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Grilling Ribs

Is there anything better than a rack of tender, flavorful, juicy ribs? It’s just the perfect meal to dig into!

I’m sure you’ve probably had ribs in restaurants before, but did you realize you can make amazing ribs at home on your grill? Personally, I was surprised by how easy this was to do! There are so many ways to cook ribs, but don’t be intimidated. You can absolutely make awesome ribs at home.

I recommend Smithfield Extra Tender Fresh Pork St. Louis Style Ribs, which I picked up in the meat aisle at Walmart:

These ribs are perfect! I found them to be really easy to work with and pretty much grill ready after just applying a homemade spice rub. They were nicely trimmed, so it made my work in the kitchen really simple. Smithfield Extra Tender ribs were the secret weapon in grilling amazing ribs!

I’ll tell you how I grilled mine in the recipe below, but you can also find great cooking instructions right on the back of the package.

Be the Grill Hero

Before I tell you all about this Grilled Honey Chipotle BBQ Ribs recipe, you have to check out the Hero of the Grill Contest at SmithfieldGetGrilling.com. You can share your brief story about why you are the “hero of their grill” to be entered to win $5,000! Also, be sure to check back daily for instant win prizes. Click the image below for more details:

Making Grilled Honey Chipotle BBQ Ribs

Making the ribs was quite simple. First, I mixed up a homemade spice rub:

Next, I dried the ribs with paper towels, placed the ribs on a foiled lined baking sheet, then rubbed them with honey and the spice mixture.

Grilling the ribs was easy. We heated the grill up to 250 degrees and then turned the burners off on one side of the grill. The reason for this is that you want to grill your ribs over indirect heat. This means the heat on one side of the grill will cook your ribs on the opposite end of the grill. Low and slow is the way to go! You’ll have more tender ribs with this method than you would at higher heat.

I grilled the ribs with the lid closed for an hour before checking on them. The goal is to have the ribs reach about 175 degrees before we brush on the BBQ sauce. This is the temperature where the fats in the ribs begin to break down. More on the final temperature in a moment…

About the Sauce

Homemade BBQ sauce is easier than you might think! You’ll just add your ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

My honey chipotle BBQ sauce recipe is plenty to brush on your ribs and also have some left over for those who want extra sauce.

I’ll be honest, I had to throw out my first batch of BBQ sauce when creating this recipe. It was soooo hot! I went a little heavy on the chipotle chiles and WOW was the sauce spicy. I recommend going easy on the chiles because there will already be heat from the spice rub. Start with a tablespoon of chopped chiles and then you can add more if you want more heat.

If you like the spice, go for it! If you’re not a fan of spicy foods, you may want to back off on the chipotle chili powder in the spice rub and even skip the chipotle peppers in the BBQ sauce. It will still be delicious!

Finishing the Ribs

The ultimate goal is to get the ribs to about 190 degrees for tenderness. Once the ribs were at 175, I opened the grill and increased the heat. This is because I really wanted some nice gill marks and to bring the temperature up a bit quicker at the end.

I basted the ribs on both sides very generously with the BBQ sauce, then grilled them until I could see some grill marks and the internal temperature reached 190 degrees.

Then I basted the ribs one final time with the sauce.

When finished grilling, I placed the ribs onto a clean baking sheet lined with foil (not the same baking sheet that I used when prepping the raw meat) and let them rest at room temperature for a few minutes before cutting the ribs.

The results were fantastic!

Grilled Honey Chipotle BBQ Ribs

Author: Carissa Shaw for Mom Needs Chocolate
Total Time: 2 hours
Yield: 1 rack, 2-3 servings 1x

Print Recipe

Description

Delicious grilled St Louis style ribs in a spicy rub, basted with homemade hot and sweet honey chipotle BBQ sauce. Add this winner to your grilling lineup!

Ingredients

Scale

1 rack Smithfield Extra Tender Fresh Pork St. Louis Style Ribs, approximately 3 pounds
Vegetable oil for oiling the grill grates

Rub:

2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

BBQ Sauce:

1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1–2 tablespoons chipotle chiles canned in adobo sauce, chopped
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

Pat the Smithfield Extra Tender Fresh Pork St. Louis Style Ribs dry with paper towels and place the ribs on a foil lined baking sheet. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the ingredients for the spice rub, except for the honey. Use a silicon brush to apply the honey to both sides of the ribs. Sprinkle the spice rub and use your hands to rub it all over the meat.
Heat your grill to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. This is usually accomplished on a medium setting. Turn the gas grill burners off on one side of the grill. Oil the grates on the side of the grill where the burners are off. Place the seasoned ribs on the oiled side of the grill with the meaty side facing up. Close the lid of the grill and allow the ribs to cook undisturbed for 1 hour and 30 minutes. The ribs need to cook slowly with indirect heat.
While the ribs are on the grill, combine the ingredients for the BBQ sauce in a blender. Pulse until smooth. Pour into a small bowl and set aside until needed.
After the ribs have cooked on the grill for 1 hour and 30 minutes, open the lid of the grill and check the temperature of the ribs. The ribs need to be about 175 degrees in the center of the meat. If the ribs are not to that temperature yet, close the lid of the grill and continue to cook, checking the temperature occasionally until the ribs.
Baste the ribs generously on both sides with the BBQ sauce. Turn the grill temperature up to high and grill the ribs for a few minutes on each side with the lid open until dark grill marks appear and the rib meat reaches about 190 degrees. This temperature is optimal for tender ribs.
Baste the ribs a second time on both sides with the BBQ sauce, then remove from the grill.
Allow the ribs to rest for a few minutes at room temperature, then cut the ribs apart with a sharp knife. Serve immediately.

Makes 2-3 servings.

Notes

The instructions are based on the use of a gas grill outdoors.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 1/2 to 2 hours

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After you make and enjoy your ribs, come back and tell me how much you loved them! You can leave a comment below, or snap a picture and add it to Pinterest by clicking here to see the pin.

Enjoy!