Food - Drink
The Absolute Best Time To Add Sauce To Ribs
By TALIN VARTANIAN
No backyard BBQ is complete without the addition of smoked, fall-off-the-bones ribs. Most of us like to smother some sauce on grilled ribs, and you may think applying the sauce earlier on in the cooking process will give it the most time to flavor the meat, but actually, this isn't the best technique and can lead to burnt flavors.
Many BBQ sauces contain sugar, honey, or another sweetener, and sugars quickly burn in the oven or on a grill. Kitchn suggests basting ribs with sauce about 10-15 minutes before they're done; meanwhile, Amazing Ribs says you can sauce ribs up to 30 minutes before they're done, if you're cooking them over indirect heat.
Also, Grilla Grills says that adding a little water to your sauce will make it thinner, which decreases the likelihood of a gummy, over-caramelized texture or burnt flavor. Once the ribs are done and you've taken them off the heat source, feel free to add as much extra sauce as you want, no diluting required.