Ribs

After 25 Preaknesses, Annette Thomas has her routine, and recipes, down pat. Thirty pounds of ribs, both pork and beef, marinated overnight in vinegar and soy sauce, then grilled in front of her house on Saturday. Fifty pounds of red-skin potatoes — "Never russets, oh no, no, no!" — boiled in her crab pots for dill whipped potato salad. "Half-and-half," or homemade sweet tea — not the bought tea, she explains — and lemonade to wash it down. For the hungry hordes heading into or out of Pimlico Race Course , sidewalk chefs like Thomas serve up a home-cooked alternative to the concessions inside.

After 25 Preaknesses, Annette Thomas has her routine, and recipes, down pat. Thirty pounds of ribs, both pork and beef, marinated overnight in vinegar and soy sauce, then grilled in front of her house on Saturday. Fifty pounds of red-skin potatoes — "Never russets, oh no, no, no!" — boiled in her crab pots for dill whipped potato salad. "Half-and-half," or homemade sweet tea — not the bought tea, she explains — and lemonade to wash it down. For the hungry hordes heading into or out of Pimlico Race Course , sidewalk chefs like Thomas serve up a home-cooked alternative to the concessions inside.

This Sunday, the Ravens will have to brave frigid Foxborough, Mass. to take on the New England Patriots. But you won't have to stand out in the cold to make these ribs. Instead of a grill, you can use your oven to roast this tender, savory game-time snack. No-grill BBQ ribs Makes 1 rack 1 full rack of ribs (country or baby back) 1/2 cup orange juice Juice of 2 limes 2 tablespoons honey 1 teaspoon liquid smoke Extra-large aluminum foil 1 cup of your favorite bbq sauce Spice rub 5 tablespoons brown sugar 3 tablespoons chili powder 1 tablespoon garlic powder 11/2 teaspoon ground cumin 11/2 teaspoon ground coriander 11/2 teaspoon onion powder 11/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon dry sage 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon cayenne powder In a bowl, combine all of the dry rub ingredients.

Tony Campagna is closing the Charred Rib on Sunday. Campagna bought the Charred Rib in 1983 from its original owners. He moved it to its current location in the Yorkridge Shopping Center in 1998. When the 15-year lease came up, Campagna said had a talk with the landlord. They both agreed the Charred Rib could stand some modernizing.  "Do I really want to get into this again?" Campagna thought. "I'm going to be 64 in August. My daughter is pregnant with twins. My mother is 91 and lives alone.

Famous Dave's Fireside Inn 7400 Ritchie Highway, Glen Burnie -- 410-761-8815 Hours --11 a.m.-11 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays; 11 a.m.-midnight Fridays-Saturdays; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sundays Restaurant's estimate --15 minutes Ready in --10 minutes Here, we were given the choice between several sauces and sides with our order, $9.44. At the server's recommendation, we went with bourbon sauce and a side of straight fries. But neither the fries nor the ribs were that noteworthy. Know of a good carryout place?

Southworth reflects: I chose this particular dish because I love the smell of slow-cooking meat on a brisk fall day. The slow cooking breaks down the meat to make it melt in your mouth. And I just love blue cheese (Gorgonzola) with beef; the flavors burst in your mouth. The Calvados Sidecar pairs nicely with the meal, especially because of the fall-evoking apple flavor of the brandy. Cab Braised Short Rib Ingredients: Short Rib: •    4 pounds beef short ribs •    1 tablespoon fresh rosemary •    1 tablespoon fresh thyme •    1 tablespoon kosher salt •    1 tablespoon black salt •    ¼ cup vegetable oil •    1 750-milliliter cabernet sauvignon •    1 tablespoon butter •    1 tablespoon all-purpose flour Polenta: •    5 cups chicken stock •    1 ¾ cups polenta •    ¾ cup crumbled Gorgonzola •    ¿ cup heavy cream Gremolata: •    ¼ cup chopped parsley •    3 tablespoons grated lemon zest •    2 cloves garlic, minced •    2 tablespoons chopped rosemary •    2 tablespoons chopped thyme Directions: Mix rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and sprinkle over ribs.

Apprentice rider Silvia Zapico broke five ribs and her right ankle in a Friday spill at Laurel Park, according to her agent, Kevin Witte . The 27-year-old was injured when her mount, Smart N Smokin, ran into the rail, dumped the rider and then kicked her in the ribs. Zapico rode as an amateur in Europe before turning professional in August. She won four races at Finger Lakes, then relocated to Maryland during the Timonium State Fair meet. She is 3-for-55 at the current Laurel Park fall stand.

Barbecuing ribs is a simple, sinful pleasure. It might seem contradictory to slap rules on such primal behavior, but life is full of contradictions, and good ribs are worth a few hours of unquestioning obedience.Here, culled from talks with local and national barbecue barons, are the 10 Commandments of Cooking Ribs in the Back Yard.The 1st Commandment: Cook low and slow. We are talking hours here, not minutes. Count on a slab of ribs cooking for at least three hours over a low heat, 250 degrees tops.

Which city in America has the best barbecued ribs?So far the answer to the question, according to a group of local eaters, is Baltimore. They say pork ribs from Baltimore-area eateries have bested those from rib outlets in Philadelphia, Oakland, Calif., Washington, D.C., and Kansas City.And this group has the scoring sheets and the rib bones to back up its claims.The folks making this semi-serious claim are the rib eaters of the Federal Hill Neighborhood Association. They are led by Jerry Wachtel, a psychologist, and not coincidentally, the scorekeeper of the rib competition.

