I call these ribs “Texoma style” simply because I happen to live in Texoma. For those who care to know, Texoma is defined as follows:

Texoma generally refers to the region bordering the Red River that runs between north Texas and southern Oklahoma. The area is centered on Lake Texoma, an artificial lake of 89,000 acres (360 km²) located approximately 70 miles (100 km) north of Dallas. Much of the area’s economic viability and marketability is centered around the recreational activities that the lake provides, with 5+ million visitors annually.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texoma

Now that the geography lesson is out of the way, let’s get to the food.

Just quickly, I want to dedicate this entry to Biggles of MeatHenge, here’s to ya Dr.!

Barbecue is a religion in this part of the world. For the most part, Texas is famous for beef barbecue, but pulled pork and pork ribs are nothing to sneeze at either, especially when you get them as cheaply as I got these. Texas Barbecue is about smoke and flavor, not an overwhelming lot of sauce, as in Kansas City style barbecue, and these ribs were made in that tradition.

I nearly didn’t finish these. Right in the middle of smoking, the sky opened up and dumped record amounts of rain on our little town, rendering my particular smoker absolutely useless at maintaining a temperature, so the ribs were finished in a 220 degree oven, instead of in their natural habitat. Anyway, they were still great!

Texoma Style Barbecued Pork Baby Back Ribs

Ingredients:

• 1 rack pork baby back ribs*
• Salt
• Pepper
• Chili Powder
• Extra virgin Olive Oil

* weight will depend on the rack of ribs. If you need more (and have room to cook ‘em), get as many as you think you’ll need

Method:

Sprinkle one side of rack with salt, pepper and chili powder. Drizzle with olive oil and rub mixture into surface of pork, adding more if necessary. Flip pork and repeat on opposite side.

Wrap pork ribs in plastic wrap and store in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight if possible to allow flavors to penetrate.

Remove pork from refrigerator and remove from plastic wrap. allow to sit for at least 20 minutes to return to room temperature before smoking.

do not smoke in plastic wrap or you will be very unpopular!

For charcoal smoker or combo grill/smoker:

Prepare a fire in firebox as per manufacturer’s instructions. Bring smoker to between 190°F and 210°F. If possible, place a heat proof dish of water in smoker to keep humidity level high while smoking. While smoking is in progress, feed firebox with hickory or your wood of choice as needed to keep the smoke goin’ and the temperature at roughly 200°F

For Charcoal Grill:

Soak wood chips in water or apple juice for at least 2 hours.

Start a low fire on one side of the grill. Allow coals to turn ash gray. Add wet wood chips in a smoker pan or tin foil tray between two banks of coals. Use a probe thermometer near grill exhaust vents to regulate grill temperature at around 200°F while smoking*

*on a normal grill I would suggest smoking for about 2 hours, then transferring to an oven at 225, as it can be very difficult to maintain a constant temperature

For Gas Grill:

Soak wood chips as for charcoal grill.

Turn on only one set of burners, this is an indirect heat method. Place wood chips over flame. Adjust heat to 200°F when lid is closed.

For all Grill Methods:

Place pork on cold side of grill (or in smoke chamber of combo grill/smoker or smoker). Add wood as necessary to maintain smoke and a temperature of as close to 200°F as possible. Turn meat once every hour.

Smoking time depends on size and number of ribs. As a good rule, if it starts to fall apart when you turn it, it’s probably ready. Add sauce, if desired, in last hour of cooking. (Don’t worry, it’s hard to overcook the pork at these temperatures!)

To cook in an oven:

Add liquid smoke to rub. bake at 250°F, turning every 45 minutes until done. Add sauce, if desired when done. Increase heat to400 for 10 minutes, serve immediately.

What I would have done differently had I thought of it at the time:

Needed more salt. ;)