your other stuff, and these bites will be coming off the heat right as the burgers and dogs, or steaks and wings, or whatever else you got going, lobsters maybe, are going onto the grill, giving your guests something to snack on and marvel at while you get the main course going! Serve in a bowl, with toothpicks. They’re saucier than ribs, and my guests actually fished them around into the sauce/juice mixture.
Seriously, these are ridiculously simple, and eye-popping delicious. Calling them boneless baby back bites just covers up the fact that they are country style ribs.
tl/dr: cut some country styles into strips, cover them with rub, grill them on all sides, cut them into cubes, braise them for a couple hours in bbq sauce. Serve and accept compliments.
Edited to add: there's actually no reason you couldn't do the braising in the oven, for that matter. Or in a covered sauce pan on the stove or a side burner. So, you don't even need a two zone setup if your logistics don't allow for it.
Comment