Brining your ribs before you grill them is a great way to keep your grilled ribs tender, juicy, and packed with flavor. Brining ribs is a relatively straightforward process that shouldn’t take long, but how long should you leave the ribs in the brine for the best results?
Once you have made your brine and prepared the ribs by removing the membrane, you can pour the brine over the ribs and close the airtight container. Next, place the container in the fridge and leave the ribs to brine for at least four hours, but ideally overnight, for the best results.
Can you over-brine ribs? Should you rinse the brine off the ribs before you grill them? What is a good brine recipe for ribs?
We will discover all the answers to these questions and more in this article!
Why You Should Brine Your Ribs Before Grilling
Ribs are some of the best cuts of meat to grill on a hot summer’s day. Nothing beats some juicy, char-grilled, tender, and BBQy ribs.
The thought of the taste alone is enough to get you excited to pull your grill out and start cooking.
One thing you may consider doing before your grill your ribs is brining them, but why is brining your ribs before grilling them a good idea? When you brine your ribs before grilling, this ensures that you get the juiciest and most tender ribs you possibly can.
The brining process will help lock moisture into the rib meat, and the salt and spices will help flavor the ribs to perfection.
Leaving the ribs in the brine for a while will ensure every inch of the meat has soaked up the liquid and flavor it can hold. This will give you the best grilled ribs you have ever eaten.
How Long Should You Brine Your Ribs Before Grilling?
So, brining your ribs before you grill them is an excellent idea and will ensure you have the best ribs possible, but how long should you brine them?
When you are brining your ribs, you need to let them sit in the fridge covered in the brine overnight.
If you are on a schedule and don’t have the time to brine your ribs overnight, you should leave them in the fridge for at least 4 hours for good results.
If you don’t let your ribs brine for at least four hours, the ribs might not soak up enough water, salt, and spices, leaving you with slightly drier and less tasty ribs.
Can You Over-Brine Ribs Before Grilling?
One thing people are conserved about when they brine their ribs is can you over-brine them and make them taste bad. Unfortunately, this is s problem you must keep in mind when brining your ribs.
You must stick to the brining time stated on the brine recipe or go with the standard overnight method, as you can over-brine your ribs. Over-brining your ribs can cause them to become overly salty and unpalatable.
Over-brining your ribs will destroy their flavor, and you won’t be able to eat them. So, always monitor the time when brining your ribs, and even set the alarm on your phone to remind you about them.
Should You Wash Brine Off Ribs Before Grilling?
Once your ribs have been brined, you don’t need to rinse off the brine before grilling the ribs. Rinsing off the brine will dilute the brine’s flavor, causing the ribs to lose some of the taste.
After spending the time it takes to brine your ribs overnight, this is not what you want.
The only time you should rinse the brine off of your ribs before grilling them is if you accidentally brined them for slightly too long.
This will help eliminate some saltiness and make the ribs easier to eat.
However, this will only be necessary if you have over-brined your ribs by a few hours. Anything over and your ribs will not be edible due to the salt.
A Great Rib Brine Recipe
Before grilling your ribs, you need to use the right brine recipe to brine your ribs perfectly. This will ensure your ribs taste fantastic and will have you and your family coming back for more.
The recipe below works great with all types of ribs and meat.
This brine recipe is easy to complete, and you will need to brine your ribs overnight for the best results. Remember to use the exact measurements to ensure your ribs don’t taste too salty or not salty enough.
What You Will Need
For this brine recipe, you will need a few ingredients. These ingredients are easy to find at your local store and are relatively cheap.
Here is what you will need:
- Four racks of your chosen ribs, between 4 to 6 pounds
- 4 gallons of water
- 1 cup kosher or sea salt
- 2 cups of brown sugar
- 1 cup of seasoning (pork or beef, depending on the meat)
- 1 cup onion powder
- 1 cup garlic powder
- A pot that can contain all the above ingredients
When you have gathered all these ingredients, you can begin making your brine and brining your ribs using the method below.
Method To Make The Brine And Brine The Ribs
When ready, you can begin making the brine and brining your ribs to prepare them for grilling. You can follow the steps below to make your brine.
Step 1 – First, you need to prepare your brine. Pour the water into the pot and add the sugar, salt, and other spices to the water. Mix them into the water well.
Step 2 – Place the pot holding the brine mixture onto the stove and boil it on medium heat and stir the brine mixture until the salt and sugar have dissolved in the water. Then leave the brine mixture to boil for a further 5 minutes.
Step 3 – When the 5 minutes is up, turn off your stove and remove the pot from the hot plate. Allow the brine to cool completely.
Step 4 – While the brine is cooling, you can prepare the ribs. First, you will need to take off the membrane from the ribs. The membrane is located on the side of the ribcage where the rib bones are closest to the surface. Remove this from the ribcage.
Step 5 – once the brine has cooled completely, pour it into a container that can hold the ribs with extra space to spare. Pour the brine over the ribs in the container and close the container with the lid.
Step 6 – Place the container in the fridge and leave it to brine overnight or for at least four hours. Your ribs are brined and ready for the grill after this time.
Final Word
Brining ribs is an excellent way to ensure your grilled ribs come out perfectly juicy and tender. You need to brine your ribs for at least four hours to ensure the brine has enough time to penetrate all areas of the meat, but ideally, you should brine your ribs overnight for the best results.
You don’t need to wash the brine off your ribs before grilling them, as this is only necessary if you slightly over-brined them.
Once your ribs have brined overnight or at least four hours, they are ready to be grilled and enjoyed.
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Sources
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/241485/barbeque-rib-brine/
https://www.leaf.tv/articles/how-to-brine-pork-ribs-for-a-bbq/