Smoked Greek Honey-Lemon Pork Ribs

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Baby back ribs rubbed with oregano, garlic and a whisper of cinnamon, smoked low and slow over pecan wood at 250°F until they hit 203°F, then glazed with honey, lemon and red wine vinegar. All the taverna flavours of a Greek grill, but done the patient barbecue way — and the only real work is lighting the smoker.

Ingredients

• 2 racks baby back pork ribs (about 4 lb total)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 4 chunks pecan wood chunks (or apple wood)

• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 large lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta

Instructions

1. Set up your smoker for indirect cooking at 250°F (120°C) and add 4 pecan wood chunks to the coals or wood box. You want thin blue smoke, not thick white smoke, before the ribs go on.
2. While it comes up to temperature, flip each rack bone-side up, slide a butter knife under the thin silverskin membrane at one end and pull it off with a paper towel. Rub the racks all over with the olive oil, then mix the oregano, garlic powder, salt, pepper and cinnamon and pat it evenly over both sides.
3. Place the ribs meat-side up directly on the smoker grate and smoke undisturbed at 250°F for 3 hours. Don't open the lid except to top up wood or fuel in the first hour.
4. Lay each rack on a large sheet of heavy foil, drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of the honey, and wrap tightly. Return to the smoker, meat-side down, for 1 1/2 hours, until a probe slides into the meat between the bones with almost no resistance and the internal temperature reads 198–203°F (92–95°C).
5. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining honey, remaining lemon juice, the lemon zest and the red wine vinegar in a small bowl until smooth.
6. Unwrap the racks, discard the foil juices, and set them back on the grate meat-side up. Brush generously with the honey-lemon glaze and smoke for a final 20–30 minutes, until the glaze is tacky and the internal temperature holds at 203°F (95°C).
7. Rest the ribs 15 minutes on a board, then slice between the bones, brush with any remaining glaze and scatter with crumbled feta before serving.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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