I love barbeque–especially ribs. I don’t like just anyone’s sauce, though, so I make my own (that recipe is on my blog somewhere).
Now, if you have a favorite sauce, whether it’s from the supermarket or the health food store, you can use this recipe to cook up your very own batch of ribs.
You can get spare ribs, back ribs, country ribs, pork ribs, beef ribs … so many to choose from.
How do I pick?
I happen to prefer the flavor of the pork ribs. After that, I pick what’s on sale. Now how easy was that?
I’m going to give you my fool-proof recipe/method and a couple of variations you can use. All you need is about 2 1/2 hours, a Dutch oven or stock pot, baking pan(s), water, ribs, sauce, and seasonings. You can do this!
Ingredients:
- Ribs (whatever kind you like and however many you want to make) (Note: 2 1/2 pounds will make a nice layer in a 9″ x 13″ baking pan)
- Sauce (whatever kind you like; about 1 cup for every 2 1/2 pounds of ribs, give or take)
- Seasonings (I use sea salt or kosher salt, black pepper, onion powder, and something like Mrs. Dash)
Method:
- Open the package(s) of ribs; if they are already cut apart from one another, you’re ready for Step 2; if not, I just take a sharp knife and cut between every other bone, so I have 2-rib pieces (if they’re big, I cut those in half again).
- Put the ribs into a pot and fill with enough water to just cover them a bit. As I place the ribs in the pot, I sprinkle them with Mrs. Dash, salt, pepper, and onion powder so each layer of ribs is seasoned.
- Bring the pot to a boil, then lower the heat to medium and simmer (just bubbling) for one hour (until rib meat is fork tender).
- Remove ribs to baking pan(s) in a single layer; spoon sauce over ribs.
- Cover with foil and bake at 325 degrees F for 1 1/2 hours (if you like your sauce to caramelize a bit more on the ribs, put them on a medium-high grill or under the broiler for 5-10 minutes).
- Keep warm until ready to eat!
- Serving suggestion: I like BBQ ribs served with baked corn on the cob and scalloped potatoes … or baked beans … or cheesy hash brown casserole … or summer slaw … or bread and butter pickles … but mix up the colors a bit (something light, something dark).
I made a big batch of ribs this afternoon, and here are some pictures I took along the way with some tips so you know you’re on the right track:

The foam will start to thicken into little “islands” — the meat/bones are cooking. It’s a good sign!

After cooking about an hour, you’ll have cooked ribs in a pot of nice broth (freeze it, add veggies to make soup, or use it to cook pasta in for more flavor).