If you’re looking for the best fall-off-the-bone Smoked Baby Back Ribs, look no further. You’re going to love my easy smoked baby back ribs recipe.
Using simple ingredients and cooked low, my recipe will reward you with tender, juicy ribs with a smoky flavor that will have your friends and family begging for more!
My easy smoking process creates delicious, bone-tender smoked baby back ribs every time. With minimal prep work, all you need is time. The cooking process takes about six hours, so make sure to give yourself enough time to make the magic happen. I promise it will be worth it.
I’ve also got an easy recipe for smoked St. Louis-style ribs if you prefer that style.
Ingredients to make Smoked Baby Back Ribs
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make Smoked Baby Back Ribs. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
Can I use other spices in my dry rub?
Yes, you can. The key to making delicious smoked ribs that you and your family will love is to use seasonings that you enjoy eating. Changing up the spices in this simple dry rub is easy and definitely something you can do. Every time you prepare smoked ribs, beef, or chicken, you add your own touch to the seasonings.
Cumin, chili powder, dry oregano, ground ginger, turmeric, and coriander are other seasonings you could add to your spice rub.
You can also use your favorite seasoning blend. Cajun seasoning, jerk seasoning, barbecue seasoning, and Old Bay can be used instead of making your own dry rub.
What are Baby Back Ribs?
Baby back ribs, also known as back ribs or loin ribs, come from the section of a pig’s rib cage that is closest to the backbone beneath the loin muscle. They’re called “baby” because they are shorter than spare ribs, not because they come from a young pig.
They are the most popular style of ribs for home barbecues and restaurants since they are the better-known style. They are typically smaller, more curved, and meatier than spare ribs. The meat between the bones is tender and lean, making them a favorite choice for many rib lovers.
These ribs are typically prepared by smoking, grilling, or baking and are usually finished with barbecue sauce.
How to make Smoked Baby Back Ribs
Follow along with my simple step-by-step instructions to learn how to make smoked baby back ribs on your home smoker.
- In a small bowl, add the kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, ground cumin, brown sugar, and sweet paprika.
- Mix the dry rub ingredients together until well blended.
- Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees.
- Put wood chips in the smoker tube. Use your favorite wood chip flavor; I used Mesquite for my smoked baby back ribs.
*I love my electric smoker, but you can also use a pellet smoker, charcoal grill, propane smoker, or grill to create delicious smoked meats; it’s a personal preference.
- Rub the racks of ribs with olive oil (the oil helps the dry rub penetrate the meat more fully). Spread the dry rub generously over all the sides of the ribs.
If time permits, let the ribs marinate for at least half an hour before placing them in the smoker. This gives the rub time to soak into the skin and meat. It also gives the meat time to come to room temperature before beginning the smoking process. This helps the meat cook more evenly. - Place the ribs bone-side down on a smoker rack in your preheated smoker and let them cook for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours of smoking, remove the ribs from the smoker and wrap them in heavy-duty aluminum foil.
- Return the foil-wrapped ribs to the smoker and cook for an additional 2.5 hours. Or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the ribs reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
*Cooking time can vary depending on the weight of the racks.
Remove the baby back ribs from the smoker and carefully open the foil pack. If you’re not a fan of barbecue sauce, let the rack rest for 15-30 minutes, and you’re ready to go.
But if you enjoy the flavor that barbecue sauce adds to the ribs, slather the top of the ribs (on the meaty side) with your favorite BBQ sauce (or try my semi-homemade barbecue sauce) and return them to the smoker for an additional 30 minutes.
Let the ribs rest for 15-30 minutes before cutting, and serve with your favorite side dishes. My coleslaw recipe and macaroni salad are two of the sides I like to serve with my smoked baby back ribs.
You can also serve sautéed greens, corn on the cob, potato salad, garden salad, or Caesar salad.
When it comes to barbecue, you can’t beat smoked meats, and an electric smoker makes preparing your favorite smoked recipes easy.
All you need is time and a few basic seasonings to make the best ribs you’ve ever had!
Recipe FAQ’s
Smoking ribs at 200 degrees will take 7-8 hours to cook. At 225 degrees, they will take 6-7 hours, and at 250 degrees, they will take 5-6 hours.
The time it takes to cook the ribs will depend on which type of smoker you use and how thick the meat is.
Most pitmasters agree that 250°F is the ideal smoking temperature for ribs. Smoking at lower temperatures will take longer for the ribs to cook and can result in tough, chewy meat.
However, too high a temperature can cause the ribs to dry out quickly. The preferred smoking temperature ranges between 225° and 275° Fahrenheit, with 250° Fahrenheit being the sweet spot.
Yes, for the best results, they do need to rest. Since the smoking process takes 5-6 hours, the ribs should rest from 15-30 minutes before serving
How do you keep ribs moist while smoking?
You can spritz the ribs periodically using a spray bottle filled with a mixture of apple juice or water and apple cider vinegar. Allow the ribs to smoke for about an hour and a half before spritzing the first time — then spritz every half hour.
More Recipes You’ll Love!
Smoked Baby Back Ribs
Equipment
- Electric Smoker or smoker of your choice
- wood chips
Ingredients
- 2 racks baby back ribs
- 2 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika or smoked paprika
- 1 cup barbecue sauce Your favorite brand or my semi-homemade bbq sauce.
Instructions
- Add the kosher salt, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, ground cumin, brown sugar, and sweet paprika to a small bowl. Mix the rub ingredients together until well blended.
- Rub the rack of ribs with olive oil (the oil helps the dry rub penetrate the meat more fully). Then spread the dry rub generously over the front, back and sides of the ribs for a well-balanced flavor. *If time permits, let the ribs marinate for at least a half hour before placing them in the smoker. This gives the rub time to soak into the skin and meat. It also gives the meat time to come to room temperature before beginning the smoking process. This helps the meat cook more evenly.
- Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees.
- Put wood chips in the smoker tube. Use your favorite flavor of wood chip, I used Mesquite for my smoked baby back ribs.
- Place the ribs bone side down on a smoker rack of your preheated smoker, and let them cook for 2 hours.
- After 2 hours, remove the ribs from the smoker and wrap them in aluminum foil.
- Return the foil-wrapped ribs to the smoker and cook for an additional 2.5 hours or until a meat thermometer instered into the thickest part of the ribs reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees.
- When the ribs are ready, remove them from the smoker and carefully open the foil.
- Slather the meaty side of the ribs with your favorite bbq sauce (or try my semi-homemade barbecue sauce) and return them to the smoker for an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove Ribs and allow to rest for 10-15 minutes.
- Cut and serve.
LISAMARIE JACOBS says
When you add the sauce and return to the smoker, is the foil off or on?
Chef Dennis Littley says
No, leave them unwrapped after applying the sauce.
Eugene says
We cooked up a lot of ribs. It was our first time smoking ribs. We did not use the recipe but the cooking methods shown was easy and the ribs turned out amazing! Thank you
Chef Dennis Littley says
Thanks for letting me know you used our method for smoking ribs and I’m happy to hear you used your own rub and barbecue sauce to personalize the recipe.