The brilliant thing about McDonald's McRib Sandwich is that it's all of what we love most - the meat! - and none of what takes up valuable space and time - the bones. One of the downsides is that the McRib comes and goes as it sees fit. (That selfish little snot!) For any fast food aficionados it can make you a bit heartsick. Well, cry no more, my dear!
We can definitely Traeger that!
The other stomach-lurching downside is that technically we don't really know how much meat IS actually in that patty. According to McDonald's website the ingredients are "pork, water, salt, dextrose, BHA, BHT, propyl gallate and citric acid."
Yeah.
Any time you have to "google" words listed as ingredients there is a problem. And by their description it's most likely composed of plain ole' ground pork instead of the more flavorful, expensive and mouth-watering cousin: rib meat. Their meat is doctored and enhanced with who-knows-what's-in-there chemicals, frozen, and then reheated just for you.
We believe in using the best additive around - SMOKE. Simple yet euphorically effective.
TRAEGER'ED "MCRIB" SANDWICH
COOK TIME: 6 hours if preparing the ribs the day of
RECOMMENDED PELLETS: Oak or Hickory
SERVES: 6 to 8
INGREDIENTS
PICKLES
1 1/2 pounds of small pickle cucumbers, about 3 to 5" long
2 tablespoons pickling spices
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
1 1/2 cups distilled white vinegar, 5% acidity
1 1/2 cups sugar
RIBS
1/2 to 1 rack leftover barbecue ribs (or use our 321 Rib recipe to make some)
HOMEMADE BARBECUE SAUCE
1 cup ketchup
¼ cup water
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
⅛ cup brown sugar
1½ tbsp. yellow mustard
1½ tbsp. onion powder
1½ tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. mesquite liquid smoke
1½ tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
6 to 8 buns
PREPARATION
If you don't happen to have leftover ribs on hand, follow our easy and easily addictable 321 Ribs recipe adding 1/4 cup of brown sugar and a sprinkle of chile powder into the rub on both sides of the ribs.
If you already have the ribs prepared, get started on the pickles. (Or feel free to use your favorite store-bought pickles.) These pickles can be made several days or weeks in advance.
Peel the cucumbers and slice them into 1/8" disks. Place the cucumber slices in a bowl. Sprinkle with the salt, and mix it all together. Put the bowl in the fridge for 30 minutes up to 3 hours. (The salt will pull water out of the cucumbers and help them absorb more of the pickling flavors.)
Put the vinegar and sugar in a saucepan, and add the pickling spices. (This smells pretty strong so may may want to turn on the exhaust fan while it boils.) Bring to a boil and back it down to a simmer and let the spices steep for about 30 minutes.
Drain the cucumbers in a colander, rinse off excess salt and shake off excess water. Pour the spiced vinegar mixture through a fine strainer or cheesecloth to strain out the spices. (Discard the spices but reserve the syrup.)
Pour the spiced syrup over the cucumbers while it is still hot until they are submerged.
After you've devoured your Traeger'ed rib sandwich and your fill of pickles, put any remaining pickles in a clean jar, seal tight and chill. They can be used immediately but it takes a few days to reach peak flavor. Keep the pickles in the refrigerator.
We love a good homemade barbecue sauce but of course we have some pretty darn incredible barbecue sauces that you could use as well. Combine all of the barbecue sauce ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
If you are making the ribs the day of, allow the ribs to cool before cutting them into individual rib bones and cutting the meat off of the bones. Carefully run a sharp knife along the bones to remove the meat but try not to hack off any cartilage. Chop the meat into 1/2" chunks.
You can either reheat the meat on the Traeger/microwave with a little barbecue sauce or go sauceless and just squirt some barbecue sauce on top when you assemble the sandwich.
Give the buns a good toast for about 5 minutes on the Traeger set to High heat.
It's time to put together your Traeger'ed McRib sandwich and enjoy those tasty fruits of your labor. Spoon a heaping pile of the chopped rib meat onto the bun. (No, we didn't form the meat into an additive-loaded patty but we think you're better off for it and it'll certainly taste better!)
Top the meat with a few squirts of the barbecue sauce, the sliced onions, homemade pickles and the top bun. And there she is, folks! Open wide and enjoy!
PRINTABLE RECIPE: