THIS is How I Get PERFECTLY Smoked Baby Back Ribs

This delicious 321 Ribs recipe is a tried-and-true cooking procedure that renders juicy, flavorful, and tender ribs every time. You will love how easy these make and how unique the flavors are.

Ingredients for this recipe:

• 2 racks of baby back ribs 1 /2 to 2 pounds each
• 6 tablespoons pork lard
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon granulated onion
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 2 cups BBQ sauce
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup apple juice
• ½ cup water
• 1 stick unsalted butter

Serves 6

Prep time: 40 minutes

Smoke Time: 6 hours

Procedures:

1. Add your wood to your hopper or start making coals and preheat your smoker until it reaches 225°.
2. Remove the membrane on the back side of the ribs by using a butter knife to wedge in between the meat and the membrane and lift it to expose it.
3. Rip the membrane off in both directions, completely removing it. If you need to get a good grip, use a paper towel to hold on and rip it off.
4. Next, rub the baby back ribs down on each side with 1 ½ tablespoons of pork lard or another bunder completely covering it.
5. Generously season the ribs on each side with ¾ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of pepper, ¾ teaspoon of garlic granules, ¾ teaspoon of onion granules, and ¾ teaspoon of paprika.
6. Place the ribs 2 to 3 inches apart on the smoker bone side down, close the smoker door, and smoke for 3 hours at 225°.
7. With about 15 minutes left in the 3-hour smoking process, add the BBQ sauce and the apple cider vinegar, apple juice, water, and butter to a medium-sized pot and heat it up over low heat until the butter is melted. Keep it warm.
8. Remove the ribs from the smoker and place one rack bones side down in the center of a 36” sheet of peach or butcher’s paper about 6” from the bottom.
9. Brush on about 3 to 4 tablespoons of the hot BBQ sauce on each side of the ribs.
10. Next, fold the bottom of the peach paper up over the ribs. There should be about 1” inch of the ribs at the top that are still exposed. Fold the right side of the paper over to the center and make a crease. Do the same thing to the left side. Fold forward twice, wrapping the baby ribs completely with the open fold underneath the ribs. Repeat the same saucing and wrapping process with the other rack of ribs.
11. Place the ribs back onto the smoker and smoke at 225° for 2 hours.
12. Remove the ribs from the smoker and remove them from the peach paper. It’s okay if the paper is saturated a bit from the sauce and ribs.
13. Put the ribs back out on the smoker bone side down 2 to 3 inches apart from each other and brush 2 to 3 tablespoons of the BBQ sauce on the top of the baby backs and smoke for 1 more hour.
14. Take the ribs off the smoker, cover them with foil, and let them rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
15. Finish by brushing more hot BBQ sauce onto the smoked ribs. Slice and serve.

[muses]

So I made this last night on my Ninja Woodfire Grill XL, but since its much smaller than a regular smoker, I cut the 3-2-1 process in half. I used only a single rack of baby backs, cut in half (cause I wasn't sharing!)...so, 80-90 minutes with the dry rub, then an hour in the butcher paper with the bbq sauce, and then about 30 minutes to finish it off. I cannot communicate fully how wonderful they came out. They were full of flavour, moist, and a most beautiful bark. I can't wait to make them again! Thank you Chef!

[userbosco]

Regardless the recipe, I like the "get connected" message. That's how we roll at mi casa. Whether it's wings, ribs, jerky, whatever, if the smoker's going, the beer comes out, the TV is on, and friends are ALWAYS invited. Cheers!

[yolandab]

Excellent tutorial, Chef. I use this method every time. Thank you for the tip of using butcher’s paper. Bravo!! 👏🏽👏🏽

[rudysoto]

Omg. So my hubby received a smoker as a gift from one of his clients. Now my husband has never smoked anything. So there it sat for a few weeks and then a few days later he started to research how to do baby back ribs smoked on Google and it took him to your site which I personally have been watching you for a few years, my husband doesn't do social media. Anyhow he said there were a few people he looked at but he really liked your speaking and example of how to enjoy smoking. He liked that you smoke for your family. If course I didn't know he was talking about you I thought it was just some random smoker guy. Anyhow he got up at 6:30 am and got going. He invited our daughter her husband and a friend of theirs to come get his first ribs. They drove an 1.5 hrs to our home for theses smoked ribs. While the ribs were in the smoker, We ran to Lowes and found the peach paper, he found the black gloves, by the way that peach paper is expensive but he was gunho for it. Good food takes time he kept saying, hahah. he used his hands to mix the sauce and was grossed out, hence the black gloves.hahah. He made his own spices according to what you said. He must of took notes cause when we went to the store earlier I said there's the ribs and he said nope only baby back ribs he said and we need apple juice and mustard and I was on. He really followed your BBQ sauce ingredients and the sauce was amazing. So now I'm telling him OMG I can eat smoked ribs and your sauce was amazing! I tell him he's the smoker now and that if anyone tastes your sauce and ribs they would think you've been making smoked ribs forever. When we were eating the last ribs I said who was the guy you found to help you learn about smoking and making that amazing BBQ sauce? and he took me to your site and said some guy named Billy and he goes to show me and says hey, he's a chief too. I was like let me see the video and I was like hey I follow that guy. He's amazing.and he says yeah I really like how he walked me through the whole smoking rib part and recipes. See I hate BBQ sauce from the store and I usually can't eat anything smoked in a restaurant but I can eat these ones, and the BBQ sauce is to die for . This is going to be a family event going forward and he also plans on smoking some ribs for the client that gifted him the smoker. I told him to get on social media and follow you since you also do Korean BBQ ribs and sauce. Hats off to you chief for making a fan of my husband for his first time smoking and helping him enjoy doing it by your enthusiastic way of showing him how. He really did his homework and I'm so proud of him. Best ribs ever.... Best sauce ever!!!🎉🎉🎉🎉

