Serves 4
3 lbs. pork spare ribs or baby back ribs
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons grated onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons smoked paprika (or regular paprika, if smoked paprika is not available)
3/4 cup peach nectar
1 1/2 tablespoons whole grain mustard
Place ribs on a cutting board, bone-side-up. With a thin sharp knife, remove the thick membrane from along the length of the rack*. Fold rib rack to fit into sealable 1-gallon heavy-duty food storage bag. Set aside. In small bowl, blend vinegar and kosher salt to dissolve salt. Add brown sugar, onion, garlic and red pepper flakes; mix well. Pour vinegar mixture over ribs in bag, squeezing to remove excess air. Seal bag, turning bag to evenly coat ribs. Refrigerate 6 to 8 hours, turning bag over once or twice.
Heat oven to 375°F. Drain ribs, reserving marinade. Pat ribs dry. Rub ribs evenly with paprika. Place on rack in a baking pan. Cover tightly with foil. Roast 1 hour. Remove foil from pan. Reduce heat to 300°F. Roast 45 to 60 minutes longer or until tender, turning ribs once.
Meanwhile, place marinade in large, deep saucepan. Blend in peach nectar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook down to 1/2 cup. Remove from heat and whisk in mustard. Set aside.
When ribs are tender, turn bone-side-up; brush with one-half glaze; roast for 5 minutes. Turn ribs over and brush with remaining glaze. Roast 5 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Cover loosely with foil. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
*To remove membrane from back of ribs, insert point of a thin sharp knife under membrane and gently lift. Continue lifting and pulling membrane from ribs to remove. (This also allows you to remove excess fat from ribs.)