20 questions and a corresponding number of answers, Part 1

Virginia Willis' baby back ribs.

Photo credit Angie Mosier Permission language Adapted with permission from "SECRETS OF THE SOUTHERN TABLE" by Virginia Willis © 2018. Photographs © 2018 by Angie Mosier. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.

Posted Friday, July 3, 2020 7:00 am

Virginia Willis’ BBQ Baby Back Ribs

Serves 4 to 6

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup sweet paprika

2 tablespoons coarse kosher salt

1 tablespoon granulated garlic (garlic powder)

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon piment d’espelette, or Aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper flakes

2 racks baby back ribs (23/4-3 pounds total)

Tangy barbecue sauce (recipe follows), for serving

Use fork to stir together brown sugar, paprika, salt, granulated garlic, black pepper, and red pepper. The yield is 3/4-cup.

Rub each set of baby back ribs with 1/2 cup rub. Set aside to come to room temperature, 30 minutes. (This can be done a day ahead for deeper flavor: rub the ribs with the rub and place in a resealable plastic container, or wrap in plastic wrap. If you use plastic wrap, make sure to place the wrapped ribs on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any seeping liquid due to salt in rub. Refrigerate overnight.)

For BBQ on Grill:

Set grill indirect cooking at 250°F using woodchips for flavor, if desired. (Apple, cherry and hickory are good, but stay away from mesquite.) For chips, soak them in water for at least an hour. Then, wrap in double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Place foil-wrapped chips on coals.

Add ribs, meat side up. Close lid and cook, flipping occasionally, until meat is smoky and just tender, 1 hour. If desired, about 45 minutes into cooking, brush spareribs with tangy barbecue sauce and continue cooking until sauce is nicely caramelized and meat is completely tender, about 15 minutes. (Don’t put the sauce on too early or it will burn.)

Remove from rack to clean work surface. Let rest for a few minutes then slice and serve with lots of napkins!

Virginia Willis’ Tangy BBQ Sauce

Makes about 6 1/2 cups.

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 sweet onion, very finely chopped

2 1/2 cups ketchup

2 cups apple cider or distilled white vinegar

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar

Juice of 2 lemons

2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

Coarse salt

In saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; add onions and simmer until soft and melted, 5 to 7 minutes. Add ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, brown sugar, lemon juice, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.

Bring to boil, decrease heat to low, and simmer until flavors have smoothed and mellowed, at least 10, and up to 30 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper. Store in airtight container in refrigerator. It will last for months.

BY DEBBIE MATTHEWS, The Curious Cook

Virginia Willis is a chef’s chef. Everyone has watched a show she had a hand in. She’s worked with names like Julia Child, Bobby Flay and Nathalie Dupree. She is the author of multiple cookbooks and the winner of a James Beard Award.

For the final chef in our “Many Questions” series, Willis agreed to an expanded 20 questions edition. They will appear next week. We’ll start with her thoughts on the Fourth.

For now, thought, an extra credit question: What’s the perfect Fourth of July menu?

Here’s her response:

• In order of preference would be whole hog BBQ, smoked port butt, and baby back pork ribs as the meaty main.

• Grilled herbed vegetables including zucchini, squash, eggplant, and okra.

Corn on the cob with compound butters.

• Summer salads such as tomatoes, cucumbers and vidalia onions; homemade potato salad punched up with vinegar, mustard, mayonnaise, onion, and lots of herbs; and crisp green or kale salad

• Peach cobbler with homemade peach or vanilla ice cream

Thanks for your time.

Contact me at debbie@bullcity.mom.

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