Oven BBQ Ribs

Yield

• Servings: 4
• Serving size: about 1/4 rack (3–4 bones)
• Total yield: 3–4 servings (1 rack)

Time

• Prep: 15 min
• Cook: 3 hr 15 min
• Total: 3 hr 30 min

 

• Active: 25 min
• Inactive: 3 hr 5 min

Ingredients

Ribs & Rub

• Baby Back Ribs: 1 rack (2.5–3 lb)
• Yellow mustard: 1 tbsp
• Apple juice or water: 2 tbsp — for foil packet

Rub

• Brown sugar: 2 tbsp
• Kosher salt: 2 tsp
• Paprika: 2 tsp — sweet or smoked
• Black pepper: 1 tsp
• Garlic powder: 1 tsp
• Onion powder: 1/2 tsp
• Chili powder: 1/2 tsp
• Cayenne: pinch — optional

Glaze

• BBQ sauce: 1/2 cup
• Honey: 1 tbsp
• Apple cider vinegar: 1 tsp
• Worcestershire sauce: 1 tsp

Instructions

1. Prepare oven and pan

• Preheat oven to 275°F / 135°C (135°C).
• Line a sheet pan with foil.

2. BBQ Rub

• Remove membrane from bone side of ribs; pat dry.
• Rub lightly with mustard.
• Mix rub ingredients in a bowl.
• Coat ribs evenly with BBQ rub.
• Rub ribs up to 24 hours ahead for deeper flavor.
• For smoky depth, use smoked paprika or add ¼ tsp liquid smoke to the glaze.

3. Bake ribs

• (optional) Firm exterior, but still tender: Bake ribs uncovered for 30–45 min at 275°F / 135°C to dry and set the rub.
  • Use a wire rack on the sheet pan.
• Wrap tightly in heavy-duty foil, meat side up.
  • Double wrap and put the seams up so juice doesn't leak.
  • Wrap tightly to ensure the meat gets tender.
• Pour apple juice/water into packet. Place on pan.
• Bake until very tender (ribs wrapped in tin foil, on a baking sheet, no baking sheet rack). Subtract 15-20 minutes if they were optionally baked unwrapped for 30-45 minutes.
  • 2½–3 hours for baby backs
  • 3–3½ hours for spares
• Ribs are done when:
  • Bones peek 1/4 inch
  • Skewer slides in with little resistance
  • Internal temp near bones is 195–203°F / 95°C.

4. BBQ glaze

• Unwrap and drain liquid.
• Put unwrapped ribs back in oven at 275°F / 135°C for 5-15 min. This helps the glaze adhere to the ribs in the next steps.
  • Use a wire rack on the sheet pan.

• Stir BBQ glaze:

  • BBQ sauce
  • Honey
  • Apple Cider Vinegar
  • Worcestershire

• Tip: Use thin layers of glaze. Warm the glaze to thin if needed. Less scorching, better lacquer.

Glaze with oven

• Brush with glaze. Broil on top rack, meat side up until lacquered and lightly charred, 3–5 minutes.
• Brush again and broil 1–2 minutes.

Glaze with grill

Adds smoke flavor, more dry heat for more a tackier (not runny) glaze, better char.

• Preheat to 450–500°F / 260°C with two zones.

  • One burner on high, the other burner off.

• First coat: Brush a thin layer, put on indirect heat, lid closed, 3–4 min to tack.

• Second coat: Brush a thin layer, put on indirect heat, lid closed, 1–2 min to tack.
• Char: Move to direct heat meat-side 20–45 s, flip bone-side 20–45 s. Pull sooner if color deepens fast.
• Optional: a whisper-thin final coat off heat for shine.

6. Finish

• Rest 10 minutes.
• Slice between bones and serve.

Storage & reheating

• Refrigerate up to 4 days or freeze up to 2 months.
• Reheat covered at 300°F / 150°C (150°C) until warmed through.

Troubleshooting

• Dry ribs: wrap tighter in foil next time.
• Overly soft ribs: Reduce bake time by 20–30 minutes.

Nutrition

Nutrient	Full Recipe	Per Serving (about 1/4 rack (3–4 bones))
Calories	2480	620
Protein	160 g	40 g
Fat	152 g	38 g
Carbs	108 g	27 g
Fiber	0 g	0 g
Sugars	88 g	22 g
Sodium	4800 mg	1200 mg