I had 5 lbs. of beautiful St. Louis-style heritage Berkshire pork ribs thawing in the fridge, and I knew I wanted to create a new sauce or glaze with them. My food-loving friends, Don and Johanna, showed up at the door with a gift they bought in Maine: a bottle of maple balsamic vinegar. It smelled wonderful...and tasted even better! I knew I had what I was looking for.
You can easily make your own maple balsamic vinegar by combining a 1/2 cup of balsamic (not the super-expensive kind, but the $9-a-bottle kind) with 2 teaspoons of maple syrup. Add more or less maple to taste.
5 lbs. pork ribs (I get St. Louis-style Berkshire pork)
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup maple balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper sauce (I like Franks' Red Hot)
Prepare the ribs by removing the inedible skin on the back of the rack. The easiest way to do this is to cut a little "tab" of skin, then pull it with your fingers. Holding the skin with a dry paper towel will help your grip. I cut the racks in half to fit my smoker.
Season the ribs lightly with Lawry's Seasoned Salt on both sides and place them into a 240-degree smoker for 4 hours, smoking lightly with hickory wood.
In a saucepan over high heat, combine the water, maple balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, onion, garlic, and cayenne pepper sauce. Stir well, and let it come to a boil. Let it reduce by half, leaving it still watery. Set aside.
After 4 hours, remove the ribs from the smoker, placing them on a sheet of aluminum foil. (I use Reynold's Non-Stick Foil, since the glaze will be sticky.) Brush both sides of the ribs with half of the glaze, and place the ribs meat-side-down on the foil before sealing the it around the ribs. Place the aluminum foil packets on a baking sheet, then into a pre-heated 250-degree oven.
While the ribs are cooking in the oven, turn the heat up on the remaining half of the balsamic glaze in the sauce pan and reduce it until it starts to thicken. Once you reach that stage, turn the heat off and set it aside.
Remove the ribs from the oven after 2 hours. Open the foil packets so that the ribs are now exposed. Brush the bottom of the ribs (which should be facing up), then flip the ribs over and brush the meaty side. The ribs should be falling off the bone at this point, which means they're ready to serve.
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