Luther's Barbecued Ribs-Voltz

This barbecue recipe comes with a sauce that’s aggressively tangy, buttery, and hot, in true Florida style. A full two cups of melted butter or margarine form the base, mixed with apple cider vinegar, ketchup, a generous dose of horseradish, the juice of six lemons or limes, Worcestershire, and hot sauce. It’s a basting sauce that flames up on the grill and tastes like summer in the South.

The butter-vinegar base is what defines this as a Florida or Carolinas-style barbecue sauce rather than a Kansas City or Memphis style. It’s thinner than tomato-based sauces, which means it soaks into the meat as you baste rather than sitting on the surface. Every ten-minute turn and baste builds another layer of tangy, buttery flavor into the ribs.

Keep that water bottle close. The recipe warns you for good reason. Melted butter dripping onto hot coals causes serious flare-ups that will char the outside of the ribs before they cook through. A quick spray keeps the flames in check without washing off the sauce.

Kitchen Tips

• Baste lightly, not heavily. A thin brushing per turn is plenty. Too much sauce at once causes excessive flaming and uneven cooking.
• Cut near the bone to check doneness. Clear or golden juices mean done. Pink means more time. An hour is typical but depends on your grill heat.
• Use limes for pork, lemons for chicken as the recipe notes. Lime’s sharper acidity cuts through pork fat better than lemon.

Variations

• Add smoked paprika to the sauce for a deeper, smokier flavor.
• Use this sauce on grilled chicken with lemon instead of lime for an equally good poultry version.