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1
One at a time, place the slabs of spareribs on the cutting board, bone side down.
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2
Trim off the excess fat from the first three ribs.
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3
Turn the slab over.
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4
Peel off the thick membrane (or silver, as its sometimes called) that covers the ribs.
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5
This silver prevents rubs and other seasonings from adhering to the rib rack and doesnt allow a marinade or smoke to penetrate the meat, so its important to get rid of it.
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6
The easiest way to remove the membrane is by making a small incision just below the length of the breastbone.
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7
Work your fingers underneath the membrane until you have 2 to 3 inches cleared.
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8
Grab the membrane with a towel (which just gives you a better purchase on it) and gently but firmly pull it away from the ribs.
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9
Pulling off the membrane exposes loose fat that will need trimming, so take your knife and cut out any excess fat.
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10
The last step is doing the St. Louis cut, which ensures that the ribs will be uniform in size.
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11
Use your boning knife to separate the ribs from the breastbone: Pick the longest bone near the breastbone and use it as a guideline of where to make a horizontal cut along the length of the slab.
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12
You should end up with two slabs of ribs that are 5 or 6 inches in length.
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13
They wont be curved like the baby backsthats not how these bones are; theyre straight up.
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14
After the ribs are properly trimmed, set the racks in an aluminum baking pan and cover them completely with the rib marinade.
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15
Cover the pan with aluminum foil and let it sit for 4 hours, either in the refrigerator or, if youre at a contest or in a picnic situation, in a cooler packed with ice.
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16
When you are ready to cook them, remove the ribs from the marinade.
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17
Pat them dry with towels.
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18
Apply the rub lightly around the edges of the ribs, over the back side of them, and on top.
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19
Then let the ribs sit, uncovered, at room temperature for 30 minutes.
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20
In the meantime, heat a smoker to 275 F.
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21
Put the ribs in a baking pan, put it in the smoker, and cook for 3 hours.
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22
After the first 45 minutes of cooking, spritz the ribs.
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23
Continue to spritz at 15-minute intervals for the duration of the cooking time.
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24
(The ribs should be uncovered so they can absorb as much smoke as possible.)
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25
Remove the pan from the smoker.
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26
Pour the apple juice into a clean aluminum pan.
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27
Place the ribs in the pan, bone side down, and cover the pan with aluminum foil.
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28
Place the pan in the smoker and cook for 2 hours.
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29
Remove the pan from the smoker and shut off the heat on the smoker.
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30
Remove the foil, and apply the glaze to the top and bottom of the slabs of ribs.
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31
Re-cover the pan with foil, return it to the smoker, and let the ribs rest in the smoker for 1 hour as the temperature gradually decreases.
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32
Remove the ribs from the pan and let them rest for 10 minutes on a wooden cutting board.
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33
Then cut and serve.
