Beef Ribs
There are basically two kinds of beef ribs: Full Slab and Short Ribs. For our beef rib recipe you will need the full slab of ribs.
Short Ribs are primarily cooked by braising, slowly cooked in a sealed or closed environment with a little bit of liquid. We now make our short ribs in our instant pot and feel it's the best way to do it.
In our opinion, full slab ribs are best braised or wrapped in tinfoil, slowly cooked inside your oven or smoker.
Have a look at our amazing recipe for Smoked Beef Ribs with Texas Style Rub
Beef Back Ribs are not as popular or common as pork ribs. Call your local butcher first, to make sure beef ribs are in stock and then ask that they hold them for you until you can pick them up.
You want the entire slab of beef ribs and the silver skin or membrane removed for you. You will be glad you asked them to do it.
The Best Oven Baked Beef Ribs is a recipe that all rib lovers need to try at least once. My husband would look you right in the eye to tell you that this is a bucket list kind of recipe and you need to try it.
I have to agree. These beef ribs are that tasty and DEFINITELY worth a try.
Pork Ribs
To make any of these amazing pork ribs recipes you have to decide which kind of pork ribs you want to buy. Here is a quick overview to get you started on your rib buying journey.
Baby Back Ribs
Baby Back ribs, also known as loin back ribs or most commonly just plain old back ribs. These are the most common pork ribs available and are reasonably priced.
They are found high up on the back of a pig and are the same bone found in bone-in pork rib chops. They just don’t have the rest of the loin muscle attached.
They are quite lean, very meaty and contain a little cartilage.
They are called baby back ribs, not because they're from a baby pig, but because they are smaller in size compared to other ribs.
Each baby back rib rack averages 10 to 13 curved ribs that are 3 to 6 inches long and weigh about 1 ½ to 2 pounds, which feeds about 2 people.
A good rack of back ribs will have about a half inch of meat on the top of the bone with more meat in between and underneath the bones.
All you need to do is any trim excess fat and peel the membrane from the bottom of the rack if you want to have tender and flavorful ribs.
Season with your favorite rub and cook in a smoker or oven. These ribs are super versatile and almost guaranteed to turn out beautifully, every time.
Pork Spareribs
These spareribs or side ribs are found much lower in the pig, nearer or under the belly, are quite large, extremely fatty and all things considered, the least amount of meat.
These are the bones you take off before getting to the bacon hidden underneath.
These spareribs can be super flavorful after trimming some fat, adding a spice rub and cooking for a long period of time. Once some of the fat melts away you will end up with a tender, melt in your mouth, juicy rib.
If you want to get a perfectly cooked rack of spare ribs, be sure to make the fat as even as possible. Trim extra so that you have a nice even distribution of meat and fat on each bone.
Your goal is to have it look like a perfect rectangle or as close as possible.
St. Louis Style Ribs
St. Louis Style ribs are from the same part of the rib cage as spareribs. They are flatter, have more meat on top, more fat and cartilage that makes them taste INCREDIBLE when cooked long and slow.
Each rack weighs at least 2 ½ pounds, usually a little more, and will feed three to four people on average.
I strongly urge you to ask your butcher to do all the difficult preparing so all you’re left to do is season and cook the ribs. You will be so glad you did.
The St. Louis cut is merely a pork spare rib trimmed to resemble a square.
Country Style Pork Ribs
Country style ribs are not technically ribs at all. They are found towards the upper shoulder end of the loin, the boston butt, similar to back ribs and are sold with or without bones.
As a matter of fact, they contain no rib bones, but instead contain parts of the shoulder blade instead.
I know that the thought of boneless ribs seems kind of strange but after the first few bites you get over the fact they are boneless. You just enjoy how delicious they taste.
These ribs are sold as slabs or individual servings.
Country style pork ribs have the highest meat to bone ratio of all of the pork ribs.
Again, get the butcher to remove the membrane and clean your ribs up. You will be so happy you asked! Really.
These Country Style Pork Ribs need to be cooked at a low temperature for a long period of time and are the BEST!
Our Best Pork Rib Recipes
If you are looking for the best rib recipes to try, look no further. Our Ultimate Oven Barbecued Ribs recipe is our most popular and been a favorite in our house for years.
The ribs are braised, or stewed slowly in a sealed package or container, and are super tender, melt in your mouth, delicious.
Our Simple Slow Cooker Ribs recipe is perfect if you want to make your ribs inside a slow cooker. This recipe is super easy and works beautifully, every time.
If you prefer an amazing homemade sweet and sour sauce all over your ribs, or a different sauce, this Simple Sweet and Sour Spareribs recipe is also for you. We provide another baking option.
In this recipe you broil your ribs for less than ten minutes and then slow cook them at a much lower temperature until they are fall of the bone good.
Different method. Same awesome result.