Fall-Off-the-Bone Spare Ribs on the Grill
⏱ 30 min prep · 🍳 75 min · 🍽 6
Spare ribs are the flatter, meatier cut from the belly side of the pig — more fat cap than baby backs, which is exactly why they can sit under low heat for hours without drying out. This method leans on the oven for the heavy lifting: the rack steams in a covered dish with apple juice, onion, and garlic for two hours, until the meat pulls back from the bone and a fork slides through with almost no resistance.
The grill only shows up at the end, doing the one thing it's actually good at — building bark and smoke flavor in 10 to 15 minutes while you brush on layers of a from-scratch BBQ sauce. Because the hard work happens in the oven first, the method holds up on a charcoal kettle, a gas grill, or the small electric unit on an apartment balcony where open flame isn't an option.
Budget about an hour and a half to two hours from raw rack to table, but most of that is unattended oven time — start the ribs, get on with the rest of the day, and only plan to hover once the grate is hot.
Ingredients
- 3.000 stk spareribs
- 500.000 ml eplejuice
- 5.000 stk hvitløk
- 2.000 stk løk
- 44.360 ml grill perfect rub
- 300.000 ml sukker
- 100.000 ml ketchup
- 100.000 ml soyasaus
- 100.000 ml worcestershiresaus
- 2.000 dl krydder (diverse)
- 9.858 ml dijonsennep
- 4.929 ml malt spisskummen
- 200.000 ml buljong
- 29.574 ml smør
Instructions
Trim the spare ribs by removing flaps and edges, then remove the membrane from the back using a knife and paper towel.
In a large pan, add neutral oil, chopped onion, garlic, apple juice, and whole pepper to create a steaming liquid.
Oil the spare ribs lightly and place them in the pan. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and steam in a preheated 250°F (120°C) oven for 45 minutes.
While the ribs steam, prepare the BBQ sauce by combining all sauce ingredients except broth and butter. Simmer, then add strained broth and reduce to desired thickness. Stir in butter and set aside.
Remove ribs from the pan and place on a foil-lined tray. Strain the broth and reserve for the sauce.
Once the ribs have cooled slightly, apply a thin mustard layer, then sprinkle spice rub on both sides. Refrigerate until ready to grill.
Preheat the grill to high heat. Grill ribs on both sides to develop a crust and caramelization.
Reduce heat to low, brush BBQ sauce on ribs, cover, and grill for 15 minutes.
Serve hot with extra BBQ sauce and napkins.
This is the ribs recipe for weekends when the grill needs to do more than hot dogs, but nobody wants to babysit charcoal for three hours straight. The oven handles the slow part while everyone's off doing yard work or watching a game, so the grill only demands your attention for the last quarter hour. Ribs that pull clean off the bone are also an easy sell for kids who normally push chicken thighs and pork chops to the side of the plate — there's no gristle to work around, just meat that comes away with a light tug. Cook two racks instead of one while the grill's already fired up; cold rib meat reheats well enough to turn into a fast Tuesday dinner shredded over rice or piled on a bun, and it never dries out the way reheated steak does.
FAQ
How much rib meat should I plan per person?
Plan on 3/4 to 1 pound of raw ribs per adult when they're the main course, since a good portion of that weight is bone. Kids usually do fine with 1/2 pound. Two to three full racks will comfortably feed a family of four or five with a little meat left over for lunch the next day.
Why steam the ribs in the oven before they hit the grill?
Spare ribs carry a lot of connective tissue that only breaks down under long, moist heat — that doesn't happen in 15 minutes over coals. Covering the rack in a baking dish with apple juice and onion for two hours does that work for you without drying the meat out or scorching it. That frees up the grill to spend its 15 minutes on what it does best: flavor and bark.
How do I know the ribs are done steaming and ready for the grill?
The meat should have pulled back noticeably from the bone ends — look for a good half-inch of bone showing at the top of the rack. Slide a fork between two bones; if it meets almost no resistance, the ribs are ready. If the meat still feels tight or chewy, give the rack another 20-30 minutes covered.
Can the BBQ sauce be used for anything besides ribs?
Yes — this sauce works just as well on grilled chicken, pulled pork, or as a dip for oven fries. It keeps in a sealed jar in the fridge for at least a week, so it's worth doubling the batch the first time you make it rather than mixing a fresh one every cookout.
Does cooked rib meat freeze well, or should it just go in the fridge?
Cooked ribs freeze well for up to two months — cut the meat from the bone first and pack it in flat portions so it thaws faster. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat gently in the oven or a covered skillet; the microwave tends to make the meat rubbery. For short-term storage, a sealed container in the fridge holds up for 3-4 days.
Should the rub go on the night before, or right before cooking?
Rubbing the ribs the night before and leaving them uncovered in the fridge gives the salt and sugar time to work into the meat before steaming starts. Rubbing right before cooking works fine too, since most of the flavor still builds during the long oven time either way. The biggest difference shows up in the bark at the very end, not the inside of the meat.