When I said above I like my ribs well done the “bark” referenced above was exactly what I had in mind. I learned a new word today 
I wonder how many others interpreted it that way, and if it skewed the poll results. “Fall off the bone” as I know it means the meat literally falls off upon picking up the rib or taking the first bite. Per the KCBS standard each bite should come off easily, but no more what is bitten should come off.
No, they aren’t. There are baby backs and spares, with spares being a bit more popular in barbecue circles. That’s why, when prepped a certain way, they’re called Kansas City-style spareribs.
Both BB and spares are allowed in BBQ competitions, and are usually cooked the same way for presentation.
To clarify, here’s the basics of the rib cuts:
Imagine a pig. Now imagine its entire ribcage. Starting at the spine and going around to the belly, the first quarter to third is the loin back/baby back ribs. They are generally about 4-5 inches long, the bone is fairly curved, and the ribs are on the leaner side, as they abut the loin.
Now, the spares are the rest of the ribs down to the belly. This is where the the ribs are about 6-9 inches or so long, they are flatter than loin backs, and they are fattier, as they are moving away from the loin into the belly. I would say they are like pork shoulder in terms of fat level.
Furthermore, spare ribs are often/usually trimmed. Here in Chicago, “rib tips” are a popular cut in our barbecue tradition. So what are “rib tips?” Well, imagine your own ribs. Going from the chest to the waist, there is a curve that goes out and back in. When you trim it St. Louis or Kansas style, you cut they curvy part straight across so you don’t have that harp-shape going on, but rather something approaching a rectangular slab. That part that you cut off? That’s the rib tips. We barbecue those, then cleaver them into little pieces, and usually toss them in sauce. They are very bony, but they’re my favorite when done right.
What does this all mean in terms of flavor and texture? Baby backs are leaner, and, in my opinion, more “hammy” in taste and texture for lack of better description. They have enough collagen that they work low & slow, but they also work very well grilled. They tend to be more forgiving than spare ribs if you’re off in your cooking technique. Spare ribs are fattier, take a longer time to cook, and are generally more like pork shoulder in terms of flavor and mouthfeel. They can be grilled, too, but really are best cooked low & slow to render the collagen and fat. They are significantly larger than baby backs. This is my preferred cut of ribs for barbecue. I like baby backs when I don’t have as much time. Baby backs you can finish in 2-3 hours. Spares generally take around 4-6.
^^^
WRITE THIS DOWN, PEOPLE!!!
puly speaks the truth.
Then all the talk of “falling off the bone tender” doesn’t make sense to me. Who serves ribs with the bones separate? Falling-off-the-bone tender is not the same as quick-release tender. It’s a very literal description. It’s what you get when you cook chicken in a crock pot for 8 hours.
But, fine, I’ll take your meaning instead of mine. It doesn’t matter either way, as long as it’s tender enough not to hurt people’s teeth. I personally just prefer to not have any bones at all, however.
Yep, you got it. Some people do serve ribs that way, where you can literally just pull the bone right out of the rib, just like you would with a chicken leg that’s been in the crock pot for eight hours. Hence all my references to the meat being jello, because that’s the texture it needs to be to literally fall off the bone like that. And that’s the kind of ribs I grew up with before I learned they could be made another way.
And ribs without bones is just weird to me. Except for beef short ribs. I can deal with those boneless. But the whole point of a rib, for me, is to be on the bone. If I want boneless meat, I’ll go for shoulder or loin.
What about the abomination known as the “MacRib” sandwich? These horrors taste like a sponge, and are made from some kind of pork scraps. :mad:
We’re having a discussion about food here. What does a McRib have to do with food? 
You are right..anything from Micky D’s can scarcely be called “food”
No short ribs at the store for the Korean recipe today.
Dammit.
Other: I prefer them to need a bit of chewing, but what are these “bones” of which you speak? Country style or nothing.
Country style? What’s that?
Have you seen Quest for Fire?
Country style is meat without the bones. Personally, I think that bone-in cuts of meat are far more flavorful, whatever animal the meat came from. Boneless cuts are easier to serve and eat, and sometimes easier to cook.
A slab of rather fatty pork. I have no idea what part of the pig it comes from.
It may be ribs without bones.
It was well received when I grilled it for my Wife and step daughter.
They’re from the blade end of the loin, close to the shoulder. I tend to think of them as more shoulder than ribs, but they’re right on the border.
There’s a good diagram midway on the page here, just above the graphic of the pig cutting himself in half.
Thanks.
That picture is…unusual. 
For some reason, the imagery surrounding pork products is either weirdly cannibalistic (like the pitmaster pig-type logos you see at a lot of barbecue places) or self-mutilating, like that pig slicing himself in half. One of my favorite signs, and I could swear I have a picture of it around somewhere, is this Polish deli by my house used to have what looked like Porky Pig with a big ol’ smile painted on the wall and his intestines uncoiling out of his body into sausages. He may even have been holding a fork piercing his own viscera-sausages.
ETA: Found it. No fork, but a strange look of delight for someone watching his viscera leave his body as sausages.
I voted TBNFOTBT.
Pulykamell said everything I would say only better. And more.
I will eat and enjoy fall of the bone baked ribs (ala Gale Street or Portillos) but prefer the texture of smoked.
Has anyone priced baby backs lately?
I saw them for $4.69/lb last weekend at a local grocery that typically has reasonable prices. By the time they’re trimmed and cooked and the bones tossed, you can pretty much call them $10/lb.
Spares are a third to half that cost.
Spare ribs are sounding pretty good for tomorrow.
WSM + ribs + fruit tree wood + spring mid 60’s weather + light yardwork = pleasant lazy Sunday.