Memphis is well known for its dry rubbed ribs and here is an easy Rendezvous Memphis ribs recipe for getting them done at home.
The most popular rib joint in the world has to be Charlie Vergos’ Rendezvous in Memphis. There, they can seat 700 and almost everyone orders baby backs. On an average day, they move 2,100 pounds (954.5 kg) of ribs. But if you can’t make it to Memphis, try recreating the magic with our Rendezvous ribs recipe.
Recipe Overview: Rendezvous-Style Memphis Ribs Recipe Success Formula
- Buy: a slab of baby back ribs, about 2 pounds (.9 kg per slab).
- Remove: the membrane from the ribs.
- Dry brine: with approximately 1/4 teaspoon Morton coarse kosher salt per pound of meat. Yes, we’re doing less than usual because ribs don’t have as much meat.
- Make: the Rendezvous-style Memphis dry rub seasoning if you haven’t already. Set aside 2 tablepsoons of it for later.
- Mix: a tabelspoon of the rub with and vinegar, water, and barbecue sauce to make the mop.
- Fire up: Make a chimney with coals. Once they’re ashy white, scatter some on one side and put the rest on the other, creating a 2-zone grill. Keep temp at 350°F (176.7°C).
- Cook the ribs on the cooler side of the grill meat side up. Paint it generously with the mop on all sides, and then put the lid down.
Keep painting the ribs every 15 minutes and flip them over. Keep the mop warm if possible. - Check: after 60 minutes to see if it’s ready, using the bend test. Remove from the grill, mop it again with sauce, and sprinkle with remaining Rendezvous seasoning.
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The science of our Rendezvous Memphis ribs recipe
The history of Memphis barbecue is linked to Rendezous. At the Vous, BBQ baby backs are cooked about 2 to 3 feet (61 to 91.4 cm) above charcoal at a relatively hot 425°F (218.3°C) for only about 60 minutes. The secret? A vinegary-based mop.
While they are cooking, they are frequently mopped with a thin vinegary mop that steams and softens the meat. Also, they’re cooked without wood and smoke and don’t taste smoky. The mop and fat dripping on the coals and vaporizing both flavor the meat. Finally, the ribs are covered in their seasoning. In true Memphis fashion, there is no sauce on these dry rubbed ribs.
Almost everything on this site, everything I know, everything I teach, tells you to take your time cooking ribs. Low and slow produces the most tender, juicy meat. That means three hours or more for baby backs, and five or more hours for spares and St. Louis cut.
But sometimes you just can’t wait, like when every tourist in Memphis shows up and wants ribs. Here’s how to have baby backs ready in 90 minutes, by imitating the way they do it at the Vous where they churn them out like nobody else can. They are a little chewier than low and slow smoked ribs, but darn tasty. If you are among the many who love the Vous, this will get you as close as an airline ticket to Memphis and a cab to that alley near Beale Street.
Ingredients and substitutions for Rendezvous Memphis ribs recipe
- Baby back ribs—you just need one slab, weighing about 2 pounds (.09 kg).
- Morton Coarse Kosher Salt is always the salt of choice for dry brining, but remember that if you want to use regular table salt, use half the amount of kosher. Otherwise, it will be far too salty.
- Rendezvous seasoning (Memphis rub) is easy enough to make up for this recipe if you haven’t come across it yet. Be sure to read up on my article, the Science of Rubs, if you’re brand new to you. Or even if you’re not!
- Distilled vinegar, made from distilled spirits, goes into the mop. It’s not the same as apple cider vinegar, so please don’t substitute one for the other.
- Water gets mixed with the Rendezvous rub and vinegar to create the mop.
- Ketchup or tomato-based barbecue sauce such as Kansas City classic or a good quality, storebought sauce adds sweetness and some acidity. Of course, quality is important here.
Rendezvous Memphis ribs recipe, step by step
- Remove the membrane from the slab of ribs.
- Next, dry brine the ribs by seasoning with salt, using 1/4 teaspoon per pound of meat.
- Prep the Rendezvous seasoning if you don’t have it on hand already.
- Combine 1 tablespoon of the seasoning with vinegar, water, and barbecue sauce in a small bowl. This is your mop.
