Slow-Baked BBQ Short Ribs
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BBQ short ribs make an easy dinner that pleases kids and adults alike.
For easy, family-pleasing comfort food, you can’t beat meltingly tender short ribs in a sweet and tangy barbecue sauce. Inspired by Sunny Anderson’s BBQ short ribs, this simple recipe requires just 15 minutes of hands-on prep, and then the oven does the rest. Unlike many roast or stew recipes, it’s not necessary to sear the meat first. Instead, you season the meat with salt and pepper and slather them with a quick homemade BBQ sauce – a mixture of ketchup, brown sugar, cider vinegar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and seasoning. Then you put the dish in the oven to bake for 3 hours, go about your day, and let deliciousness ensue. Serve with mashed potatoes or cornbread and a roasted vegetable.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Slow-Baked BBQ Short Ribs
Count on about one pound of boneless short ribs per person. I know it seems like a lot but they shrink significantly while cooking, and people tend to eat generous portions. If you can only find bone-in short ribs, they will work but may take a bit longer to cook.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin by cutting the short ribs in half and seasoning them with salt and pepper. Place them in a 9×13-inch baking dish.
Next, make the homemade BBQ sauce by combining the ketchup, dark brown sugar, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard and spices in a small bowl.
Whisk to combine.
Slather about 2/3 of the sauce all over the meat, and reserve the rest for the finished dish.
Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake at 300°F for about 2-1/2 hours.
Remove the foil, pour off some of the cooking liquid and cook for 30 minutes more, or until the meat is tender and browned.
Transfer the meat to a platter, leaving the cooking liquid behind, and slather with the reserved BBQ sauce.
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Video Tutorial
Slow-Baked BBQ Short Ribs
BBQ short ribs make an easy dinner that pleases kids and adults alike.
Ingredients
For the Ribs
- 4 pounds boneless beef short ribs, cut into 4-inch long pieces
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
For the BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar, packed
- 1½ tablespoons cider vinegar
- 1½ tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1½ tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1½ teaspoons chili powder
- ¾ teaspoons garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Season the ribs all over with salt and pepper, then arrange in a 9x13-inch baking dish (it will be a tight squeeze).
- Combine all of the ingredients for the BBQ sauce in a small bowl and stir until smooth.
- Pour ⅓ of the sauce (about ½ cup) over the ribs. Using tongs, flip the ribs over and spoon another ⅓ of the sauce over top. Reserve the remaining BBQ sauce to spoon over the cooked ribs. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and roast for 2½ hours. Remove the foil and, if the cooking liquid is covering the meat, use a large spoon or ladle to remove some of the liquid so that the tops are exposed. (Note: the meat will look unappetizing at this stage; don't worry, it will look much better once it's done!) Cook for 30 minutes more, uncovered, until the meat is tender and browned. Cut off any excess fat that remains around the short ribs. Transfer the short ribs to a serving platter. Discard the cooking liquid, as it will be very greasy. Slather the reserved BBQ sauce over the short ribs and serve.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The ribs can be frozen for up to 3 months. Reheat them tightly covered with foil in a 300°F oven until heated through.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 1,320
- Fat: 87g
- Saturated fat: 37g
- Carbohydrates: 59g
- Sugar: 54g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 80g
- Sodium: 2327mg
- Cholesterol: 331mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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Just made these ribs and wow! Fantastic. Will be making these again. No need for a knife. Butter soft. And little fat. The tangy sauce is perfect. Getting more ribs from Costco to make this recipe again. Thanks!
What spices? Where is the recipe? This looks genius but I need a little help!
Hi E, It sounds like you are just looking at the portion of the page that has the pictures with some instructions underneath. If you scroll down a bit to under the pictures, you’ll find the full recipe. Alternatively, at the very top of the page, you can click the “recipe” button right under the recipe title.
sauce good , but the baking time was off. took 4 hours.
Dear Jenn,
You are an angel! I tried your bbq short ribs and it was a hit. My husband has been asking me to make it again. I also made your potato au gratin and did a change by I adding spinach and my family loved it. I am so happy I found your site. I will be cooking more of your recipes. Your site is my top site to go for recipes. Keep it up. Thank you so much!
This is my new comfort food. So delicious! I’ve made it a number of times for guests and they all love it. Wonderful flavors and incredibly tender. Make sure the ribs aren’t too lean. My kids are really happy when we’re having this for dinner!
Can this be made without the sugar?
Hi Michelle, I wouldn’t recommend cutting out all the sugar, but you could cut it back a bit. Hope you enjoy!
I made this for Easter Sunday exactly as the recipe is written. Although I really enjoyed the short ribs, they can be very sweet. The meat was tender. The BBQ sauce recipe is great, and I will use it again on other meat. However, I think it may overpower these short ribs OR it may just be that I’m looking for a more complex red wine type sauce that you usually get with short ribs in a restaurant. I will make the recipe again for family, but I’ll adjust the amount of sugar down.
If only cooking one pound, do I adjust the cooking time?
Hi Melissa, I would strongly encourage you to make more than 1 pound of these because they shrink a lot! But if you do use less than the 4 pounds, the cook time may be a little (but not significantly) shorter. Just make sure to use a dish that just fits the ribs and sauce as you don’t want too much extra space in the pan.
Tastes like Manwich – don’t buy short ribs and end up with this, I was very disappointed and found it was a waste of $$$. Sorry – just being honest.
Really? I found these to be INCREDIBLE! Just the right amount of spice and sweetness, and we saved that BBQ sauce to use all week.
I am making these today and reheating tomorrow for a big family birthday dinner – about 10 people. Do I do the recipe all the way through including the last 30 min. browning before refrigerating? I’m planning to reheat at 300 degrees, covered with foil. Only thing I’m not sure about is how long to allow for reheating? Can’t wait to impress the family!
Hi Lee, I’d cook them all the way through today. And while reheating, I’d start checking them at about 30 minutes. Hope everyone enjoys!
Thanks for this! I’m making them ahead for our Passover seder next Monday, and will need to reheat.