Grilled Baby Back Ribs with Root Beer BBQ Sauce
These Ribs Will Win You Over in One Bite!
Ribs can be a long term project. We all know that good ribs take time, but when it comes to these Ribs, this recipe makes it all worth it.
One word: Awesome!
Once you make these you will be hard pressed to make ribs another way. There is just something about the way the root beer tenderizes and enhances the flavor at the same time.
Are you ready to make some seriously awesome Ribs?
Let’s go!
This is not just any BBQ sauce either, but a root beer BBQ sauce based on a vanilla bourbon version. It’s dreamy. I crave it. It’s stockpiled in my fridge right this very minute.
The end result will be fall-apart, super tender meat – but complete with charred crispy bits on the outside from the grill. This is TO DIE FOR. It is also so so so much easier than you might think. This method is no fail. The ribs are so juicy after baking that they almost fall apart on the grill, so the only thing you must do is work fairly quickly.
That’s right, I said baking and grilling.
Read on…
Don’t be afraid that the sauce will taste TOO much like root beer, it won’t. It’s delicious! It’s smoky and sweet and only slightly root beery.
OK, now for the recipe. Let’s make some ribs!
Yield: makes 4lbs of ribs
Total Time:4 hours
Ingredients:
Ribs
2 racks of baby back ribs, roughly 2 pounds each
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse sea salt
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1/2 tablespoon onion powder
2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
Root Beer BBQ sauce
3/4 cup ketchup
2/3 cup root beer
½ cup honey
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Place each rack of ribs on a doubled sheet of aluminum foil.
In a bowl, whisk together the salt, paprika, mustard, garlic powder, pepper, onion powder and chipotle chili powder. Rub the mixture all over both sides of the ribs, then wrap the ribs up in the aluminum foil. Place the racks on a baking sheet and put them on the center rack in the oven. Bake for 2 1/2 hours.
After 2 1/2 hours, gently pour the juice in the foil packets into a large bowl or measuring cup. Whisk in 3 to 4 tablespoons of BBQ sauce.
Heat the grill to the highest setting and remove the ribs from the foil. Once the grill is hot, place the ribs on the grill and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until they are charred and slightly crisp on the outsides, basting and rubbing the juices/BBQ sauce mixture on top. Let cool slightly before serving with lots of BBQ sauce.
Root Beer BBQ sauce
Place all ingredients in a saucepan and whisk together until combined. Heat oven medium heat and bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat and cook for 30 to 60 minutes, until thickened. Stir occasionally. Remove from the heat and let sit at room temperature until it cools and thickens even more.
Store in a jar or sealed container in the fridge.
Enjoy!
