Low and slow is more than just grillmaster jargon; it’s also an invaluable currency when it comes to grilling truly tender pork spareribs. For the almost 90 minutes these ribs are on the grill, the temperature never crosses 300°F—an intentional limit that results in soft, juicy, and flavor-packed ribs. You’ll also use indirect heat, meaning that the ribs are never placed directly over an open flame. As for the sauce, you have two lip-smacking options, each boasting the inherent sweetness and subtle spiciness of a carbonated classic—Coca-Cola or ginger ale.

Recipe information

Total Time
4 hours, including chill time

Ingredients

¼ cup Diamond Crystal or 2 Tbsp. Morton kosher salt

2 tsp. dark brown sugar

1 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper

1 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. paprika

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

1 rack St. Louis–style pork spareribs (2½–3½ lb.)

½ cup Spicy Cola Barbecue Sauce or Ginger-Mustard Barbecue Sauce, plus more for serving

Vegetable oil (for grill)

Preparation

Step 1
Mix salt, brown sugar, black pepper, granulated garlic, paprika, and cayenne in a small bowl.
Step 2
Place spareribs on a rimmed baking sheet; pat dry with paper towels. Using a paring knife, remove silver skin from underside. (It should come off in a single sheet; start to separate it with the tip of your knife, then pull away with your hand. Removing the silver skin allows the dry rub and barbecue sauce to penetrate the meat; if you purchased ribs from a butcher, the silver skin may have already been removed.) Sprinkle dry rub all over ribs, patting to adhere. Using your hands, spread a thin layer of barbecue sauce all over ribs. Wrap in foil and chill at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
Step 3
Prepare a grill for medium indirect heat (for a charcoal grill, bank coals on one side of grill; for a gas grill, leave one or two burners off); oil grate. Strive to maintain a grill temperature between 280°F and 300°F. Place foil-wrapped ribs, bone side up, on grate over indirect heat. Cover and grill 30 minutes. Uncover grill and turn ribs over. Cover and grill until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of ribs registers 145°F–160°F (peel back foil as needed to check), 20–30 minutes.
Step 4
Unwrap ribs and brush on both sides with more barbecue sauce. Grill, bone side up, uncovered, until sauce darkens and meat very tender and falling off the bones, 10–12 minutes. Using large tongs, carefully transfer ribs to a cutting board. Let rest 5–7 minutes before cutting between bones into individual ribs.
Step 5
Serve ribs with remaining barbecue sauce on the side.

Editor’s note: Head this way for some of our best barbecue side dishes →

TagsRibs Pork Rib Pork Meat Spare Rib Main Dinner Dairy Free Gluten Free Nut Free Grilling Labor Day Juneteenth Epicurious

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Reviews (10)

Served this at a barbecue to rave reviews. Sauce took a lot longer to cook down and thicken.
- Anonymous
- 9/2/2023
Followed the recipe as written, choosing to make the Ginger-Mustard BBQ sauce. The ribs were beyond salty. Couldn’t taste the BBQ sauce at all. Cut down the salt considerably. (The sauce in its own tasted amazing.)
- lmhiggins
- Philly, PA
- 7/6/2021
This was really good. I made it with Cola bbq sauce, marinated for a day and reduced the amount of salt, which definitely was a right decision.
- EminaB
- Saint-Petersburg
- 7/29/2021
Definitely cut the salt. Also, the ribs take a lot longer to even approach “falling off the bone” tender.
- Eastmana
- Nashville
- 9/7/2021
As recommended I used only 1/2 T Morton kosher salt, seasoned the ribs overnight. Had no charcoal grill so baked it according to recommendations. The last part was to grill it after basting at 250deg c Delicious, tender and moist.
- Teck
- Singapore
- 8/9/2022