My Lip-Smacking BBQ Ribs & the Secret Spice Blend That Makes Them Sing

Some people like to meal prep; I don’t. Or rather, I don’t know that I have the dexterity or mental wherewithal to plan a week’s worth of groceries for myself. I’m much too disorganized, much too lazy, and—living in New York City without a car—much too weak to carry more than a single eggplant home.

Instead, I like to make my secret Magic Spice Blend™ and rub it on whatever protein looks delicious at my butcher that day. The way I shop for food is, indeed, the way I like to live my life: out of breath, one day at a time.

© Provided by Food52 Magic Spice Blend

Magic Spice Blend by Eric Kim

In a world of unknowns, this spice blend is the one constant in my life. It’s smoky and sweet, savory and familiar. It lives in a Mason jar by my stove next to the olive oil, salt, and pepper. That’s the thing about “secret” dry rubs: When you’ve found the perfect mix, it becomes a part of you and your daily cooking. It’s good and reliable, even signature, because you feel somehow that you’ve been seasoning with it all along.

Where other dry rubs’ ingredients lists tend to fall into the “11 herbs and spices” territory, mine hits those classic barbecue notes with sugar, salt, and five efficient spices:

• Brown sugar for sweetness
• Salt and pepper for taste
• Paprika for smokiness
• Garlic powder for savoriness
• Cayenne pepper for heat
• Celery seed for herbal lightness

When you’re as maladroit as I am, the reward of an all-purpose spice mix is tenfold. I’m telling you, it works on everything:

• Pork chops. Dust both sides with my Magic Spice Blend and grill over high heat, a few minutes per side, or until the internal temperature reaches at least 145° F.

• Chicken thighs. Sprinkle it on the underside of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, place on a sheet pan (skin-side up), then season the skins lightly with some more rub. Roast at 400° F for 30 minutes, or until cooked through. (Bake a whole tray of these, because leftovers make for the most delicious chicken quesadillas later.)

• Salmon fillets. Shazam! A pinch of my dry rub over the flesh side of center-cut salmon fillets goes a long way. Roast at 400° F for 20 to 25 minutes (depending on the thickness of the fish), and eat with white rice, which necessarily sops up the fatty Omega-ness characteristic of salmon.

© Provided by Food52 Cucumber Salad With Magic Spice Blend

Cucumber Salad With Magic Spice Blend by Eric Kim

• Cucumbers. Yes, cucumbers. This is where my spice mix meets its vegetable match. With a touch of spiky lime juice and a “Salt Bae” throw of Magic dust, this tastes not unlike cucumbers with Tajín. Addictive, in other words. Plus, it’s a three-ingredient salad when you need it the most (on busy weeknights like tonight).

• Eggs. I have one soft-boiled, six-minute egg every morning. Guess what I season it with? Fried eggs also taste great with a light dusting of the spice. Its rounded sweetness is a welcome first bite on harsh, bitter mornings pre-coffee.

• Baby back ribs. Though it’s great on everything, I will say that Magic Spice Blend’s greatest home, its raison d’être if you will, lies very much in the barbecue pork rib. As we rush steadfastly into the cookout months, it’s important to keep reliable recipes like this one in your back pocket.

© Provided by Food52 Baby Back Ribs With Magic Spice Blend

Baby Back Ribs With Magic Spice Blend by Eric Kim

There’s no easier way to feed a crowd: Take a slab of baby back ribs, rub some of my Dark Arts dust onto both sides, wrap tightly in heavy-duty aluminum foil, and bake for three full hours in a low, low oven (250° F should do it).

Mind you, these ribs aren’t going to look and taste like the sticky, saucy, lacquered ribs of Southern yore—they’re a bit cleaner in taste. As you’ve basically steamed them in their own juices, they’ll be fall-off-the-bone succulent, and in this you may find a new appreciation for the flavor of pork as it should be: not drowned in a saccharine BBQ sauce, but rather powdered with a smoky-sweet, savory Invisibility cloak that lets the meat bemeat.

Feel free to eat this with your usual cookout sides: corn, tomatoes, potato salad, the like. I always serve my Magic ribs with hot, fluffy white rice, the cucumber salad, and devastatingly cold beer.

© Provided by Food52

Baby Back Ribs With Magic Spice Blend

By Eric Kim