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I usually smoke my ribs, but there are times when I’m more than happy to cook them in other ways. Usually, that means on the Char-Broil Big Easy. Once, heck, I even made them in the slow cooker! Gasp! This time I figured I’d try oven baked ribs, which really isn’t much different than using the Big Easy.
I ended up with tender, juicy ribs that tasted absolutely great. Of course, they do not have that smoky flavor I’d get on the smoker, cooked for 6 hours. But, I make up for that a bit by adding smoky ingredients. Like smoked paprika. And I used a smoky (hickory in this case) BBQ sauce at the end.
Adding Smoke Flavor
Although I did not include it in the recipe below, I’d consider adding a drop of liquid smoke to the foil before sealing the ribs. There’s already a good bit of great smokiness added by the smoked paprika. I wouldn’t go crazy with the liquid smoke. A few drops at most. If you aren’t a fan of liquid smoke but want more smoky flavor, substitute smoked sea salt for the Kosher salt.
I used back ribs, though when I smoke ribs I almost always use spare ribs trimmed St. Louis-style. I wouldn’t use spare ribs in this recipe because I’d be afraid that the additional fat in them would almost end up ‘boiling’ the ribs in the foil.
If I’m reaching for a bottled BBQ sauce, I often go for Sweet Baby Ray’s.
Also try my oven-baked hot dogs. Hankerin’ for more ribs? Make some slow cooker Vietnamese ribs.
Oven Baked Ribs
Ingredients
- 2 racks back back ribs membrane removed from back, loose fat trimmed, rinsed and patted dry
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- your favorite BBQ sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Place ribs onto two large pieces of foil.
- Combine the remaining ingredients except for the sauce.
- Sprinkle the rub mixture over the ribs on all sides. Depending on the size of your ribs you may not end up needing all of the rub.
- Seal the foil tightly, transfer to a large baking sheet and place in the oven.
- Bake for 2 1/2 hours.
- Carefully open the foil. There will be lots of hot liquid accumulated in the bottom of the foil packets!
- Remove the ribs from the foil (they might be quite tender, so support them from underneath using large turners or flat wooden paddles and transfer to the baking sheets.
- Brush with plenty of sauce and place ribs under the broiler for about 5 minutes or until the sauce has set.
- Let rest 10 minutes before slicing.
- Serve with more sauce for dipping if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.
