Fall Off The Bone Baby Back Ribs

These Fall Off The Bone Baby Back Ribs are the best ever! Marinated for 8 hours in a to die for the dry rub and then slow-roasted in the oven on low for  3-4 hours. Finished off on the BBQ where they are smothered in barbecue sauce. So tender these pork ribs literally melt in your mouth on the first bite.

My dad was a huge rib fan. He would go on and on …. and on about the quality and value of the ribs based merely on the proportion of sauce to meat and how “fall off the bone,” his ribs were.

With years of fatherly education on what makes the best ever ribs, I am pleased to announce the only baby back rib recipe you will ever need! You will not be disappointed and may actually write me a thank you note after devouring them.

Fast forward many years and wouldn’t you know it I married a rib fanatic just like my dad! Lou, my husband, is also a huge BBQ Chicken fan and loves this Honey Sriracha Chicken Recipe too.

I think many men feel some draw to the good ole BBQ.  Maybe it is the fire, chunks of meat and pokey tools that sometimes look like spears that bring them back to their caveman days. I don’t know what it is but BBQ Ribs are just as serious with my husband as they were with my Dad.

I don’t mean to harp on it but for my Dad, ribs were serious business. If they didn’t “fall off the bone” the moment that first delicious bite was taken well there was a problem Houston. 

I myself don’t actually get to make this recipe. It is Lou (my husband) who insists that he is the guardian of the ribs or chicken! He also loves this Honey Sriracha Chicken Recipe.

Well, he is welcome to it! I have no problem breaking out a bevy or two while he cooks me dinner. You go right ahead, my dear. I will be in the kitchen making the side dish to go with these.

Side Dishes that Pair Well with this Baby Back Rib recipe

• Air Fryer Turnip Fries
• Greek Pasta Salad
• Easy Potato Salad – Dairy Free
• Zesty Quinoa Salad
• Mexican Bean Salad
• Tangy Homemade Coleslaw – Dairy Free

How to make Baby Back ribs

First, start with about 4 racks of Baby Back Ribs. I have tried this recipe with other types of spare ribs but baby back ribs are the most tender I find and get the best result. If using back ribs allow the cooking time in the oven to be another 45 minutes.

I like to cut the racks in half for three reasons:

• They are easier to handle on the BBQ
• Half racks are easier to serve and portion out
• Smaller pieces fit better in a large foil tray and don’t hang over the edges so you can cover them properly with foil later

Next, you need to make the BBQ ribs dry rub. The pic shows a bottle of BBQ sauce but this is for later when you go to grill them.

For now, you just need to add all of the ingredients but the barbecue sauce to a medium bowl and mix until well blended.

Once you have the spices all blended up, use your hands to gently rub the dry rub marinade for the baby back ribs all over, front and back.

Once this is done cover the ribs with foil tightly and let them marinate in the dry rub overnight or for at least 8 hours. I like to do this the night before and let them sit overnight so they are ready to put in the oven early afternoon.

If you are having them for dinner I recommend getting them in the oven for about noon or 1 o’clock at the latest. Preheat the oven to 275° F and keep covered with foil.

Once the oven is heated place the ribs in the oven and slow cook the ribs on low heat for 4 hours or until these baked ribs are fall off the bone tender.

Once they are done baking in the oven remove them and then place them on a barbecue grill that has been heated to medium heat.

Now is the time to add the sauce!

You can add any sauce you like but our absolute favorite is Baby Ray’s. A little sweet and smokey! You will want to quickly brush the ribs with a good amount of sauce so make sure you have a full bottle ready.

I like to put the barbecue sauce in a bowl and use a basting brush to coat the ribs in the sauce. You need to move fast because barbecue sauce has quite a bit of sugar in it and if you take too long the sauce will burn or char before you have finished basting the other ribs.

As soon as you have basted one side, flip them over and baste the other side with the remaining barbecue sauce. The goal isn’t to cook the ribs because that was taken care of in the oven.

At this point, you really only want to heat up and caramelize the barbecue sauce a bit before serving.

Then just remove these fall-off-the-bone baby back ribs to a clean tray or platter and serve!

Tips For making fall off the bone Baby Back Ribs:

• When shopping, look for baby back pork ribs with more meat and less fat.
• On the back of the ribs, there is a thin tough layer of skin called the membrane.  Insert a knife under the membrane and over the bone to loosen it.  Grab the membrane with a paper towel and tear off the back of the ribs.
• Clean ribs of tough bits and excess fat with a sharp knife
• Fall of the bone ribs take time – apply the dry rub to the ribs overnight or early in the morning so they can sit in the fridge for 8 hours before baking.  This is where the tenderness and flavour come from…. great things take time!

how to know when ribs are done cooking?

Ribs are technically ok to eat at an internal temperature of 145°F however to get that fall-off-the-bone goodness you need to get them to about 165° F at least.

I find the best way to test to know when they are done is to carefully use tongs to try and pull a rib away from the rack. If it tears away easily that is a sign they are ready to go to the BBQ and get sauced!

what is the difference between back ribs and baby back ribs?

Back ribs are cut from where the rib meets the spine whereas baby back ribs are lower down towards the abdomen and are much smaller.

For this recipe, I highly recommend baby back ribs because they cook faster because they are smaller and I find them much more tender.

If you are using back ribs or any other type of rib I find them a bit tougher to get the whole fall off the bone thing happening. In this situation, I would recommend adding an additional 45 minutes to an hour of cook time in the oven.

Why are Baby Back Ribs so Expensive?

It comes down to simple economics. Baby back ribs are in the highest demand because they are so supremely tender. I have tried making this recipe with side ribs and other cuts but nothing beats baby back ribs!

How to Store Baby Back Ribs

If you have leftovers you can put them back in the foil tray you used to bake them in and then cover them tightly with foil. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheat in the microwave or in the oven.

You can freeze these fall-off-the-bone baby back ribs as well. To do so just wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and then a tight layer of foil. Thaw them in the fridge overnight and reheat them in the oven.

I don’t recommend reheating them back on the grill if they are already sauce simply because they will take longer to warm since they aren’t right out of the oven and the sugar in the barbecue sauce may cause them to char.

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For the step-by-step version of this recipe, check out the How To Make The Best Fall-Off-The-Bone Baby Back Ribs Story.