These Baby Back Ribs on a Charcoal Grill are easy to make, fall off the bone delicious, and taste like everything you love about summer!
These baby back ribs are not only a crowd-pleaser, but they will slide right off the bone. Bonus these ribs also have great and tasty crispy edges and are a huge crowd-pleaser.
Looking for the perfect BBQ sauce to pair with your ribs? Make Homemade Imperial Stout BBQ Sauce!
Baby Back Ribs on Charcoal Grill
Smoking Ribs on a charcoal grill is how my bbq career began. It's the most pure and simple method and a great way to get used to live fire cooking.
The ribs will develop a beautiful mahogany bark and have a true smoky flavor that can be hard to replicate with these fancy new pellet grills.
I have burned a lot of innocent racks of ribs before I mastered charcoal smoking so I recommend reading this entire post so your ribs come out better than my first few racks.
Grilled Baby Back Ribs Ingredients
Meat: To make this recipe, you will need 2 racks of Baby Back Ribs. These can easily be found at your local grocery store or butcher shop.
Seasoning: To get the perfect flavor and bite each time, you will need, 2 tbsp of mustard and ¼ cup of BBQ Dry Rub.
The sauce: Sauce up your ribs for that perfectly sticky bite every time with ⅓ cup of BBQ sauce.
How to Make Baby Back Ribs Grill Dry Rub
Store-bought dry rubs work just as great, but if you are in a pinch and need to make your own or want to make your own, I suggest giving this combo a try!
Grab ¼ cup of paprika, 3 T of dark brown sugar, 2 T of ground black pepper, 1 T of chile powder, 2 tsp of garlic powder, 2 tsp of dry mustard powder, 2 tsp celery salt, 1 tsp kosher salt, and 1 tsp of cayenne pepper.
Once you have your dry rub made and ready to go, when it is time, you are going to lightly add it to the ribs.
Pro-Tip: Don't overdo it with the dry rub. Because this dry rub has brown sugar, you want to be careful. Brown sugar has the potential to burn and we definitely don't want to do that.
How to Remove the Membrane from Ribs
Removing the membrane from ribs is a key step that can take some practice but after a few times I know you'll have it mastered. The easiest way in my opinion is to us a paper towel to help pinch a small piece of the membrane to separate it from the rack. Next work your fingers underneath the membrane until you have a large section separated then gently pull until the entire membrane comes off hopefully in one piece. If it tears just grab another small section and pull until its completely removed.
How to Grill Ribs on Charcoal Grill
- Prepare the meat. Trim off any excess fat and remove the membrane from the back side of the ribs and then pat dry with a paper towel.
- Season the meat. Brush a light coating of yellow mustard on both sides of the ribs, then season liberally with dry rub seasoning. Go heavier on the meat side and lighter on the bone side. Let ribs rest while you light the fire.
- Prepare the grill. Set up your grill for indirect 2-zone cooking. I use a coal basket to keep the charcoal off to one side, but you can just pile it up if you don't have one. Pour out a layer of charcoal then, sprinkle a layer of wood chunks or chips, then cover with a second layer of charcoal. Light a firestarter at one end of the charcoal so that it will burn slowly across all the wood for constant smoke.
- Drop the meat on the grill. Place ribs on the grill opposite the fire source. If cooking more than 2 racks, you can use a rib rack to stack them vertically.
- Cook the ribs. Smoke the ribs for about 3 hours. Check the ribs once an hour to ensure they are not drying out. If dry, you can spray them with cooking oil or butter to keep the ribs moist.
- Foil. You may want to wrap your ribs in foil for the last hour of cooking.
- Add sauce. Once the ribs are tender, you can either sauce them up and then cook for 5-10 minutes to let the sauce tack up or if you prefer dry-rubbed ribs, then remove the ribs and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
- Enjoy. When the ribs are complete, plate, serve, and enjoy!
How do you know when your ribs are done?
Checking on your ribs is super important because you don't want to over cook them!
When checking on your ribs, you are going to pick them up with your BBQ gloves and give them a slight bend.
When the ribs easily start to break you know you are about finished.
Getting to this point should take upwards of 5 or 6 hours. In fact, don't be surprised if this takes 10-plus hours. It all depends on your average temperature and when you smoke on a charcoal grill you will have violent temperature fluctuations. The dome temperatures can easily fluctuate from 225, 250, 300, 275, and 177 after 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 hours of cooking respectively. So if you average in the lower 200s you will need extra time. If you average 250 or 275 you can finish your ribs in about 6-7 hours or maybe less. Just don't average over 300 degrees of you will lose the tender "fall off the bone" effect that makes this meal worth it!
