Ribs are the Holy Grail of barbecue. Yes, brisket is tasty, chicken is wonderful and pulled pork can be heavenly, but ribs are the true star.

There is so much debate over ribs and just how to cook them. I know many people who continue to experiment and struggle with the perfect ribs, myself included. It is a quest, a journey. I have one friend who posted on Facebook that, because of rain, he chose to cook his ribs inside in the oven. He claims they were perfect and he may never do them on the grill again. I know others who feel this way and I have always said that heat is heat when cooking.

But, they are missing the point of barbecue.

The art of barbecue is like many arts. It involves the experience as a whole – the smoke, the smell, the visual aspect, the whole experience. It is much more than just cooking up some great food. It is an event, a culture. So doing it right takes the right set up, the right approach. The equipment is a part of that.

Are you going to use pellet grills that give you a great controlled heat and consistent smoke? Are you going to use drum smokers that can give you hot and fast barbecue? Are you a gas grill guy that likes the convenience and style of the big beautiful grills? Or are you a ceramic grill guy using a Big Green Egg or a Primo Grill to get your best results?

All of those are great options if you go all in for the preparation and the show. The key is knowing the grill and knowing how to get the best results from it. Same goes for the piece of meat you choose to cook.

With that in mind, I went to a few experts to learn how I can do ribs better. First, I visited the cooking demo May 27 at The Place. Paul Grant, who is a member of Slippery Pete’s Barbecue Competition Team, was there doing ribs on the Gateway Drum Smoker. He was giving a full class on how to do ribs and my son, Jake, and I took detailed notes. Paul was very high up in the Kansas City Barbecue Society world rankings last year, so he was definitely a guy to pay attention to.

Here are some of the things we learned:

Picking the right slabs. Paul says to look through all the slabs and find the ones with the round ends on the bones, not flat. This means more meat. Also, try to use one with the bones most horizontal, 90 degrees, to the slab. This will give you a better cut on the rib pieces in the end.

Then there is seasoning and prep. First, apparently, good old yellow mustard is the glue that holds your rubs in place. Slather both sides with a thin layer of yellow mustard. Second, the spices and dry rub. Paul applies The Judge first, which is a mix of garlic granules, black pepper and salt. Then, he applies a mixture of 4 parts Triple 9 Swine barbecue rub and 3 parts The Executioner, which is a is a sweet heat rub. He applies these evenly and liberally, covering all surfaces.

Then, the sauce. Paul adds this at the end, just long enough to set it. He uses a mixture of Blues Hog sauces: equal parts of Tennessee Red and Original.

When cooking, Paul smokes them on the Gateway Drum for 1 hour and 15 minutes, then puts them in a double layer of foil for one hour. The secret is here. In the foil, on bottom and then on top of ribs, he adds butter, honey and brown sugar. He put the foiled ribs, meat side down, back in the smoker to finish.

Slicing the ribs is where I always fail. You need a really sharp, long knife for a perfect cut.

I reached out to Mike Biskup, who is Medina County’s Backyard BBQ Champion (two straight years). Mike cooks on the Traegger Pellet Grill. Mike’s tips are: don’t over cook your ribs and sauce at the end. If the ribs are “fall off the bone,” then they are overdone. They are ready when they reach 165 degrees. Set your sauce in thin layers at the end of the process, in the last 45 minutes in the pellet grill, in very thin layers, to get a nice caramelized gooey layer.

Happy grilling!