So, we’re the crazy sort of lezzy’s that go camping in late November, at the beach, with the pup. The wifey hates bugs and summer crowds. Being from New England, she also has a vampire’s tolerance of direct sunlight. Subsequently, we often camp in the fall months to avoid the summer trio of all things hated. With Coronavirus surging again, we waited wicked late in the season this year hoping to avoid large crowds. But, guess what? The camp ground was at capacity Friday & Saturday night and so very crowded with other Covid outdoor vacationers and the wet wood for sale at the camp store was full of gnats. At least there was plenty of shade and cloudy skies so she didn’t melt in the sunlight. One outta’ three ended up being our best luck and I couldn’t write a more comical camp trip if I tried.

The first night at camp was windy and frigid and both of us were too tired from setting up in the cold to eat much. I spent the evening hunkered down under too many layers to count munching on Amish jerky while reading Aaron Sanchez’s Where I Come From with the pup snuggled next to me keeping us both warm. The following morning we bought a thicker comforter and then the breeze off the ocean slowly warmed just enough throughout the day to help us sleep more comfortably the following night. Well, these Live Fire Ribs had a little to do with how well we slept too. Good food and good sleep got our weekend excursion back on track. We masked up and explored the cape. Bugs and crowds be damned.

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Ingredients

1 slab baby back ribs

1 bulb black garlic

1/4 cup olive oil

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

1/4 cup course ground smoked black peppercorns

generous amount of salt

1 – 2 cups BBQ sauce of choice

peach paper

Method

24 hrs in advance, prepare the rub for the ribs. Mash the black garlic in the olive oil then slather it on all sides of the ribs. Evenly coat the ribs with the smoked black pepper and salt. Seal in a storage bag with the rosemary sprigs removing as much air from the bag as possible while sealing. Rest in the fridge overnight.

Start a live fire and stack plenty of wood nearby to maintain the fire for about four hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the peach paper by coating it with a small amount of olive oil. Place the rosemary sprigs down then set the ribs on top of the sprigs. Drizzle with a small amount of additional olive oil then tightly wrap the ribs up like a present. Place the wrapped ribs in a large cast iron skillet and place the skillet on a grill grate indirectly over the live fire. Rotate the skillet every 30 or so minutes to help the ribs cook evenly.

After a few hours, carefully remove the ribs from the peach paper, discard the rosemary and paper, and lay the ribs directly on the grill grate. Coat the ribs in BBQ sauce, flip, and coat in sauce again. Finish the ribs by coating and flipping every 15 – 20 minutes (depending on your fire) until an internal temperature reaches about 190 degrees, about an hour. Let the ribs rest a bit then slice and serve with your favorite sides and additional BBQ sauce.

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