How To Prepare Spareribs
Take a little time and prepare spareribs by shaping them into St. Louis or Kansas City style slabs. By trimming the whole sparerib, you'll end up with a slab that cooks great and looks great.A whole sparerib slab is made up of six main parts.
- The Ribs
- The Sternum
- The Point
- The Cartilage
- The Fell
- The Skirt
Trimming The Sparerib Slab
A whole slab has thick section, thin sections, flaps of loose meat, and has an awkward shape for cooking and serving. There are several benefits to trimming a slab before it's barbecued. A trimmed slab is an even thickness overall, so it cooks evenly. It's easier to handle when cooking and serving. And when looks are important, a trimmed up slab looks great.
This is how to prepare the slab St. Louis style.
- Remove the breastbone (sternum) by cutting through the cartilage near the rib ends. Continue the cut along that side of the slab to make both sides parallel to each other.
- Remove the skirt from the bone side of the slab. This is a loose flap of meat that runs diagonally along the slab. While pulling the skirt away from the slab, slice it off right next to the bones.
- Next, remove the tough membrane, otherwise known as the fell from the bone side of the sparerib slab. Slip a butterknife or screwdriver underneath the fell and pry it upwards. Grab the flap and peel it off. If it tears, repeat the process. Use a paper towel for better grip.
That's how to prepare spareribs St. Louis style. The slab is now rectangular shaped, except for the point. That's the loose, boneless piece of meat at the narrow end. Slicing off the point and squaring up that end changes the St Louis slab into a Kansas City style slab.
Now evenly shaped and a little smaller, the trimmed pork rib slab will fit better in the grill or smoker, and is much easier to cut into serving sized pieces.
Oh, and about all those pieces that were trimmed off. Season 'em up and cook them right along with your ribs. They'll be done sooner than the ribs and are great for snacking.
