Smoked Pork Ribs|St Louis Style

Smoked Pork Ribs has got to be one of our all time favorites. If your family loves meat and is unapologetic about being confirmed carnivores, then this recipe is for you. The St Louis Style Ribs are tender, so tender they come off of the bone and the meat has just the right amount of smokiness. We give you the secrets to making these award winning ribs. 

Jump to:

• Experience is the key
• What is the perfect slab
• How to smoke ribs 
• Prepare the grill
• How to proceed
• Testing the meat
• What to expect 
• Finishing up
• You may need...
• 💬 Comments

Experience is the key

I can't even imagine how many slabs of pork ribs we've gone through or how many chunks of hickory wood we've use or the hours my Honey spent out in the woods searching for a hickory tree.

Like a mushroom hunter he had his favorite places  kept secret, of course  from other hickory seeking carnivores.

Pit masters keep their recipes for making the perfect smoked pork ribs a guarded secret. 

There is a lot of money to be made for:

• the perfect rub
• the perfect sauce
• the perfect way to put it all together.

What is the perfect slab

You are looking for a succulent,  juicy slab of pork ribs with just the right amount of resilience and chew. The meat should not fall off the bone. Pork ribs that fall off the bone are ones that usually have been steamed or boiled. Using a process like that robs the pork ribs of flavor because water can dilute the flavor.

Properly cooked ribs will pull cleanly off the bone with your teeth. 

Mr. Meathead at his website Amazing Ribs writes countless pages on the science of barbecue everything from starting the fire to the thermodynamics of what happens when heat hits the meat.

Most of Mr. Meathead's advice is something we've been doing for years I think my Honey could make smoked  pork ribs in his sleep.

How to smoke ribs 

This is how Hubby gets the meat ready to smoke:

1. Prepares the meat by  tearing off the membrane on the bony side of the pork ribs.
2. Then he liberally sprinkles both sides of the pork ribs with All Our Way Seasoning and Rub.

Prepare the grill

My hubby prepares the charcoal for the grill  and the method he will use is  for indirect heat like he did for the pulled pork.

The temperature of the grill is 225 F to 250 F.

This is an ideal temp. It's hot enough to:

• brown the surface
• develop a crusty bark
• melt the fat and collagens.

How to proceed

Throughout the grill process my hubby always makes sure to maintain a temp of 225 F.

The pork ribs stay in the same position as when he put them on. That is with the meat side facing up.

When the ribs are nearing completion, in about one hour, he begins to slather the pork on the meat side with our special Spicy Bourbon Barbecue Sauce .

These ribs took six hours to smoke. So, on the fifth hour he begins to baste them.

He usually paints the sauce on the ribs two times. Prior to basting the ribs with the sauce  he occasionally spritzes the pork ribs with apple cider vinegar. You can also use apple juice. 

Testing the meat

There are several ways to test if the ribs are done.

1. My Honey uses the bend test. He picks up the ribs with a pair on tongs and he bounces them slightly. If they are ready, the pork ribs will bow until the meat starts to crack on the surface and be close to breaking when you lift them.
2. You can use a digital thermometer. They will be done at a temperature from 190 ℉ to 203 ℉. 

A rule of thumb is that at 225 ℉ baby back will take three to four hours to cook and about five to six hours for a slab of St. Louis style cut ribs which is what we have here.

What to expect 

The scent of these smoked pork ribs are sweet and fragrant. The meat is perfect when it's tender but it still has some resistance.

There's an excellent combination of:

1. texture
2. aroma
3. flavor without any one being dominant.

Finishing up

We decided to add Grilled Peppers and Mushrooms with the St. Louis style pork ribs and we agreed that the meal wouldn't be complete unless we included Cheese Grits and this time we included grilled jalapeño peppers.

Tutti a tavolo è pronto!

Un caro saluto e alla prossima.

You may need...

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We have several of these spritzer bottles at our house. We use them for so many things whether it's for cooking or cleaning solutions. Keep several handy and you'll find dozens of uses for them.

What's new? check out my All Our Way Store on Amazon. We'll be adding more items we love and use or wish we had to make cooking fun and easy. 

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