To-die-for Pork Ribs recipe with fall apart meat slathered in a sticky homemade barbecue sauce! These oven Pork Ribs are rubbed with a spice mix, slow cooked until fall-apart-tender then basted generously with the tangy, sweet sauce. Can’t-stop-eating it, finger-licking’ good!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Pork Ribs recipe
If you nibble daintily at a rib, holding it delicately between 2 fingers, and wipe your fingers clean with linen napkins, you and I will probably never be friends.
If you grab them with your hands, devour with gusto, get sauce all over your mouth, smearing up towards your cheekbones, then drop the bones sucked dry of every fibre of meat and sauce so they clatter dramatically on your plate, then noisily suck each and every one of your fingers clean of all that sticky barbecue sauce….
….if that’s you, then you are my kind of people.
And welcome to the pork ribs of your dreams!
These oven baked pork ribs recipe are:
super easy
the meat is tender
ribs are infused with flavour from a rub AND braising the ribs in apple cider;
finished with a simple but incredibly tasty homemade barbecue sauce.
These Oven Pork Ribs are fall apart tender and slathered with an incredible homemade barbecue sauce!
How to make Oven Pork Ribs
Here’s how I make pork ribs in the oven. There’s a few key things here:
Rub for the pork ribs – to add flavour;
Liquid for cooking – this is a key step for this pork ribs recipe! It creates a steamy situation while the ribs slow cook in the oven to keep them nice and juicy. My liquid of choice is alcoholic apple cider (also known as hard apple cider) because as with many things, alcohol adds extra layers of flavour. But there’s loads of other options: beer, apple juice, broth or even water;
Homemade barbecue sauce – Ribs are a bit of an occasion around these parts so using store bought Barbecue Sauce doesn’t even cross my mind. It’s also one of those sauces that’s astonishingly simple to make at home and really is that much better than store bought because it tastes pure and real and doesn’t have that slight artificial edge of store bought. Try it once and you’ll be converted for life!
Baste, bake, baste, bake! The more you baste-bake, the better your sticky barbecue sauce coating on the ribs.
Type of ribs to use
Oven Pork Ribs are ideal for Baby Back and St Louis Style Pork Ribs. It will also work for Pork Spareribs but the oven cook time should be reduced by 20 minutes (as they are less meaty).
🇦🇺In Australia, we do not (yet!) distinguish between various cuts of pork ribs (most are a Baby Back / St Louis style hybrid or they are very skimpy Spare Ribs). There’s also a great deal of inconsistency with how pork ribs are cut between butchers and the big grocery chains (Costco, Aldi, Woolies, Coles).
Just look for meaty pork ribs that are nice an fatty. Avoid the ribs that are cut so close to the bone on both sides there’s barely any meat – miserable eating experience plus it’s criminal to pay for 70% bone!
What you need for Oven Pork Ribs with Barbecue Sauce
And here’s what you need. Nothing unique here, except perhaps the molasses in the barbecue sauce.
I can’t remember where I first saw it, but I added it to my barbecue sauce once then I never looked back. It adds colour and intensity of flavour that can’t be replicated! Truly worth using if you can get your hands on it. If not, don’t fret – substitute with golden syrup or use dark brown sugar instead of normal brown sugar. Similar result!
Barbecue Sauce for Pork Ribs
The barbecue sauce in this recipe is used for both glazing and serving. It is literally a plonk and simmer job. Low maintenance and effortless, and really tastes of pure flavour compared to store bought (says she who has done side-by-side taste testing!).
It will look like we’re making a LOT, with the recipe calling for 1 1/2 cups of ketchup. But trust me when I say you want to have more rather than too little. There’s nothing worse than being stingy when glazing the ribs – you want to slather generously with abundance without worrying about saving some for serving!
(PS And if you’re a sticky BBQ Sauce lover, try this BBQ Brisket and BBQ Beef Ribs next…)
What to serve with Pork Ribs
In the spirit of a Southern barbecue feast, serve up your sticky oven pork ribs with a side of Macaroni Salad and corn on the cob (try the most amazing GRILLED Buttered Corn!).
