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Lemongrass & Coconut Baby Back Ribs
These Baby Back Ribs aren’t traditional, they are seasoned just with salt and cooked all the way through the until tender, chilled, and then brought back to temperature with a caramelised Lemongrass & Coconut sauce.
What are Baby Back Ribs?
Baby back ribs are cut from the lower part of a pig’s rib cage, close to their spine. The meat is tender and includes less fat than spareribs or country-style ribs. They can be cooked on the grill in one piece or cut into individual pieces across the bone for easier handling and cooking.
How do you keep baby back ribs moist?
You can marinate the ribs in a lemongrass and coconut sauce for about an hour before you cook them. This will help keep these delicious baby back ribs moist as they are cooking, but also adds flavor that we think is irresistible!
But I cooked the the Baby Back Ribs on the BBQ with just a seasoning of salt the day before. Cooking them until tender (use a cocktail stick to check). I then reheated the Baby Back Ribs on a grill over direct heat, brushing the Ribs with the Lemongrass and Coconut sauce on either side until pork ribs caramalised.
Why use Lemongrass and Coconut on the Baby Back Ribs?
This recipe is Thai inspired with the Lemongrass and coconut provide a sweet, citrusy aroma that create an aromatic environment for tenderizing the meat. Coconut milk gives these ribs clumps of delicious flavor in every bite!
It makes a refreshing change from the traditional smoked Baby Back Ribs we normally do on the BBQ.
Serves: 1 Rack per person
Allergens: NONE
Time: 2 Hours 45 minutes in total
BBQ Used: Monolith Le Chef Ceramic and Grill
Ingredients
- 2 Baby Back Racks
- Salt
- 60g Unstaled Butter – divided into 6
Lemongrass Sauce:
- 1 Banana Shallot – diced
- 2 Garlic Cloves – sliced
- 2 Chillies – diced
- 3 TBSP of Lemongrass Puree or 2 fresh Stalks
- 1 TBSP Thai Sriracha
- 1 Can of Coconut Milk
Method
- Season the Ribs on both sides with Salt.
Note: You can remove the membrane on the back of the Ribs but I don’t bother with Baby Backs. - Bring the smoker temperature up to 135C (275F).
- Add a couple of wood chunks to the coals and smoke the ribs for 2 hours.
- Remove and wrap each rack in tin foil with 3 pieces of butter.
- Place back on the smoker for 30 minutes.
- Remove the racks and vent.
Note: Venting is opening the tin foil to allow the steam to escape and stop the cooking. - Let cool completely and store in fridge until needed.
Note: You can skip step 7 if finishing the racks immediately. Or store the racks wrapped in foil for upto 2 days in the fridge. - Place all the sauce ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
- Set up grill for direct cooking.
- Place sauce on the grill to reduce by half.
- Put racks on the grill to heat through, usually about 8 minutes, turning to prevent burning.
- Brush the sauce on both sides on the racks and heat until the sauce caramelises (about 5 minutes in total).
- Slice and serve with the sauce.
My Opinion on the Cook
I didn’t want the taste of a rub to take away from the Lemongrass and Coconut sauce, so they are just seasoned with salt. This is a good party recipe, as the Baby Back Ribs are cooked beforehand and simply reheat when needed on the grill. There’s a nice Thai taste to the sauce which takes it away from the normal!
