Smoked Baby Back Ribs Recipe

Smoked Baby Back Ribs Recipe

This easy smoked baby back ribs recipe produces succulent, tender, and juicy ribs with a flavorful spice rub and luscious barbecue sauce. For best results, rub the ribs 1-2 days ahead and smoke low and slow for tender fall-off-the-bone meat. Serve with jalapeño cheddar cornbread muffins or roasted oven fries.

CourseMain Course
CuisineAmerican
Keywordsmoked baby back ribs, baby back ribs recipe, smoked ribs, barbecue ribs, tender ribs, fall off the bone ribs, smoky ribs, ribs with barbecue sauce, how to smoke ribs, Smoking
Prep Time1470 minutes
Cook Time300 minutes
Total Time1770 minutes
Servings4 servings

Ingredients

Ribs

  • 2 racks baby back ribs

Spice Rub

  • 3 tablespoons packed light or dark brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons granulated garlic (or garlic powder)
  • 2 teaspoons granulated onion (or onion powder)
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

Sauce

  • ⅔ cup barbecue sauce, divided
  • ¼ cup apple cider
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small cubes

Instructions

  1. Loosen the membrane on the back of each rib rack by slipping a sharp knife between membrane and bones. Use paper towels to grip and peel off membrane. Discard membrane.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, salt, pepper, chili powder, granulated garlic, granulated onion, and smoked paprika. Rub both sides of ribs thoroughly with the rub. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days for best flavor.
  3. Preheat the smoker to 225˚F.
  4. Place rib racks on smoker, meaty side up, and smoke for 3 hours.
  5. Remove ribs from smoker and keep smoker on. Place each rack on large sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil. Brush ribs with ⅓ cup barbecue sauce, reserving remainder. Drizzle apple cider and vinegar around edges. Dot with butter cubes. Wrap tightly in double foil to seal packets.
  6. Put foil packets back into smoker and cook until ribs are tender when pierced, about 2 to 3 hours longer.
  7. Carefully unwrap foil without losing juices. Brush ribs with remaining ⅓ cup barbecue sauce. Return ribs to smoker and cook 15 minutes more until sauce is sticky and caramelized.
  8. Transfer ribs to cutting board and cut into portions. Drizzle with reserved juices from foil packets. Serve with plenty of paper towels.

Notes

  • You can prepare ribs with spice rub up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate.
  • Smoked ribs can be refrigerated in foil packs with juices; reheat in 350-400˚F oven or grill before serving.
  • Use any smoker brand, maintaining 225˚F temperature for best results.
  • For best flavor, rub ribs 1-2 days before smoking to allow spices to penetrate.
  • Use heavy duty aluminum foil and double wrap ribs to prevent juice leaks.
  • Use your favorite barbecue sauce; recommended brand is Stubbs Original Bar-B-Q Sauce (gluten free and no high fructose corn syrup).
  • Serve with jalapeño cheddar muffins or herbed oven fries for a complete meal.
  • If no smoker is available, bake ribs wrapped in foil at 300˚F for 2 hours until very tender, then grill with sauce mixture for caramelization.

Smoked Baby Back Ribs Recipe https://cookwithhailey.com/smoked-baby-back-ribs-recipe/ August 30, 2025