Apricot Smoked Ribs

Prep Time: 10 minutes                  Cook Time: 3 hours 30 minutes                    Add to MyFitnessPal

Traditionally, slow smoked barbecue is high in fat and slathered in sugary, ridiculously high carbohydrate sauces that just don't fit a bariatric lifestyle - at least not more than a bite or two every many months. Fortunately, there's no reason whatsoever that traditional recipes can't be approximated, surpassed even, in ways that are completely compatible with a bariatric life, not to mention with the lifestyle's of most everyone else in your life. Enjoy!

My camera is in the shop - sorry for the low photo quality

The recipe below is written to have a little heat along with the smoky, savory and sweet. Feel free to leave out the chilis and chili powder if spice doesn't agree with your new gastrointestinal tract.

Ingredients
FOR THE SAUCE:
Olive oil - 1 Tbsp
Yellow onion, sweet, diced - 1/2 cup
Garlic, minced - 1 tsp
Apricot, pureed - 1/2 cup
Smye's Catsup - 1/2 cup
Rice vinegar, unseasoned - 1/8 cup
Worchestershire sauce - 1/2 Tbsp
Red chilis (deseeded to reduce heat if you need) - 2 medium
Mustard, Dijon - 1/2 Tbsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
Pepper, ground - 1/8 tsp

FOR THE RIBS:
Goat, lamb, or calf ribs (lower fat, this recipe can be used with regular rips too) - 2 racks
Paprika - 1/4 cup
Brown sugar - 2 Tbsp
Salt - 1 Tbsp
Pepper, ground - 1/2 Tbsp
Chili powder - 1/2 Tbsp
Garlic powder - 1/2 Tbsp
Onion powder - 1/2 Tbsp
Cayenne pepper powder - 1 tsp
Mustard powder - 1/2 tsp
Smoking wood (I recommend hickory here, but apple, cherry, pecan, etc are all good) - 2 fist-sized chunks or the woodchip equivalent.

Preparation:
Preheat your smoker to roughly 250 F, it doesn't matter if you're a dozen degrees high or low for this one, but target roughly 250. Once it's at temperature, toss your smoking wood onto the fuel (or burner, or element). Don't soak the wood if you're using chunks, but if you're using chips or dust, soak the wood for 24 hours prior to using and place in a 3-layer foil packet punctured 3 times with a fork on top.

While the smoke gets going take your racks of ribs and remove any excess silverskin or fat on the back of the ribs. Don't stress too much about getting every last bit, just any very large, easy to get pieces. The rest can stay, goat and lamb are INCREDIBLY lean meats and you'll need some fat on top to keep the meat moist. Check out the nutrition info below - you're still sitting pretty even with ribs that look like those below:

Top

Underside

Combine the remaining "for the ribs' ingredients (except the wood, of course) and spread evenly over the top side of the ribs. Then place the ribs, bone side down, in your smoker while they're still cold.

Cold meat takes on smoke far more thoroughly than does warm meat, so toss it cold straight into the smoker for three hours. Most smoked meats you cook until they reach a certain temperature, with ribs though, you smoke them until they are the right texture. You'll know you're about done after roughly 3 hours or when you pull on an end-bone and it levers away from the others easily without quite breaking off from the whole.

While your racks are smoking, prepare your sauce. First, gather your ingredients.

Be sure to use UNSEASONED rice vinegar

Ripened Black Hungarian chilis from the garden have AMAZING flavor

In a shallow frying pan, heat the oil until it glistens and add the chilis and the onion. Turn the heat down to medium and add the remaining ingredients, stirring to combine. Once combined, reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for about 30 minutes uncovered or until thickened. Stir every 5 minutes or so to prevent burning. After it's cooked, transfer to a mason jar and blend with an immersion blender, or else pop it into a blender or food processor and pulse until approaching a smooth consistency without quite getting there. Store in the refrigerator - this sauce will keep, refrigerated, for about two weeks if you make a big batch or make it ahead. It also freezes and reheats VERY well.

Once your ribs have reached the doneness described above, or look like the image below. Open the smoker and brush the ribs with your apricot barbecue sauce.

Ready for sauce - don't remove yours from the smoker

Freshly sauced. You can also use less and save some for dipping

Now let the ribs smoke for 30 minutes more while the sauce caramelizes over them to a nice dark red/brown.

Perfection!

Transfer to a plate or serving platter, cut down the meat between each bone and serve. There's no need to wait for this particular cut of meat to rest before cutting, but feel free to tent with foil and keep in the oven  at 160 F to keep them warm if you're waiting on your guests or family to be ready to eat after that lengthy prep process.

Two are about all I can eat in a meal

Nutrition (per rib, assuming all sauce is used):
Calories: 79
Fat: 2 g
Carbs: 4 g
Protein: 13 g
Sodium: 273 mg