[dennisdavis]

Just got a smoker and I'm half way thru the process. Very excited for the finished results. Ima tell everyone you made them lol

[randyburd]

I made these last night. They turned out great! Thanks for the tips, and the sauce recipe. I’ll be using that on a lot of my grilled foods from here on. Thanks again!

[cybernode]

I've been an avid Qstoves user for years but recently switched to Asmoke and it's been a game changer for me. The precise temperature control provided by the digital controller is truly impressive. No more guessing games, just perfect smoking every time. The wood pellets also add a distinct smoky flavor that enhances the taste of my ribs. Plus, the convenience of the pellet feeding system saves me so much time and effort. I can just set it and forget it, knowing my ribs will come out perfectly every time. I also love the fact that it's so portable, I can use it for tailgating, camping, you name it. And with the remote temperature adjustment and food temperature monitoring app, it's like having a personal chef in my pocket. I couldn't be happier with my decision to switch to Asmoke. #Asmoke.

[shadowmcnehneh]

Awesome recipe, Chef! Works like a charm. Absolutely delicious ribs!

[jandvadams]

I have always done the crack method on my ribs and they turn out great. But I'm going to give this a try on Labor Day. Can't wait.

[thomastillson]

At first I had doubts about your processes, like lard as a binder, and wrapping in paper is a great idea. But not because the smoke can still reach the meat ( meat stops taking anymore smoke after 160° and also. Smoke doesn't make bark. Heat does.) paper does keep it dryer, which does help the bark. I'm gonna wrap in paper today and see the difference. All of that being said, those are some good looking ribs. It all boils down to everyone has a slightly different method and we can still sit down and enjoy some good food.

[QuantaSolace]

This is going to be my first attempt at ribs without using aluminum foil. They came out great with the foil but I did notice it didn’t have enough smoke. My rub is a little different.

I use:
chili powder
brown sugar
salt
pepper

I marinate mine overnight before tossing them on. I like to use an apricot bbq sauce and use apple juice. That might be overkill but I love how they taste.
garlic powder
paprika

[teeb]

I tried 321 but it was more of a 3hr to get to 165 in temp…then another 3-4hrs in butcher paper until internal temp went to 200 and omfg…more like a 3off and 3 in butcher paper…juicy and bark was crunchy and not too dry or hard. Just right! Total cook time was 7hrs for me it was a nice beefy rack of baby back ribs

[amydawson]

My son smokes his ribs with this 3-2-1 method also and they come out delicious every time. He loves to use a championship blend for his pellets. Yum!

[ryanrawlins]

When I wrap I place pieces of a 1/2 stick of butter per rack on the meat side. They are much tastier with the added butter.

[michaelbergman]

Chef, what do you think about mixing the spices together in advance and keeping in an air tight container?

[MrHackfu]

My wife prefers I cook her ribs like this. I refer to this as "candied". I cook mine 4 ish hours unwrapped, 30 wrapped with nothing in the wrap and 30 unwrapped and sauced. Slightly more smoke and pork flavor and slightly less tender. If really feeling froggy, I will go unwrapped until desired tenderness and sauce on the side. Huge bark and smoke flavor.

[nathanbenton]

i knew it! iwas like "gonna be a ribs sorta labor day clutch move" - these like straight FIRE😋

[johnd]

Will this method work on an electric smoker that has a small pan for water?

[rustyshackleford]

I think that unless you're dealing with some really thick spare ribs, 3-2-1 is simply too long for most ribs as it leaves them overcooked. 2 hours is too long to be covered in foil or paper and will negate your bark in a lot of cases. A 3-.75-.75 I think is a much more foolproof option, your ribs should have a crispy bark, and be cooked enough to ALMOST fall off the bone, but not quite -- this is how all competition ribs are served. If your ribs are fall-off-the-bone, quite simply they're overcooked.

[kharneater]

Would you use same procedure for a normal oven if one don't have a smoker?