Grill-Roasted Cherry-Glazed St. Louis Ribs

Comfort Food, Family Meal

The secret to great ribs is slow and steady cooking. I prefer the meatier and somewhat fatty spareribs to the ever-popular back ribs. Buy St. Louis-style spareribs, for which the gristly and fatty brisket portion (the sternum) is cut away, leaving a nice rectangular-shape rack. For flavor, these ribs are marinated in a pomegranate and soy marinade. So they don’t burn, they are cooked over indirect heat. After they have cooked to perfection, they are brushed with a cherry glaze and finished briefly over direct heat. You can also cook them in the oven (see Cook’s Notes)

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS:

POMEGRANITE MARINDA:

• 2 cups pomegranate, cherry, or cranberry juice
• ⅓ cup soy sauce
• ½ cup finely chopped red onion
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 slabs St. Louis-style spareribs (4–5 pounds total)

CHERRY GLAZE:

• ½ cup cherry jam (I use one made with tart cherries)
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Marinade: Put all the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Place the ribs in a large zipper-lock bag (you may have to fold them in half) and pour in the marinade. Seal the bag and turn over several times to coat the ribs. Place the ribs in a large rectangular pan (in case the bag leaks) and refrigerate for 16 to 24 hours, turning the bag from time to time to redistribute the marinade. The next day, remove the ribs from the marinade. Reserve ½ cup of the marinade for the glaze and discard the rest.
2. To grill-roast the ribs, build a fire on one side of a charcoal grill, or, if using a gas grill, preheat all the burners of the grill, then turn off one burner for more on grill-roasting ribs.) Place the ribs so there is no fire under the meat. Cover the grill and try to maintain a temperature of 300°F to 350°F. The ribs are done when the meat begins to pull away from the bone, 1½ to 2 hours, depending on the temperature of the grill.
3. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Bring the reserved ½ cup marinade to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in the jam, mustard, and brown sugar and boil for 1 minute, or until the glaze has the viscosity of light syrup.
4. Brush some of the glaze over the rib slabs, place them directly over a medium hot fire, and grill for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the glaze is bubbly and just beginning to brown. (You may have to do this in batches or rebuild a fire to cover the rest of the grill.) Turn, brush the other side with glaze, and grill for 2 to 3 minutes more, or until the glaze is bubbly and beginning to color. Remove from the grill, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 15 minutes.
5. Slice between the ribs to separate them and serve.

ALTERNATIVE CUTS:

• Regular spareribs, which will take longer; or bone-in country style ribs and back ribs, which will take less time.

COOK’S NOTES:

• Depending on the size of your grill, you may need to use a vertical rib rack This recipe lends itself to many flavor variations. For grape, substitute grape juice in the marinade and grape jam in the glaze. For apricot, use apricot nectar or orange juice in the marinade and apricot jam in the glaze. For orange, use orange juice in the marinade and orange marmalade in the glaze. For berry, use berry-flavored liqueur in the marinade and berry jam in the glaze.
• You can also roast these ribs for 1½ to 2 hours in a 350°F oven, or until the meat begins to pull away from the bones and is tender to the tooth. Brush the ribs with the glaze and broil for 2 to 3 minutes per side.