Grilling disaster? - what happened?

[Gentle Giant]

Attention grilling experts:

So my wife and I bought some beef flanken ribs because it's a cheap cut and supposedly works well on the grill. And she did exactly what her father / my FIL told her to do:
* Boil the ribs (low boil - more like simmering) for about an hour and a half.
* Grill them for a few minutes with a low flame.

They were on the grill for about five minutes, when Mrs. G went out to apply BBQ sauce. The ribs were on fire, burnt to a crisp, ruined.

WTG went wrong?!?
What should we change for next time?

TIA.

[Cheezy]

watch the grill! never leave your grill unattended. probably a little flame up that got away on you.(it is strange that the boiling didn't take the fat out) If you really can't stand there for five minutes then move it up to the top rack so this won't happen. Also never boil ribs wrap in tin foil and slow cook in oven or on grill if anything. Could you possible had left over stuff from previous BBQ'ing still on the grill or in the bottom of BBQ that flared up?

[Heaven's Thunder Hammer]

Originally Posted by Gentle Giant

Attention grilling experts:

So my wife and I bought some beef flanken ribs because it's a cheap cut and supposedly works well on the grill. And she did exactly what her father / my FIL told her to do:
* Boil the ribs (low boil - more like simmering) for about an hour and a half.
* Grill them for a few minutes with a low flame.

They were on the grill for about five minutes, when Mrs. G went out to apply BBQ sauce. The ribs were on fire, burnt to a crisp, ruined.

WTG went wrong?!?
What should we change for next time?

TIA.

Bold mine. Too much fat in the meat and they burn quick. I also question the proximity to the flame. If your BBQ had a second rack higher up maybe they should have been on that.

[erosewater]

Don't boil, braise. Alton Brown's braising recipe works great

[erosewater]

And don't go cheap with your meat

[Cheezy]

Originally Posted by erosewater

And don't go cheap with your meat

You can go cheap with the meat you just have to cook it right. Flank steak cooked right can be tender, juicy and delicious. There's nothing wrong with cheap meat you just have to prepare it correctly. That said, I do like a nice Angus, tip sirloin, marbled and aged to perfection. :drool:

[DoctorNo]

Just to jump on board the "don't boil the ribs" train, I don't know when that option came into vogue, but there's no better way to ruin meat than by boiling it.

[DaveTheBarbarian]

I don't think boiling the ribs was the problem. You can definitely get a good set of ribs with boiling, though not the optimal method

[snikelfritz]

Originally Posted by DoctorNo

Just to jump on board the "don't boil the ribs" train, I don't know when that option came into vogue, but there's no better way to ruin meat than by boiling it.

Bloody British.

[TheGillotine]

Did you forget the Crème fraiche?