FAVORITE SHORT-CUT BABY BACK RIBS
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Favorite Short-cut Baby Back Ribs are made in the oven and come out consistently good time after time. This recipe is a delicious way to enjoy ribs all year round!
FAVORITE SHORT-CUT BABY BACK RIBS
Finger-licking, fall-off-the-bone ribs are perfect for busy weeknights. I cook them in the oven then quickly sear them on the grill. However, you don’t have to turn on the grill at all if you don’t want to. You can broil them in the oven for a few minutes instead.
BUYING BABY BACK RIBS
For oven cooking, I prefer baby back ribs. They’re smaller and cook faster.
When buying baby back ribs make sure they have an even layer of meat across the rack. You do not want one end to be thick with meat and no meat on the other. Also look for no bone showing through, when cooked they’ll fall apart. The bones should be covered with meat.
HOW TO PREP THE RIBS
After opening the package of ribs, dry them with paper towels. Meat side up, trim any dangling meat and excessive fat. Turn the ribs over and remove the tough membrane, called silver skin, connecting the ribs. You can run the tip of your knife under the membrane then pull it off holding it with a paper towel. Discard the membrane. Finally, inspect the ribs for any bone fragments and remove them.
Now you’re ready to season the ribs. Season both sides, ends, and edges.
HOW MANY SLABS OF BABY BACK RIBS DO I NEED?
There are 13 ribs in a slab of baby back ribs. One slab will feed two adults. (For spare ribs, you can feed 3 adults with one slab.)
This is a very tasty alternative to smoking. The addition of liquid smoke in the BBQ sauce helps get that smoky flavor. The key is baking them slowly until they’re done then charring them on the grill for 10 minutes with the sauce.
An optional cooking method for ribs and Boston butt is on a pellet smoker. We enjoy this recipe, Smoked Pulled Pork, that’s cooked on a Traeger.
For our method for smoking ribs see this post.
WHAT CAN I SERVE WITH BABY BACK RIBS
- Famous Potato Salad
- Twice Baked Potato Casserole
- Bacon-Wrapped Potato Wedges
- Bacon Ranch Twice Baked Potato Salad
- Hashbrown Potato Casserole No Cream Soup (Funeral Potatoes)
ALSO ENJOY
Favorite Short-cut Baby Back Ribs
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 2 full racks baby back ribs
- 1 to 2 tablespoons salt and pepper to taste for ribs
BBQ SAUCE
- 2 Tablespoons canola oil
- ⅓ cup Vidalia onion grated
- 1 and ½ cups water
- ½ cup tomato paste
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons honey
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 and ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 Tablespoon whiskey
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
Instructions
- Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of the ribs. Wrap each slab of ribs in aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 275°F oven for 2 and ½ hours.
BBQ SAUCE
- While ribs are cooking, make the sauce. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Sauté onions until they begin to brown. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 1 hour, uncovered, or until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and set aside.
RIBS
- Preheat the grill to 400°F. When ribs are finished cooking in the oven, the meat should have pulled away from the bone at the end about ½-inch. You can return them to the oven to cook longer if they're not as tender as you want. Remove the ribs from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
- When the grill is heated, remove ribs from foil and put them on the grill. Grill for 4 to 5 minutes per side. They should be slightly charred when ready.
- Brush BBQ sauce on the ribs just before they come off; careful not to add the sauce too early as it may burn. Remove the ribs from the grill and allow them to rest for 5 to 10 minutes (if you can wait that long) before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are important to you, I recommend calculating them yourself.
I have cooked these ribs for my friends and myself and we just love them, don’t remember how I got the recipe, but am so glad, making them again tomorrow as they are so delicious. Thank you for sharing
These were so delicious! The sauce was perfect!