St. Louis-style barbecue facts for kids
St. Louis-style barbecue is a special way of preparing spare ribs that comes from the city of St. Louis, USA. These ribs are usually cooked on a grill over direct heat. This is a bit different from other types of barbecue in the United States, which often involve slow-cooking meat with smoke for many hours.
What Makes St. Louis Ribs Special?
St. Louis-style barbecue is known for two main things: its unique sauce and the special way the ribs are cut.
The Sweet and Tangy Sauce
St. Louis is famous for its barbecue sauce! People there are said to use more barbecue sauce than in any other city. The sauce used in St. Louis is usually very sweet and a little bit tangy. It's made with a tomato base and is often quite sticky. Unlike some other barbecue sauces, it usually doesn't contain "liquid smoke."
The Special Rib Cut
The spare ribs used in St. Louis-style barbecue are cut in a very specific way. Parts like the sternum bone, cartilage, and the small "rib tips" are carefully removed. This makes the rack of ribs look very neat and rectangular. This special cut is so well-known that the USDA even has an official name for it: "Pork Ribs, St. Louis Style."
This unique way of cutting ribs is thought to have started in the mid-1900s. At that time, many meat-packing plants were located in the St. Louis area. Some say a big fan of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team helped make this cut popular. Because of their perfect shape, St. Louis-style ribs are often a popular choice for barbecue cooking competitions.
See also
In Spanish: Barbacoa al estilo San Luis para niños
