LCBO Food & Drink Early Summer 2023

WHERE THERE’S SMOKE

The smoky haze, the inviting aromas, the hum of the crowd— rib festivals (there are more than 50 in Ontario) pop up all over this time of year. Here’s how to bring the taste of a rib fest home with tips from a pitmaster pro.

cut them, you want to see that pink colour—plus, it doesn’t hurt your eyes. Hickory delivers the smoky flavour I want that everyone loves.” Flavour Town As well as the barbecue rub, many pros use a “mop sauce”—a spice-infused, vinegar-based sauce for bast ing while you cook. “At home, I just use a paint brush—a new one, of course, from the dollar store—to give the barbecue a finishing touch and make it look nice.” Timing is Everything results,” Gonzalez says. For oven ribs, he recommends a temp of 240 ° F (115 ° C) for 5 hours, and in the smoker, 220 ° F (104 ° C) for 4 1/2 to 5 hours. “If they crack a little bit when you bend them, they’re done,” he adds. “But if they feel rubbery, they need more time.” Lone Star Trick Gonzalez is also a proponent of Texas-style ribs, which are cooked for 2 hours, then wrapped in foil for the remainder of the time. “It gives you a 100 per cent perfect rib. The tin foil is completely hot all around for even cooking, so you get falling-off-the-bone ribs.” —By Doug Wallace “The right timing—4 to 5 hours—will yield good

The Expert “One thing I like about ribs is that they taste like everything—bacon, pulled pork, juicy roast—ribs have every pork taste rolled into one bite,” says Jorge Gonzalez of London-based Go Gonzalez BBQ, winner of more than a dozen Ontario barbecuing awards, including top honours at the 2022 London Ribfest. A Good Ribbing Gonzalez starts with the St. Louis cut of the pork sparerib, the meatier part, taken from the centre of the rib. Their uniform rectangle shape makes them easy to work with, and their marbling and succulence keeps them from drying out in the smoker. The Smoker’s Wild While pro smokers can run to $50,000 and higher, backyard chefs can expect to spend from $700 to $6,000 for a smaller model. “Southern Pride makes a really good propane smoker,” Gonzalez says, “and Cookshack is a good brand of electric smoker. The Traeger (wood-pellet) smokers are also popular.” Wood You Rather “I prefer cherry and hickory wood,” he says. “Cherry will give me a sweet flavour, as well as that caramelized colour around the ribs—when you

Don’t have a sous vide cooker?

No problem. Sear, wrap in foil and roast the ribs at 275°F (135°C) for 3 to 4 hours.

PORTRAIT BY JOEL KIMMEL

FOOD & DRINK EARLY SUMMER 2023 69