Las Vegas Weekly

August 27, 2008 · 2:51 PM

Get down and dirty on Labor Day

By Jennifer Grafiada

Beef ribs from Adam's Ribs.

Photo: Courtesy of Adam's Ribs

We do live in Vegas, so the Labor Day lineup includes orgasmic extravaganzas like the Pimp ‘n' Ho Ball (at the Palms) and the Strippers and Hustlers Ball (at the Orleans). If you’ve put your pimping and stripping days behind you, you can celebrate the end-of-summer, three-day weekend with an American classic: the backyard barbecue.

Three well-loved Vegas barbecue restaurants -- Lucille’s Smokehouse, BBQ Shak and Adam’s Ribs -- have generously shared the recipes for their favorite side dishes. So get down-home and dirty. Not by pole-grinding, but by reveling in some juicy, pungent, perfectly roasted ribs.

Potato salad from Lucille’s Smokehouse BBQ

3 pounds russet potatoes, diced into ½-inch pieces

1/3 cup celery, diced into ¼-inch pieces

½ cup red onion, diced to ¼ inch

½ cup dill pickles, diced to ¼ inch

½ cup hard-boiled eggs, diced to ¼ inch

¼ cup chopped parsley

2 cups mayonnaise

¼ cup yellow mustard

¾ teaspoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon celery salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Peel and dice potatoes. Steam or boil potato pieces for 15-20 minutes, or until soft. Drain and cool potatoes, then place into a mixing bowl. Add all remaining ingredients and mix well. Place in a clean container and refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with cooked eggs or pickles.

Baja BBQ Corn from Adam’s Ribs

This is a famous version of grilled corn that originated with Native American Indians, and has evolved into the popular menu item available Adam’s Ribs.

Fresh corn still in the husk

1/2 cup of milk

Mayonnaise

Grated Parmesan cheese

Paprika

Cayenne Pepper

Always start with the best produce possible. Either white or yellow corn is fine; but it must be fresh, firm and still in the husk.Rinse corn thoroughly. Place corn in a large pot of boiling water. Add a half cup of milk to the boil, and boil for 6 to 10 minutes. Place corn on a grill for 2 to 5 minutes. Peel back the husk and apply mayonnaise, covering the kernels. Roll the corn in Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle the Paprika and or cayenne pepper to taste. Serve, enjoy, repeat.

Beef Ribs from Adam’s Ribs

Fresh meaty beef ribs

Granulated garlic

White pepper

Cayenne pepper

Coarse black pepper

Ask a butcher to cut meaty beef ribs for you. That’s more expensive than the more familiar frozen variety, but there are huge benefits: Your ribs will keep more juices and flavor. Secondly, meat will be more evenly dispersed and cook more evenly. And, because of the meat’s greater density and larger surface area, ribs will barbeque better. Lastly, the fresh ribs are easier to trim and handle, and you will need less; one rib will prove more satisfying then 3 or 4 of the frozen, nearly meatless alternative.

Cut back fat off of the ribs, so meat will cook more evenly and not flame on the grill. Also, remove large fat from the rib tops, for a more enjoyable result. Mix the seasonings in a 10 / 1 / 2 / 3 ratio of granulated garlic/white pepper/cayenne pepper/coarse black pepper. Put ribs in the oven, cover with foil and cook at 250 degrees for 3 hours, or until tender. Go straight to the grill. Finish the beef ribs, starting with the meaty side up. Don’t leave ribs unattended: They are already cooked and will finish quickly.Sprinkle more seasoning, add barbeque sauce and serve.

Hush puppies from BBQ Shak

11 cups self-rising cornmeal

5 ½ cups flour

2 tablespoons plus 1 ¾ teaspoons of baking powder

3 teaspoons salt

4 ounces sugar

5 ½ cups chopped onions

11 cups buttermilk

Mix all ingredients together. Ladle small cookie scoops into a pan with 2 to 2 1/2 inches of oil in a nonstick pan. Brown both sides for about 5 minutes total.

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