Ribs - geteatin.com

When the weather warms up, you want to spend time soaking up the fresh air and sunshine. One of the ways you can make this possible is to invite family and friends over for some good food. Usually you stand at the grill cooking ribs for what seems like forever. This time, you want to do things a little differently. You want time to spend out playing the yard games and conversing with everyone instead of slaving over the hot grill. BBQ ribs are delicious and are definitely still on the menu, but is there a way you can cook ribs quickly? The fastest way to cook ribs involves turning up the heat so it cooks for less time. However, when doing this, your ribs won't turn out as tender or as juicy as they would if you cook them for a half an hour longer at a lower temperature. Whether on the grill or in the oven, ribs generally take about 1½ to 2 hours to cook. Ribs contain a lot of fat and collagen in their meat. When cooked at a lower temperature for longer, the meat of the ribs will end up being more tender and juicy. Lower heat paired with a lengthier cooking time gives the rib meat time to break down all of its fat and flavors. Ribs are naturally tough before they are cooked and so they need to be cooked for longer to become tender. You can cook ribs quickly on higher heat but the result won't be nearly as good as if you cooked them slowly. It will take an hour or two to cook the ribs on the grill or in the oven if you keep them at a good temperature and they will be tender. If you raise the temperature they will cook faster but you will end up with chewy and tough meat. Now, if you don’t want to slave over that grill all day then just pop the ribs in the oven to cook or get a smoker. Why Do Ribs Need To Be Cooked For So Long? Ribs are a delicious entree. When cooked right, they fall off the bone and have a tender texture with lots of BBQ flavor. Ribs are known to cook for a while. It usually takes a couple of hours to cook this cut of meat. Now, if you are waiting to cook ribs but not wanting to wait around for hours for it to be done you may wonder if there is a method to this madness. Why do ribs need to be cooked for so long? Ribs need to be cooked for a lengthy amount of time because they contain a lot of fat and connective tissues causing them to be tough. When you cook the rib meat slowly at a lower temperature this gives the heat time to break these down and the meat to become tender. So, any way you cook ribs, it is going to take a while. The amount of time they need to cook is usually 1½ to 2 hours for cooking in the oven or on the grill. Especially if you want them to turn out to be good. The longer they are cooked the more tender they become. You can try to cook ribs fast but the end result will be more chewy and tough meat. It really doesn't take a lot of work to make the ribs since they just sit on the grill or in the oven for the majority of the cooking time. After a while you will need to season them with sauce and then let them continue cooking but for the most part the grill or oven does all of the work. While the ribs cook to perfection you can sit back and enjoy your company. Just check on them every once in a while to make sure they aren't burning. Follow your recipe on how long to cook the ribs and when to season them and so on. They will take time to cook, but it is worth the wait if you want tender and juicy ribs. Is It Ok For Ribs To Be Little Pink? Ribs are your speculty and every year you enjoy making them for your house guests. You smother them in your favorite seasonings and sauces and everyone raves about how delicious they are. You have been cooking ribs for the past couple hours. When you removed them from the grill or pulled them from the oven you noticed that the center of the meat was still a little pink. Should this concern you or is it ok for ribs to be a little pink? Ribs that still look a little pink but their temperature is 145 degrees Fahrenheit are safe to eat. As long as they are the right temperature and not too runny or pink then it is okay to eat ribs that are slightly pink. When cooking pork the meat should be mostly white. Sometimes thought there is a slight pink tint left and according to USDA , “Cooked muscle meats can be pink even when the meat has reached a safe internal temperature. If fresh pork has reached 145 °F throughout, even though it may still be pink in the center, it should be safe. The pink color can be due to the cooking method or added ingredients.” You should only be concerned if the ribs are runny, bloody, or really pink. If this is the case, then you want to cook them for longer regardless of the amount of time that your recipe calls for. You could get sick from eating ribs that aren't fully cooked. But, if you see that the ribs are still a little pink, check the temperature of the meat. If it has an internal temperature of 145 degree Fahrenheit, then it is safe to eat. Final Thoughts All that to say, if you want to cook ribs quickly you can by raising the temperature so it cooks faster. This can shorten the amount of time the ribs cook for but can cause them not to taste as good. Typically ribs cook for a couple hours and could be a little pink if their temperature is what it should be. When ribs cook for longer they become tender and juicy. When you cook them faster, they will end up being much more tough and chewy. So, while you can cook them faster, it is recommended you cook ribs slower for better taste and quality.