Baked Grilled Baby Back Ribs are fall off the bone tender and delicious! Spice-coated and baked, then grilled with BBQ sauce, you’ll love ’em!
Do you enjoy eating BBQ ribs? We sure do! Today I am sharing a great recipe for baked grilled baby back ribs that are so tender, they practically fall right off the bone.
The ribs are covered in a wonderful spice rub, sealed tightly and baked for a couple hours until fully cooked (and tender!). Then they’re brushed generously with BBQ sauce, and grilled for several minutes until the sauce has nicely caramelized!
Thee ribs are delicious, EASY to make, and I’m confident you’re going to really, really enjoy them! Here’s how to make them.
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
Make The Dry Spice Rub
The first thing you need to do is make a dry seasoning mix to rub onto the rack of ribs before baking them.
Stir together oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, ground mustard and brown sugar in a small bowl.
This is the spice rub for the ribs. See how easy it is to make? These seasonings add great flavor to the meat… yum!
Season And Bake The Ribs
Spray a large piece of heavy duty aluminum foil (on the dull side) with non-stick baking spray. Lay the foil on a very large rimmed baking sheet, greased side up. The piece of foil needs to be large enough to completely cover the ribs.
Lightly pat the pork ribs dry using paper towels. We used 1 full rack of ribs weighing 2¾ pounds, and it had about 15 ribs.
Carefully place the rib rack “bone side up” in the middle of the foil lined baking sheet. Season with about 1/3 of the spice mix, rubbing it into the meat and bones so it adheres.
Turn the ribs over and season the meaty part of the ribs using the remaining spice mix. Rub and pat it into the meat so it sticks as much as possible.
Cover, Seal And Refrigerate The Ribs
Place another sprayed piece of foil on top (sprayed side down), and seal the foil packet tightly closed on all sides. You may need to put the rib packet corner to corner on the baking sheet so it fits .
TIP: For the best flavored ribs, place the ribs in the refrigerator for at least an hour at this point, to give the spices time to work their magic!
Bake Then Prepare The Ribs For Grilling
Remove the ribs from the refrigerator 20 minutes before baking. Preheat your oven to 300°F (or 148.8°C) while you take the chill off the ribs.
Bake the ribs at 300°F (or 148.8°C) for 2 – 2½ hours, depending on the size rack of ribs you are using (we cook the “almost” 3 pounds of ribs for 2½ hours). This long baking time ensures the ribs come out of the oven “fall off the bone tender”.
TIP: Light your gas or charcoal grill outside and get it hot, so it’s ready to go when the ribs are finished baking.
Unwrap the foil packet. Brush the ribs generously with your favorite BBQ sauce. Now they’re ready for the grill to caramelize the sauce!
What If I Don’t Have A Grill?
A lot of people do not have access to a BBQ grill or are not allowed to have one, due to living arrangements (apartments, high rises, etc.). Where we live in Oregon it rains a lot, so sometimes it’s not even possible to light our charcoal grill.
This is not a problem. Simply coat the tender, slow-baked ribs generously with BBQ sauce (on both sides) after removing them from the oven, slice, serve and enjoy!
Onto The Grill They Go
Lightly oil the grill grate to prevent the meat from sticking. Place the ribs, BBQ sauce side down onto the hot grill, directly on the grate.
Brush the “bone side” facing up with additional BBQ sauce. Cook the ribs for 3-4 minutes until the bottom side gets a good char on it.
Carefully flip the ribs to the other side (we use 2 spatulas, one on each end), and continue grilling the ribs 3-4 more minutes, to char the other side.
NOTE: It’s important to remember the ribs are already fully cooked from baking. The grilling serves to caramelize the sauce and char the ribs for serving. Don’t overcook them on the grill!
Time To Serve The Baked Grilled Baby Back Ribs!
When done, remove the ribs from the BBQ. Carefully transfer the ribs to a cutting board, because they are so tender they may come off the bones.
Slice between the ribs (about 4-5 ribs per serving), then serve and enjoy! Serve with additional BBQ sauce on the side, so it can be drizzled on the ribs for even MORE flavor!
I really hope you have the chance to make these delicious baked grilled baby back ribs, and trust you (and those you love) will enjoy them as much as we do!
Thanks for stopping by. I invite you to come back again soon for more family-friendly recipes. Take care, may God bless you, and have a GREAT day!
Looking For More PORK Recipes?
You can find ALL of my recipes in the Recipe Index, which is locate at the top of the page. I have lots of delicious recipes featuring pork, including:
- Vietnamese Skillet Pork Chops
- Brown Sugar Pork Chops
- Pork Medallions In Mushroom Marsala Sauce
- Air Fryer Pork Chops for Two
- Awesome Grilled Pork Chops
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Recipe adapted from, and with thanks to Kori, at: seekinggoodeats.com
↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓
Baked Grilled Baby Back Ribs are fall off the bone tender and delicious! Spice-coated and baked, then grilled with BBQ sauce, you'll love 'em!
- 1½ Tablespoons smoked paprika
- 1½ Tablespoons ground cumin
- 1½ Tablespoons dried oregano
- 1½ Tablespoons dried parsley
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 1½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 1½ teaspoons ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2¾ pounds baby back pork ribs full rack- about 15 ribs
- BBQ Sauce, to add and season to taste use your favorite brand
- oil or baking spray for foil and BBQ grill grate
Spray a large piece of aluminum foil (on dull side) with non-stick baking spray. Lay foil on a large rimmed baking sheet, greased side up. Set aside.
Stir spice rub ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.
Pat ribs dry with paper towels. Lay rib rack "bone side up" in the middle of the foil. Season with ⅓ of the spice mix, rubbing it into the meat/bones so it adheres. Turn ribs over and season the meaty side with remaining spice mix. Rub/pat it into the meat so it adheres as much as possible. Place another sprayed piece of foil on top (sprayed side down), and seal the ribs in the foil packet, tightly closed on all sides. You may need to put the rib packet corner to corner on the baking sheet so it fits. TIP: For the best flavored ribs, place packet of ribs in refrigerator for at least an hour, to give the spices time to work their magic! Remove ribs from refrigerator 20 minutes before baking.
Preheat oven to 300°F. (or 148.8°C.) when you remove ribs from refrigerator. Bake ribs at 300°F (or 148.8°C) for 2 - 2½ hours, depending on the size rack of ribs you're using (we cook "almost" 3 pounds of ribs for 2½ hours). This long baking time ensures ribs will be "fall off the bone tender". TIP: Light your gas or charcoal grill (lightly oil the grates), so it's preheated and ready to go when ribs are finished baking.
When done baking, unwrap foil packet. Brush ribs generously with BBQ sauce. Place ribs, meaty BBQ sauce side down onto hot grill, directly on metal grates. Brush "bone side" facing up with BBQ sauce. Cook ribs 3-4 minutes until slightly charred on bottom. Carefully turn ribs to the other side; continue cooking 3-4 more minutes, to char other side. NOTE: Remember- ribs are already fully cooked. Grilling caramelizes the sauce and chars them. Don't overcook ribs on the grill!
Transfer ribs from BBQ to a cutting board. Slice between the ribs to serve (about 4-5 ribs per serving). Serve with additional BBQ sauce on the side. Enjoy!
NOTE: Caloric calculation does not include BBQ sauce because different brands may be used. Calorie count may also differ slightly based on total weight of ribs being used.
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!