- Fire up the grill and create a chimney with coals. When they’re grey and ashy, push most to one side. Scatter a few on the other. This is your 2-zone cooking setup.
- Stabilize the temperature at 350°F (176.7°C) in the indirect zone.
- Brush the ribs on all sides with the mop. Also, be generous about it.
- Cook the ribs on the cool side of the grill, meat side up. Close the lid. Every 15 minutes, lift he lid, add more mop, turn the ribs.
- Note: You can do this indoors by putting the ribs on a broiler rack, meat side up, and bake at 400°F (204.4 C) for maybe an hour. Don’t forget to mop.
- After an hour, check the meat for doneness, using the bend test. Remove it, put it on a plate, mop it again. Finally, sprinkle the rest of the Rendezvous over the top. Serve.
Rendezvous Memphis rib recipe FAQs
Memphis-style refers to a couple of things. Ribs are usually dry rubbed, not very saucy, and smoked slowly over hickory wood. Regular ribs are usually are more sweet and saucy, using more barbecue sauce, and it’s usually referring to Kansas City-style ribs.
The restaurant serves pork baby back ribs, sometimes referred to as loin back ribs. However, they also serve other kinds of ribs, like my take on their smoked lamb ribs recipe.
In our Rendezvous rub recipe, we use a mop to distribute the rub. It makes it a heckuva lot easier. But then we sprinkle more rub over the top toward the end, before serving. For more about mops and sauces, check out my myth-busting article on basting, mopping, and spritzing.
If you like this Rendezvous Memphis rib recipe, you’ll love . . .
- An Epic Smoked Ribs Recipe (Baby Back or St. Louis Spare Ribs)
- You’re Gonna Love Bacon Ribs: Tastes Like Bacon, Chews Like Smoked Ribs
- This Maple-Glazed BBQ Recipe Will Make You the Boss of Your Block
- Mouthwatering Country Style Ribs Recipe
- These Soy Ginger Glazed BBQ Ribs Will Knock Your Socks Off
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Rendezvous ribs recipe
Quick And Easy Rendezvous Dry Rubbed Ribs Recipe
Ingredients
Method
- Skin 'n trim. Remove the membrane from the slab of ribs (read more on removing the membrane here).
- Salt ahead if you can. Season the slab of ribs with kosher salt. If you can, give the salt 1 to 2 hours to be absorbed. The process of salting in advance is called dry brining. The rule of thumb is 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt per pound (453.6 g) of meat, but ribs consist of only about 50% meat, so use about 1/4 teaspoon per pound (453.6 g). You can simply eyeball it by sprinkling on the same amount of salt you would sprinkle on the ribs if they were served to you unseasoned.
- Prep. Set 2 tablespoons of the Rendezvous Seasoning aside for later. Mix the remaining 1 tablespoon with the vinegar, water, and barbecue sauce in a bowl. This makes the Rendezvous Mop.
- Fire up. Get the coals started in a chimney. When they are coated with white ash, push most of them to one side of your grill and scatter a few on the other side so you have a two zone grill. Stabilize the temp at about 350°F (176.7°C) in the indirect zone. At the Vous, they cook directly over the coals and the dripping fat vaporizes and flavors the meat. But they get the meat 2 to 3 feet (61 to 91.4 cm) above the heat so there is no problem with flareups burning the meat. On most grills you cannot get the meat this high, although it is possible on some bullet smokers if you remove the water pan.
- Cook. Place the ribs on the cooler side of the grill meat side up. Paint the meat liberally on all sides with Rendezvous Mop when it goes on the grill, then put the lid down. Every 15 minutes open it and quickly paint the meat again and flip it over. If you can, keep the mop warm so it doesn't cool off the meat too much and slow the cooking.
- Cooking indoors? Because there is no smoke needed, you can make this recipe easily indoors. Put the meat on a broiler rack or in a pan, meat side up. Put the oven on bake at 400°F (204.4*C) and you might get them done in an hour. Just remember to mop every 10-15 minutes.
- Serve. After 60 minutes, test to see if the meat is ready with the bend test. When it is ready, put it on the dinner plate, give it a final mopping, allowing some to pool on the plate, and sprinkle with the remaining Rendezvous Seasoning.
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