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Pork ribs.... Spares vs Baby Backs

I only cook BB's if a get a very specific request for them. Even then I try to steer them to spares.
 
Spares. I will cook loinbacks if the mood strikes right, but almost always spares.
 
Spare me all the drama

I like both. But I only buy and cook spares because they contain more meat. I usually don't even trim them and everybody seems to be happy with them that way. I also never steam or boil them before cooking or foil them to finish them off. My father in law steamed his ribs and they were always good. I am a more primative cooker and use only spices, heat and a little smoke. I would be happy to fix baby backs but I just never have.
 
I nearly always cook baby backs. The only reason I can come up with: I love them!
 
Freddy j said:
I love the taste of baby backs and the fact that they have less fat BUT spares seem to make my farts more explosive x10. So I will normally giggle like a school girl as I reach for spares when I shop......
Click to expand...


Let me know next time your reaching for the spares so I can make sure I'm not down wind...................
 
BB are actually cheaper here... Spares weigh more.. and I pay per pound.. so i usually go with BB..
 
We mostly buy spares. I like them because we cut them down to St. Louie. Then we take the rib tips and cook them up for snacks on game day. Also put them in beans. Just more bang for my buck.
 
I used to only cook BB's because that what I thought were the best ribs. Then I joined the Brethren, built an UDS, stopped precooking and basically learned the errors of my ways. Now I exclusively do spares trimmed to St Louis style, because I think they taste better, have more meat and "eat" better.
 
I'm a spare rib kinds guy. I don't understand paying the same or more for less meat. The only reason BBs are so famous is because restaurants use them and Chilli's had the cool jingle for it.
 
Wow, I guess I need to try spares again. The ones I've had had were way too fatty. Most of the BB's I've had were meaty and delicious.
 
I really like BB's, but with the higher cost it's been hard for me to justify buying them. I'm pretty happy with my St. Louis style cooks as of late, but after checking the price per lb. vs. spares, I've switched to buying spares and trimming them myself St. Louie style. Then I gots leftover meat for beans, chili, whatever.

I am due to make some BB's though, it's been a while.
 
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I prefer spares over BBs for the fact that they contain more fat. As the fat renders, it creates all that yummy flavor and moisture. Someone here mentioned not liking spares as much for fat content. I think it's possible they weren't cooking long enough or hot enough to render the fat out.

Someone also mentioned spares tasted hammy compared to BBS. I have never experienced that. Sounds more like a salt application issue or "enhanced" ribs. This is why people make it a point to not let pork sit in a high sodium rub for more than a couple hours. To avoid non intentional curing. To me, overnight resting of a pork product with a salty rub has been on the "don't ever do this" list for a long time, yet people still seem to think it's OK to do this with their pork. If you want ham, buy ham.
 
If out at a restaurant I prefer baby back for some reason. At home spares. Around here bbs are usually $2 higher per pound. I can get 2 slabs of spares for $16-20 where one baby back slab will cost almost that for one.
 
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