How to ? marinate Baby backs for intimate contact, w/o wasting marinade?

[marctrees]

Hey all !

Want to marinate BB rack "Chinese" style (w soy sauce, garlic, pepper, pepper flakes, sugar, pineapple, tiny bit "Chinese 5 spice",  etc)

I picture I would like it submerged in a pool of the marinade for a few days.

Have not vac bag machine.

Have plenty of foil, plastic wrap, various pans.

If I was a Millionaire, I would get an appropriate shape/ size pan, mix up like 2 quarts of marinade, and submerge ribs.

But I'm not, and don't want to waste (throw away) like $4 or whatever of marinade for one rack.

I have considered, while ribs are smoking, to boil down, "reduce" the marinade for a finishing sauce.

Maybe add a bit of Corn Starch slurry to thicken.

I just have limited faith in making like just 2 cups of marinade, and wrapping in plastic.

Even if I massage and flip and roll in fridge, just seems to me will have less of the marinade flavor I want.

Any thoughts?.    Marc

 

[pc farmer]

Might have to cut the rack in half but I cure meat in 2.5 gallon zip loc bags.

Squeeze as much air out as possible and seal.

Just be sure to keep the bag opening up.

 

[b-one]

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• b-one
• Apr 2, 2016

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• b-one
• Apr 3, 2016

Yeah ziplock! I did single bones fir Char Sui.

 

[gr0uch0]

Like Adam, I halve the rack, and the 2 will fit in a gallon Wally freezer bag (I dont' use the zip, but the double seal compressions).  Get a small stock pot and go halfway with water in it, then put the rib bag in the water with the open seal up.  Some fill their sink with water, but it's a waste of agua:  you don't need nearly that much.  Water in the stock pot compresses the air out of the bag, and then you can add the marinade until it's just below the seal.  Lift the bag up and out of the water, and then dunk back in to make sure you've got max coverage on the bones, add more if need be, then seal.

I do them last thing before I go to bed at night, then flip them in the fridge first thing in the morning to ensure they're all covered.  One word of caution:  you may want to put the bags in a roasting pan before going into the fridge.  Even with the freezer bag, I've had a pinhole or two over the years where the bones have poked pinholes in the bag, and you really don't want to empty your entire refrigerator for clean-up when it can easily be avoided.  Otherwise, a small cooler with blue Igloo Ice over the tops of the bags work very well if you don't have the fridge space.

 

[marctrees]

I'm really liking this cutting rack in half, big ziplocks, seam up in pan in fridge, ESPECIALLY the putting in water to displace air during marinade filling idea.

Marc

 

[gr0uch0]

 
I'm really liking this cutting rack in half, big ziplocks, seam up in pan in fridge, ESPECIALLY the putting in water to displace air during marinade filling idea.

Marc

Easy, inexpensive, and effective.  Been doing it this way for decades, especially when we've got a large group over--assembly line with halving the racks, bagging, putting into the stock pot (errr, vacuum), soaking them, sealing them, and into the 48 qt. Igloo for overnight.  Don't have to worry about the fridge, nor the expense of an actual vacuum/sealing system:  especially for something that's gonna get tossed anyway. 

Tip:  make a little more of the marinade and hold it aside for your mop/baste/glaze.  That way, you're not in any concern with the little microbial critters that may have been in the meat soaked liquid, regardless of killing them off with heat.  Some folks get a little squeamish seeing the liquid that their meat bathed in for 12 hours is being used for their sauce as well.  As innocent as it may be after being brought to a boil, it does provide some piece of mind.  My $0.02.

 

[marctrees]

Groucho - Sounds great, problem solved. 

Thank you much,

Will boil, mop, and maybe finish w the used marinade.       Marc

 

[gr0uch0]

 
Groucho - Sounds great, problem solved. 

Thank you much,

Will boil, mop, and maybe finish w the used marinade.       Marc

My pleasure, Marc:  glad to help.  Loved heading to TB as a young man, as it was one of the greatest LM bass fisheries on the planet, until it got nearly fished into extinction.  TX had bag/slot limits, and LA had none.  So, depending upon where you put in, you could haul out as many as you wanted, or none.  Thank goodness LA finally came to their senses:  it still took many years for the bass to rebound.

Enough of my rant:  doing Dr. Pepper rib tips on Saturday--haven't done this Texas cheat in forever, and given the 20 degree crap we've got here, I thought this might be a quick blast on the grill, along with some chicken, brats, and andouille, for a quick smoke.  Andouille and chicken will join Mr. Crawfish on Sunday as the guests of honor for some etouffee, but them bones are taking priority...stay tuned.