Other favourites include:
Potato Salad – Classic creamy Potato Salad or for lighter options, no-mayo Lemon Potato Salad and Red Potato Salad with Charred Corn and Bacon
Corn Bread or Corn Bread Muffins (or try these Cheese Muffins)
And for something fresh, try this Tomato, Corn and Avocado Salad or a cooling German Cucumber Salad.
This is a forgiving pork ribs recipe – and it’s loaded with plenty of flavour!
As long as you get nice juicy, fatty ribs (which they typically are), it will be pretty hard to stuff this recipe up! Ribs are a tough cut of meat so they’re made for slow cooking until it’s nice and tender.
It’s quite forgiving with the cook time, unlike some other types of proteins like poultry. So even if you cook it 30 minutes too long, it will still be juicy and delicious.
There is simply no way to look elegant eating pork ribs. Just accept you will have very sticky fingers, sauce smeared on your face and a huge goofy grin! -Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
More rib recipes
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Oven Pork Ribs with Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
Barbecue Rub for Ribs:
- 2.5 tsp paprika powder
- 2 tsp garlic powder (sub with onion powder)
- 1.5 tsp onion powder (sub with garlic powder)
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper (omit for not spicy)
- 1.5 tsp dried thyme
- 1.5 tsp dried oregano
- 1.5 tsp salt
- 0.5 tsp black pepper
Ribs
- 2 – 2.5kg / 4 – 5lb pork ribs (2 racks)
- 3/4 cup sweet alcoholic apple cider (hard cider) , or apple juice (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Homemade Barbecue Sauce
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (Note 3)
- 1 1/2 cups tomato ketchup (or Aussie tomato sauce)
- 1/2 cup water (or use remaining apple cider!)
- 1 1/2 tbsp molasses , orginal (not blackstrap, Note 4)
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp mustard powder
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Tabasco or cayenne pepper (optional, for spiciness)
Instructions
- Combine the Rub ingredients and rub onto both sides of the ribs (most on meaty side). Set aside to marinate for 20 minutes (or overnight).
- Preheat oven to 160°C/320°F (all oven types).
- Place ribs on a tray in a single layer. Pour apple cider underneath the ribs, cover with foil then bake for 1 hour 30 minutes or until the meat is pretty tender (Note 5).
- Remove from oven, turn up to 180°C/350°F. Remove foil, drizzle with olive oil, then return ribs to oven for 15 minutes or until rub becomes nice and crusty.
- Line a new tray with foil then baking / parchment paper (you'll thank me later).
- Remove ribs from oven, transfer to lined tray. Pour any juices from tray over the ribs.
- Flip ribs so the bonier side is up. Slather with Barbecue Sauce, then bake 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven, then turn ribs over so the meaty side is up. Slather with Barbecue Sauce, bake 5 minutes. Repeat 2 or 3 more times until you've got a thick glaze on the ribs.
- Cut ribs into individual or multiple rib portions and serve with remaining Barbcue Sauce!
Barbecue Sauce
- Place all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until thickened.
- Adjust to taste: sweetness with brown sugar / honey, salt and sour with vinegar. Use for glazing ribs and as a sauce for serving.
Recipe Notes:
- Follow recipe to end of Step 4 (ie 2nd baked uncovered to make Rub crusty)
- Brush bony side of ribs with sauce, then cook on BBQ indirect heat on high (bony side up) with lid down for 5 minutes.
- Flip so meaty side is up, baste, cook with lid down for 5 minutes. Repeat 3 times until you have a nice caramelised glaze!
Nutrition Information:
Pork ribs recipe originally published January 2016. Updated August 2019 with new photos, improved recipe, brand new video and new Life of Dozer section added!
Life of Dozer
He doesn’t need a 4 leaf clover for luck. He was BORN lucky….. at least, from the moment he became MINE!! #spoiltbrat #wantfornothing #PrinceDozer
First, I can drink the BBQ sauce. The ribs were tender and juicer then ever. I did the rub over night and replaced whiskey with the cider for a deeper flavor.
