Sweet Barbecue Baby Back Ribs

Perfectly tender but still charbroiled, these baby back ribs are sticky sweet and fall right off the bone. The best part? They start in the oven and are finished on the grill. With this recipe in hand, these will be the best ribs you’ve ever had!

Are you ready for these sweet barbecue baby back ribs?

Ribs oftentimes seem to be the barbecue item we all crave but don’t like to make. And it’s a fact: good ribs are legendary. Those ones that are tender, fall off the bone, with a slightly smoky flavor, and sticky-sweet sauce.

This perfect rib can be made at home and better yet, it can be made without a smoker. A smoker is often the secret to adding flavor and making the meat tender. Instead, this recipe has a spice rub that’s baked in the oven low and slow until tender. While baking in the oven, a quick sauce is made on the stove. By adding in a few drops of liquid smoke, the sauce is transformed into a slow-smoked dish that will fool anyone. Once tender, the ribs are finished on the grill to add some necessary charbroiled flavor and caramelize the sauce into a perfect finish.

What is the difference between baby back ribs and other types of ribs?

While any type of ribs sounds like it should be interchangeable, there are a few main differences. There are three cuts of pork ribs:

1. Spare ribs are bigger and not as tender as baby back ribs and come from the belly side of the pig. These are much more cumbersome to work with but have a lot of meat.
2. Baby back ribs are much leaner and more tender than other ribs because they’re closer to the loin. They’re smaller in size, starting at about a max-width of six inches and tapering off from there. This size means they’re going to be a bit easier and more enjoyable to eat. Plus, they soak in the flavor really well but can be a bit more of an expensive cut of meat.
3. St. Louis-style ribs are the same cut as spare ribs but have been trimmed of excess fat and meat. Think of these as nicer and cleaner-looking spare ribs that are easier to work with.

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

The ingredients for this recipe are pretty simple with much of the flavor coming from the spice rub. While it may seem like a lot of spices, each one is super important. When the barbecue sauce is smothered on top, the combination is what makes this recipe a showstopper. Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

For the baby back ribs and barbecue sauce:

For the spice mixture:

Here’s how to make this recipe.

There are three main parts to how this recipe comes together: prepare the meat and place it in the oven, make a barbecue sauce, and finish the meat on the grill. But there are a few helpful tips at each step that will help make this recipe a success.

• Prepare the spice rub. Combine together the brown sugar, salt, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, ground mustard, cayenne pepper, and celery seed. This mixture of spices is intended to mimic the idea that the resulting ribs were cooked in a smoker. While it may seem like quite a few spices, each one was handpicked for a specific reason. The brown sugar adds the necessary sweetness and depth of flavor, salt enhances and seasons the meat, and smoked paprika bolsters the desired smokiness.
• Sprinkle the spice rub on the baby back ribs. Even though it may seem like a lot of spices, make sure to use it all because you want this to be very well-seasoned. Also, make sure to cover both sides of the ribs. The “silver” skin on the backside of the ribs can be removed, but it helps to keep the ribs together and makes cutting them later much easier. As the spice rub is sprinkled, the ribs may get tacky as it works into the meat, but that’s exactly what should happen.
• Wrap the ribs in tin foil and place them in the oven. Make sure to wrap the tin foil tightly so that the steam is trapped with the meat, which will make these fall-apart tender. Once wrapped, place the ribs in the oven for two hours.

• Prepare the barbecue sauce. Start with chopped onion and sauté this in a kettle on the stove. Add salt, which draws out some of the moisture from the onion and also seasons this layer of the sauce, which is super important. In the last 30 seconds of cooking the onions, add the garlic. This small amount of cooking time prevents the garlic from burning and turning bitter. When you can smell the garlic, you know that it’s cooked for long enough with the onion. Next, add the tomato paste. You want to add the tomato paste at this step so the “raw” flavor will cook off before the other final barbecue sauce ingredients are added. After a few minutes, the paste will be a bit drier and a bit darker. Next, add in the ketchup, molasses, apple cider vinegar, yellow mustard, and liquid smoke. The liquid smoke is optional, but will be the secret ingredient in this sauce that drives home the idea of a “barbecue.” Stir everything together and let it come to a simmer. Simmer for about ten minutes, then keep at a low temperature until the ribs are ready to come out of the oven.

• Remove the ribs from the oven and place them on the grill. The ribs are ready to put on the grill when a knife inserted in between the bones meets no resistance. While the ribs are on the grill, brush about a third of the barbecue sauce on top, reserving the remaining two-thirds of the sauce for dipping while serving. At this point, the ribs are fully cooked. The grill is used to caramelize the sugars in the barbecue sauce and get the desired skin on the outside. When all of the barbecue sauce is on the ribs, close the grill and allow them to bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the heat of your specific grill.
• Remove the ribs from the grill and slice between each bone. Serve with the remaining barbecue sauce and enjoy!

These tips will make this recipe a success:

• When possible, make sure to buy ribs that are not brined. Often, grocery stores will sell brined meat to “enhance” the flavor. This simply means that the mean is pumped with salt water. While this enhanced flavor sounds great, the problem is that brined meat usually does not have as much meaty flavor and can have a soft texture. Avoid this when possible.
• Liquid smoke is an ingredient you won’t use a lot but is worth having in the kitchen. One bottle will last for years. Liquid smoke is literally the condensation from smoker grills bottled up. The intense, smoky liquid adds an amazing flavor with just a few drops. Instantly, this liquid will make something taste like it has been smoked for hours.

Have I convinced you to make ribs at home this summer?

What do I hope you do with this recipe? I hope you make it and put some food on the table. Believe me, your summer will this so much better when you make these and enjoy them with family and friends. Also, when you leave a comment and share a star rating, you let others know how much you love this recipe. This helps show others that this is a recipe they too can make and enjoy!