PITMASTER PEARSE

Pork ribs are such a staple in the UK BBQ scene. These are dead simple, delicious and a cut which you can truly experiment with infinite combinations of rubs and glazes.

Pork Ribs: two main cuts; St Louis and Baby back. St Louis ribs are longer, flatter, more meatier and straighter. Baby backs are curved and shorter but more succulent. Both make for excellent low 'n' slow choices.

Wood: Oak or Hickory. Fruitwoods such as Maple make for a milder smokier flavour

Preparation: start by trimming any lose ends so you can have a smooth aerodynamic edge to prevent burning. Whilst optional, unless you're churning out several racks of ribs and time is limited, always always always remov the membrane underneath. Paper towels are helpful - kudos if you can rip off in one piece. Finally dab the ribs with a paper towel to help dry up the ribs for rub application.

Rubs and Glazes: time to get funky and experiment. Some great combo ideas include A&O's Jack and Cola rub with a Bourbon/BBQ glaze or go nuclear with A&O's Pigasus with The Rib Man's Holy Fuck or hotter (if you dare!).Save the glaze for later in the cook as below.

Instructions: My favourite method is the 3-2-1, or even 3-3 - that's 3 hours unwrapped, 2 hours wrapped in foil followed by 1 hour unwrapped. The latter, 3 hours unwrapped, 3 hours wrapped and 10 mins unwrapped to allow the glaze to tack up. Again, all depends on timing and what else will feature on your platter. Back to 275F/135C for c.3 hours. The meat should start to redden. Time to foil - take two arm lenths sheets of foil, overlap horizontally. Add butter, brown sugar and maple syrup in the centre, as long as your ribs, and place rack face down. Repeat the same process but on the ribs. Wrap and back to the smoker. For 3-2-1, unwrap and glaze with said sauce and return to smoker for a further 2 hours. Repeat for one hour unwrapped until probe tender. Once at 200F/95C you are ready to pull off the smoker.

Resting: shortest rest you'll need for a medium length smoke. Leave unwrapped for 30 mins and then dig in; paper napkins at the ready.