Dave Anderson became “Famous” by accident. In 1994, after spending years fine-tuning his ribs recipe in a homemade garbage-can smoker, Dave was about to open his first restaurant, Dave’s Famous BBQ. But the sign arrived with the first two words swapped. Dave decided to keep the sign and has tried to live up to his name ever since: He has entered hundreds of barbecue competitions, winning 165 of them with his restaurant’s Big Slab of Ribs. The rub recipe is a corporate secret — only Dave and two senior execs know it — but Food Network Kitchens put together this close match.
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 5 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Yield: | 6 to 8 servings |
| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 5 hr 30 min |
| Active: | 1 hr 30 min |
| Yield: | 6 to 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons minced onion
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 4-to-5-pound racks pork spareribs
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon celery salt
- 1 teaspoon celery seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 3/4 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon mustard powder
- 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 cup pineapple preserves
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
Instructions
- Make the marinade: Whisk the brown sugar, vinegar, onion, garlic, 1 tablespoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper in a bowl. Put the ribs meat-side down on a cutting board. Starting at one end, slip a paring knife under the membrane that covers the back of the rack. Loosen the membrane with the knife, then pull it off. Coat the ribs on both sides with the marinade; wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- Make the rub: Mix the brown sugar, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, celery salt, celery seeds, cayenne, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a bowl.
- Soak 2 cups hickory wood chips in water, 30 to 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat a grill to medium low (275 degrees F) and prepare for indirect grilling: For a charcoal grill, bank the coals to one side; for a gas grill, turn off the burners on one side. Cover the grate on the cooler side of the grill with foil.
- Drain the wood chips. For a charcoal grill, scatter the chips over the hot coals; for a gas grill, put the chips in a smoker box and place over direct heat. Close the lid and allow smoke to build up, about 10 minutes. Rinse the marinade off the ribs and pat dry with paper towels. Work the spice rub into both sides of each rack with your hands.
- Place the ribs, meat-side up, on the foil over indirect heat. Close the lid and cook, undisturbed, until the meat shrinks back slightly to expose a bit of the bone, about 1 hour, 30 minutes.
- Rotate the ribs (keep them meat-side up and over indirect heat), then close the lid and continue cooking, 2 hours to 2 hours, 30 minutes. (For a charcoal grill, add more hot coals as needed to maintain the temperature.)
- Meanwhile, make the barbecue sauce: Heat the vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste and chili powder until incorporated, about 1 minute. Whisk in the vinegar, 1/4 cup water, the molasses, Worcestershire sauce, honey, mustard powder, espresso powder, 3/4 teaspoon black pepper and the cayenne. Bring to a simmer and cook, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Whisk in the ketchup and pineapple preserves. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 45 minutes. Whisk in the liquid smoke. Let the sauce cool to room temperature, then remove the garlic. (The sauce will keep, refrigerated, up to 2 weeks.)
- Baste the ribs generously with the prepared barbecue sauce. Close the lid and continue cooking until glazed, about 20 more minutes. Transfer to a cutting board; let rest a few minutes before cutting into individual ribs. Serve with more sauce on the side.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 8 servings |
| Calories | 1762 |
| Total Fat | 124 g |
| Saturated Fat | 39 g |
| Carbohydrates | 77 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4 g |
| Sugar | 58 g |
| Protein | 81 g |
| Cholesterol | 408 mg |
| Sodium | 1636 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 8 servings |
| Calories | 1762 |
| Total Fat | 124 g |
| Saturated Fat | 39 g |
| Carbohydrates | 77 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 4 g |
| Sugar | 58 g |
| Protein | 81 g |
| Cholesterol | 408 mg |
| Sodium | 1636 mg |
Reviews
Answer: If your ribs are falling off the bone, they are over cooked. There should be light resistance, and the meat should come off the bone cleanly where you bite.
Question: Does the meat fall off the bones? I have a hard time with smoked ribs that you have to TEAR the meat off the bones…so I only use baby-back ribs (bake in oven/then grill) cuz I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to eat the other. The baby-back ribs melt in my mouth! p.s. I LOVE Dave’s Favorite Burger with Bacon & cheese & tons of the “Sassy Sauce”!!!
Too much going on. Between the marinade, the rub and the sauce you couldn’t taste the meat. I’m going back to my old recipe – a good rub, throw in the smoker and baste with sauce at the end. It won’t be this sauce, though. Holy vinegar! I was disappointed after spending quite a bit of time (not to mention $$ in ingredients) making these.
We ate at Famous Dave’s in Chicago when we lived there and they were my favorite BBQ place — and we have lived in Texas! These ribs are as close as you are gonna get in my estimation! I cooked them in the crock-pot for about 4 hours on HIGH, then put the on the grill for 5 minutes a side (10 minutes total and basted them with the sauce. Amazing! You could cook the ribs the day before and simply grill when your company got there if you wanted.
I saw these in the FN magazine and wanted to make them cause they looked so good. I made a few changes, I cooked them in a crock pot for 5 1/2 hours on low with 1/2 cup apple juice and chicken stock, 1 tea liquid smoke, 2 T balsamic vinegar, 1/2 onion and 1 bay leaf, and I strained the bbq sauce and add 1/2 cup brown sugar and put them under the broiler with the sauce and repeated until the sauce was nice and caramelized on the ribs. These were fantastic!! My kids said “make these again!” With that response from them this will be my go to recipe for ribs.
I treated myself to ribs for Father’s Day. Thanks to this recipe, they turned out awesome. I used Pork Spareribs Brisket Off, and St. Louis Style Spareribs. For the BBQ Sauce, I had to skip the Espresso Powder and the Liquid Smoke, because I simply don’t have those ingredients. And for the pineapple preserves I had to substitute with a combination of Peach/Grape/Plum preserves. I really impressed the heck out of my family. I used my Weber natural gas grill and my cooking time was 3.5 hours total, including the glazing period. Of course, the meal was not complete without some Jiffy corn bread and some baked beans.