Crockpot BBQ Ribs with Mahogany Glaze

Low heat cooks baby back ribs. High heat from the broiler adds color and flavor to the barbecue sauce on baby back ribs. Crockpot baby back ribs are a dish that is tender and easy to pull off the bone and covered with a lot of barbecue sauce (broiling adds the final bit).

After trimming silverskin, I pat racks dry and coat both sides with brown sugar seasoning. Patting racks dry makes the meat less moist, helping the seasoning stick to cracks and other areas on the rack. I add some sauce and vinegar to racks in the slow cooker. I do not add other liquids to the slow cooker, as the cooked pork will release other juices.

Slow cooking barbecue ribs makes them tender, but ribs cooked in a slow cooker won't have a dark, caramelized crust. To achieve a dark, caramelized crust on ribs cooked in a slow cooker, I laid the ribs on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil, brushed them with reserved barbecue sauce using a pastry brush, and broiled on the top oven rack until the tops of the ribs were bubbly and charred at the edges. Let ribs rest for 10 minutes before serving so the sauce sets.

I serve crockpot BBQ ribs with deviled egg pasta salad and Asian coleslaw as side dishes. Both sides go well with the sweet-tasting ribs. The coleslaw provides a vinegary taste contrast to the ribs. I prepare two racks of ribs for four people. Black pepper and chopped parsley can be sprinkled over the caramelized crust of the ribs.