Although cooking ribs is usually done on grills, equally great results come when it’s cooked in the oven. The added advantage is you can do it even when it rains.
Ingredients
- Ribs (a good ratio is one pound per adult)
- Seasonings (basic ones include salt, garlic, pepper, and cheese. Other spices are paprika, turmeric, chili, etc)
- Aluminum foil
- Honey
- Vegetables (optional)
- Marinade or Italian dressing
Cooking Instructions
Start by seasoning the ribs. Apply the garnishing and herbs. You can add as many as desired. The marinade and Italian dressing are options. What marinating does is soften the meat and give it extra moistness.
If extra tenderness is what you want, consider marinating before cooking ribs. You can make marinade sauce or buy ready-made ones in the store.
Put some foil on the baking pan. Make sure that the pan edges are also covered with the foil. Ideally, the pan should have 2-inch sides and the ribs can fit in. Stacking the ribs is a bad idea because the ribs won’t cook uniformly.
Add honey before putting it in the ribs. Put some water beneath the pan. The purpose is twofold. It prevents the pan from heating too much. It also makes steam necessary for good cooking.
Putting the Ribs in the Pan
The ribs’ arch must face up. Add the vegetables now. Popular choices include potatoes, carrots, and onions. Before cooking ribs, chop the vegetables into smaller chunks.
Scatter them around the ribs. Put a foil over the meat. Don’t let it touch any part of the ribs; just enough to secure the moisture in place.
The oven should have been preheated at 325 F. Bake it for 60 minutes. After an hour, remove the pan. Open the foil and return to the oven.
Turn it up to 375 degrees and cook for another 10 or 15 minutes. You’ll see the ribs become brown.
Serving
Carefully remove the ribs after cooking. Handle the vegetables with care. Due to the baking process, they are softer than usual.
By cooking ribs with vegetables, the latter will assume a lot of the flavor too.
Tips and Warnings
There are several sauces and ingredients you can use when preparing ribs. You can add some barbecue sauce, hickory, and other flavors. There are hot or sweet sauces available in stores.
You can add these prior to cooking or after the foil is unwrapped. The amount you add will depend entirely on your personal preference.
Get as large a pan as possible. This is essential if you’ll be adding vegetables to the mix. A small pan will make it difficult to add other foods to the ribs.
Thaw the ribs if they’ve been kept in cold storage. You can cook in a cold oven but it will mean longer cooking times. Take care when unfolding the foil as there will be a lot of steam.
Whatever your culinary experience, cooking ribs won’t take too much of your time. If these guidelines are followed, there shouldn’t be any problems with the result.
