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There are many ways to cook ribs on the barbecue. One of the best ways to cook ribs is with a smoker, but for those who don’t have one, ribs can be cooked on the grill.

Of course, cooking ribs on a grill will definitely require patience. Being in a hurry and cooking with the heat too high can turn what could be tender mouth-watering ribs, into a pile of charred bones with a little bit of meat on them.

Preparing your ribs for the grill is pretty straight forward and not much different than if you were preparing your ribs for a smoker. Each rack will have two membranes and the outer one needs to be removed before cooking.

If you remove both the outer and inner membranes, the bones will simply fall away and you’ll be left with a pile of meaty bones. Once the ribs are prepared, you are ready to put them on a pre-heated grill, using indirect heat. This means you should only have heat on one side of the grill, and it’s important to place your ribs on the other (non-heated) side.

You can add wood chips to your grill to give it a smoky flavor, but the main key to delicious and tender bone ribs is to cook them over low heat. Your grill should maintain a temperature of between 200 and 225 degrees during the entire cooking process.

In addition, you will need to be careful your ribs do not overlap onto the fire side of the grill, or they will dry out. Also, during the first hour you may need to add more wood chips to maintain the smoky flavor you are looking to achieve.

To achieve ribs that are tender, without using a smoker, you can boil them for about 30 minutes in water or can cook them using a slow cooker. Using this boiling method will get the cooking process started, without drying the ribs out. However, this method does run the risk of boiling some of the flavor out of the meat.

When it comes to seasoning ribs, be subtle. Since most ribs will have a flavor all their own, use any flavorings sparingly. A good rub works best, regardless of the flavors you use in the rub itself.

Many people choose to use barbecue sauce. If you’re planning to lather barbecue sauce on the ribs, be sure to wait until near the end of the cooking process before you add the majority of it.

You will need to keep a close eye on your ribs throughout the cooking process. It will be easy for you to know they are done when you can stick a toothpick through the meat, with very little trouble.

You can also tell the food is done when the meat feels loose on the bone. Be sure you keep a close watch on the meat when it starts to get close to finishing time, because there is no way to fix ribs that are overcooked.

You are certainly able to get great results when cooking ribs on the barbecue, if you pay attention throughout the entire cooking process.