Grilling Baby Back Ribs Tips & Variations
- Smoking Temperature: You want to maintain a smoking temperature between 250-275 degrees F. you may need to adjust the vents as needed. I recommend the vent be turned so it is over the ribs to create better airflow.
- Meat Thermometer and Doneness. Use a probe thermometer to check the tenderness. The ideal temperature will be around 200-205 degrees F. If you are looking for fall-off-the-bone ribs, you will need to cook them a little longer, and you may want to wrap the ribs in foil for the last hour.
- The Ultimate Secret to Making the Best Ribs. Everyone thinks the key is the sauce or the dry rub. Well, I'm here to tell you it's NOT! The key to making the best ribs is learning how to maintain temperature. You want to aim for 250 degrees F and never more than 300 degrees F.
Tools for Cooking Baby Back Ribs on the Grill
- 1 Charcoal grill
- 1 Lump Charcoal
- 1 Wood Chips
Grilled Baby Back Ribs Storage
I gotta be honest with you here ... I am not sure you are going to have leftovers for you to worry about this question.
However, if you do, or if you are like me and choose to overcook for leftovers or meal prep, or you want to refresh the meat into a new recipe later, then pay attention!
Leftover ribs should last for three to four days in the refrigerator if they're wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or foil and stored in a shallow, airtight container. If you want them to last longer, keep them in the freezer for two to three months.
Reheating Grilled Baby Back Ribs
My favorite method for reheating ribs is the air fryer. I cut the ribs into single bone sections and then heat them at 350 degrees F for 8-12 minutes until they start to sizzle. You can also do this in the oven. If you use a microwave they can be a little chewy but it will work in a pinch.
Rib Rack Holder (click here)
Baby Back Ribs on Grill FAQs
The reason you want to remove this membrane is so the dry rub can penetrate into the meat a little better and because the tough membrane can lessen your experience when you bite into that rib. You want it to be really soft and tender and the membrane can toughen things a bit.
Baby back ribs are cut from the top side of the pig closer to the spine next to the loin. they tend to be smaller and leaner than the spare ribs which are on the belly where you would find the bacon. Spare ribs are bigger and meatier than spare ribs and take a little longer to cook than baby backs.
Nope, Because you are smoking over open fire in a grill the heat and smoke will permeate the meat evenly on both sides.
If they played linebacker for Alabama I recommend a rack per person but the average old Joe I normally serve ½ to ⅓ rack per person.
Baby Back Ribs (Grill Recipe)
Equipment
- 1 Charcoal grill
- 1 Lump Charcoal
- 1 Wood Chips
Ingredients
- 2 racks Baby back Ribs
- 2 tbsp Mustard
- ¼ cup BBQ Dry Rub
- ⅓ cup BBQ Sauce
Instructions
- Trim off any excess fat and remove the membrane from the back side of the ribs and then pat dry with a paper towel
- Brush a light coating of yellow mustard on both sides of the ribs, then season liberally with dry rub seasoning. Go heavier on the meat side and lighter on the bone side. Let ribs rest while you light the fire.
- Set up your grill for indirect 2-zone cooking. I use a coal basket to keep the charcoal off to one side, but you can just pile it up if you don't have one. Pour out a layer of charcoal then, sprinkle a layer of wood chunks or chips, then cover with a second layer of charcoal. Light a firestarter at one end of the charcoal so that it will burn slowly across all the wood for constant smoke.
- Place ribs on the grill opposite the fire source. If cooking more than 2 racks, you can use a rib rack to stack them vertically.
- You want to maintain a smoking temperature between 250-275 degrees F. you may need to adjust the vents as needed. I recommend the vent be turned so it is over the ribs to create better airflow.
- Smoke the ribs for about 3 hours. Check the ribs once an hour to ensure they are not drying out. If dry, you can spray them with cooking oil or butter to keep the ribs moist.
- Use a probe thermometer to check the tenderness. The ideal temperature will be around 200-205 degrees F. If you are looking for fall-off-the-bone ribs, you will need to cook them a little longer, and you may want to wrap the ribs in foil for the last hour.
- Once the ribs are tender, you can either sauce them up and then cook for 5-10 minutes to let the sauce tack up, or if you prefer dry-rubbed ribs, then remove the ribs and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
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Charles
The one thing that is unclear… what side of the ribs goes closest to the grill. Meat side up, down?
Frank Campanella
Meat side up