The grilling season is well under way, and Shirley Raines of Baltimore has been waiting patiently for a recipe for a whiskey barbecue sauce made with Jack Daniels.Many readers responded and below are two that our food testers at the Baltimore International Culinary College found to be the best.Margaret Smyth of Glenwood says she uses this recipe on spareribs on the grill or in the oven.Barbecue sauce with Jack Daniels1 tablespoon butter1/3 cup chopped onion1 cup ketchup1/2 cup water1/4 cup fresh lemon juice2 tablespoon cider vinegar2 tablespoon Jack Daniels whiskey2 tablespoon light brown sugar1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce1/2 teaspoon chili powder1/4 teaspoon pepperMelt butter, add onion and cook until wilted.

Maryland Live Casino has opened its version of the Prime Rib, the iconic Baltimore steakhouse that has flourished almost from the second of its founding in 1965 by the Beler brothers. The new steakhouse is operated by the casino and is technically unaffiliated with the Prime Rib restaurants in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington. The casino operators describe the relationship as a licensing partnership with Buzz Beler. He has, by all accounts, played a significant role in pulling off the casino restaurant, whose chefs received training in the Prime Rib ways in the Washington restaurant's kitchen.

The Prime Rib at Maryland Live Casino opened, quietly, a few weeks ago, six months after the casino's grand opening and 10 months after the surprise announcement that Buzz Beler's storied Baltimore steakhouse was joining the casino's lineup. Operated, Beler has said, as a "joint venture" with the casino's developers, the Baltimore-based Cordish Cos., the new restaurant has been designed with respect for Prime Rib icons like leopard skin carpeting, black-leather booths and Icart prints.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger met with the media Wednesday, about two hours after the team officially announced he would be out for Sunday night's game against the Ravens. And Roethlisberger revealed that a rib injury -- not his sprained throwing shoulder -- was the bigger concern. “From what I understand, it's an SC joint and a dislocation of the first rib,” he said. “That's really the scary part because I guess if it goes in the wrong direction it can puncture the aorta.

Longtime general manager David Derewicz is leaving his position at the Prime Rib . His departure was confirmed by the restaurant's owner, Buzz Beler, who described the parting as amicable. Two familiar figures at the Prime Rib, John Klaus and Brad Black, will now be co-managing the storied steak house, and Prime Rib regulars will be seeing more of Beler himself. "I'll be taking over," said Beler, who relegated himself to an ownership role during Derewicz's long and widely admired tenure.

The Prime Rib at Maryland Live Casino is on track to open, quietly, sometime in December, but there is a hiring of note. The steakhouse has brought on as its dining room manager Jean-Jacques Retourne, who was the general manager at Citronelle in Washington for more than 13 years. Citronelle, Michel Richard's celebrated restaurant in the Latham Hotel, closed in July after suffering extensive water damage, and the status of its reopening remains uncertain. The restaurant also announced the appointments of head chef Michael Meisel and sous chef Doff Edwards.

Halfway through our dinner at Phaze 10, a long, low and very loud note emanated from a horn someplace in the bar section of the building. It would've given us a start, but thanks to the restaurant's intensely flavorful Southern food, we were wide awake already. The restaurant and jazz lounge opened last June on a stretch of Howard Street that feels somewhat desolate after dark. Inside Phaze 10's doors, however, the space is cozy and inviting, with a long, warmly lit bar and interesting architectural details like exposed brick arches.

Just when I thought I knew everything about barbecuing ribs, a different treatment rocked my world. The cooking technique violated several premises of my once rock-solid rules of ribs. First of all, it called for cooking the ribs without any rub or sauce. Much of my time on this planet has been devoted to making rubs and mop sauces for ribs. Yet this rack went on the fire carrying only salt and pepper. Secondly, the ribs were wrapped in aluminum foil as they cooked. Again this was against my nature.

There are three things I love: a hot, sunshiny day, that day off and a plate of tangy, tender barbecue ribs. Thanks to El Nino and three local rib joints, the only thing I couldn't get this week was a day off. The ribs almost made up for it.I never did find my ideal ribs -- which I define as having a bold hickory smoke taste, a tart sauce fit to clear a throat or open a nostril. But after many hours spent over plates of juicy ribs, I have three tasty recommendations worth the drive and the price.

Apprentice rider Silvia Zapico broke five ribs and her right ankle in a Friday spill at Laurel Park, according to her agent, Kevin Witte . The 27-year-old was injured when her mount, Smart N Smokin, ran into the rail, dumped the rider and then kicked her in the ribs. Zapico rode as an amateur in Europe before turning professional in August. She won four races at Finger Lakes, then relocated to Maryland during the Timonium State Fair meet. She is 3-for-55 at the current Laurel Park fall stand.

Southworth reflects: I chose this particular dish because I love the smell of slow-cooking meat on a brisk fall day. The slow cooking breaks down the meat to make it melt in your mouth. And I just love blue cheese (Gorgonzola) with beef; the flavors burst in your mouth. The Calvados Sidecar pairs nicely with the meal, especially because of the fall-evoking apple flavor of the brandy. Cab Braised Short Rib Ingredients: Short Rib: •    4 pounds beef short ribs •    1 tablespoon fresh rosemary •    1 tablespoon fresh thyme •    1 tablespoon kosher salt •    1 tablespoon black salt •    ¼ cup vegetable oil •    1 750-milliliter cabernet sauvignon •    1 tablespoon butter •    1 tablespoon all-purpose flour Polenta: •    5 cups chicken stock •    1 ¾ cups polenta •    ¾ cup crumbled Gorgonzola •    ¿ cup heavy cream Gremolata: •    ¼ cup chopped parsley •    3 tablespoons grated lemon zest •    2 cloves garlic, minced •    2 tablespoons chopped rosemary •    2 tablespoons chopped thyme Directions: Mix rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and sprinkle over ribs.