For The Best Ribs, Add This Sweet Ingredient To Your Marinade And Thank Us Later

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We previously covered one step you should never skip when prepping ribs, but what if we told you there's a star player you're missing in your marinade? The dreamiest ribs are sweet, smoky, and charred just right. To achieve this, use an ingredient in your marinade you probably already have in your pantry: maple syrup. Now, we aren't talking about that artificial "pancake syrup" in a plastic squeeze bottle. No, this is a job for the real stuff, with its earthy caramel notes.

Maple syrup is superior to other sweeteners in your marinade, like brown sugar or honey, because its flavor packs so much nuance and character. (There are also nutritional differences between honey and maple syrup!) While a light maple syrup might be your go-to for breakfast or for drizzling over vanilla ice cream, don't be afraid to grab a dark maple syrup for your rib marinade. This organic bottle from Whole Foods' 365 label gets great reviews. 

With dark maple syrup, the flavor will be bolder and more pronounced, and will lend itself handily to pairing with other notes you might enjoy with your meat, like chipotle or bourbon. The sugars in the maple syrup will burn — in a good way! — and give you that much-desired Maillard reaction that leads to blackened, crispy sections on your ribs.

You can use your favorite rib cooking method to turn out great maple syrup-infused meat. We tend to think that the best ribs utilize the "three-two-one" method, but we'd never argue with your way of doing things! As long as you are taking time to marinate your ribs before cooking, this should work out in your favor. First, whip up your favorite marinade. When in doubt, you can make a simple marinade for your ribs from apple cider vinegar and a generous drizzle of maple syrup. 

After your meat has had ample time in the fridge to soak up your marinade (at least two hours, but preferably overnight), cook those ribs the way you like them. For bonus points, set aside some of your marinade and mix with BBQ sauce, then slather your cooked ribs in a fresh, sticky coat before serving, so that the maple essence really comes through.

Like we mentioned earlier, you needn't be afraid to build flavors with your maple syrup marinade, either, as maple syrup is a great partner to many outstanding ingredients favored by rib masters. Soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, coffee, whiskey, and cinnamon all go together with maple syrup like PB&J, to say nothing of fruit flavors, which are a match made in foodie heaven. One way to stack complementary ingredients might be using an apple-based BBQ rub after the soak in marinade.