There are hundreds of variations on this approach, but this is how I make 3-2-1 smoked St. Louis-Style spareribs. The end result is a tender, moist, flavorful rib. Spareribs are our favorite. They are meatier, bigger, and tastier than back ribs. And, when trimmed St. Louis-style, you get an extra bonus: rib tips.
Here are the ribs, trimmed and rubbed, ready to go onto the smoker (I used my Weber Smokey Mountain Smoker), followed by the final product. Yummy tasty ribs. I already removed the membrane on the back at this point. You want that pretty, even, rectangular shape. Ok, that doesn’t make them taste better but it’s cool.
3-2-1 smoked St. Louis-Style spareribs are amazing. I can eat them like candy and I have. But, if you prefer baby back ribs, check out my technique for making 2-2-1 smoked baby back ribs. Baby backs are less fatty so they tend to dry out if you’re not careful.
Need a great homemade sauce? Here are just a few of the ones I’ve made and love: smokehouse, southwestern, atomic, Sriracha and sweet-n-spicy.
Also try my smoked Asian ribs.
You can also make delicious St Louis-style ribs on a gas grill or Char-Broil Big Easy!
3-2-1 Smoked St. Louis-Style Spareribs
Ingredients
- 1 rack pork spareribs
- your favorite BBQ seasoning I used Grub Rub
- 2-3 tablespoons brown sugar divided
- 2-3 tablespoons honey divided
- 3 tablespoons apple juice
- your favorite BBQ sauce I used our Sweet-n-spicy homemade sauce
Instructions
- Set up your smoker for cooking at 225 F. Add your wood of choice (I used cherry).
- Trim the ribs St. Louis-style. There is an excellent tutorial on how to do this on the Virtual Weber Bullet.
- Add rub to the ribs, rubbing into both sides of the slab.
- Place ribs on smoker and smoke for 3 hours.
- Remove ribs and place onto a large piece of aluminum foil.
- Sprinkle top of ribs with half of the brown sugar and honey.
- Flip and sprinkle bottom side with the remaining brown sugar and honey.
- Pour apple juice over ribs and seal the foil.
- Return ribs (in foil) to the smoker and cook another 2 hours.
- Remove ribs from foil and place them on the smoker.
- Baste with your favorite BBQ sauce and smoke up to another hour until meat starts to fall off of the bones, basting with more sauce as desired.
- Let rest 10 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.