OMG!!!!!! Ever since I discovered your site, I’ve been enjoying your recipes, but this one … WOW!!!
Way beyond five stars.
Yes, it’s time consuming, but soooo worth it.
Didn’t have molasses, substituted with silan (date syrup), and I think I’ll stick to the substitution…
Also used for the sauce Heinz ketchup with Tabasco, so the spiciness came out just right.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, Nagi!!!
You are very welcome Ossie!! N x
Can I just say this recipe was soooo easy to follow. I have never made ribs like this before and they tasted amazing, my hubby said best he had ever tasted. even my 3 year old helped me make it and ate them too.
This spare ribs are so delicious and I always use this recipe. Highly recommended!
hi Nagi. sooo amazing. can you freeze any leftover bbq sauce?
Made this yesterday. Great recipe, very detailed and helpful. Cooking times are spot on. I didn’t have molasses (not readily available in my part of the world), so I used a mixture of maple syrup and honey, was so good. And yeah, follow the directions about lining the second baking sheet with parchment. I was iffy about it but did it anyway. Super thankful that I did
I don’t have molasses in my pantry, but I have golden syrup. It works well too.
Made these the other night for a few mates, was absolutely spot on! Easy to follow, and super tasty. Thanks!
Hi Nagi! This recipe was superb! The only issue I had was the cider reduced to a black crusty layer across the bottom – should I use more next time?
Yes Corina, or a slightly smaller pan so the liquid doesn’t evaporate so fast! N x
Best ribs we’ve ever cooked.
Such an easy and delicious recipe to try for first timers! Most of the ingredients are already in my pantry so this worked out well. I used substitute ingredients such as chicken broth in lieu of cider, cumin powder in lieu of mustard, and more dark brown sugar in lieu of molasses.
I made this last night. It was fantastic. Love the BBQ sauce. Will definitely cook it again and again.
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!! Made this on Christmas eve! My son rated it 12/10. Thanks Nagi! Merry Christmas
Made these today and they are the best ribs ever. Tender, sweet and sour with a slight spicy kick – definitely a new favourite recipe for sure. Thanks so much Nagi!
Hi nagi
We had a Nagi dinner last nigh..ribs..coleslaw and potato salad. So freaking yummmmyyyyy! I th8n this rib recipe is the best ever. I picked up pork ribs from local butcher, no bones and skin on. Not sure what that kind is called but it was a serious winner. And the salads…yum!
I looooooved this recipe. I had a mix of pork and lamb ribs (one tray each) and it worked a treat. I think, and a friend agrees these are the best ribs I’ve eaten. 10/10 recipe Nagi! Thank you!
***we’ve eaten!!
These were AMAZING, my granddaughter is not a big wrap for red meat but loved these. The rest of us had sauce & meat all over our fingers & smile!
AWWWW! Good to see a saucy face occasionally! N x
Hi Nagi! Is it possible to use the slow cooker for this recipe?
If so, how long should I put it in the slow cooker for?
Thank you!
These were the best ribs I have ever had! My husband loved them as well. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Hi Nagi, Long time lover of your food 🙂
We have our ribs in the oven right now and without even tasting them, we can already tell these are going to be our very favourite recipe 🙂 🙂
Thanks again for another winner dinner!!
OH YES!!
These ribs are 100% AWESOME & SO TASTY!!
Sorry for yelling LOL 🙂
Thank you Nagi 🙂 xx
GOOD RIBS ARE WORTH YELLING ABOUT!!! 🐖 N x
Hi Nagi. I’m thinking about making these for Christmas (only 1 month away now!) Can I make them ahead and reheat them? Or do up to step 6 then baste and bake on the day? Thanks!
I think they would be fine to bake and baste on the day Jackz – just let them come to room temp before popping in the oven. N x
Thanks Nagi! You’re a legend!