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Sticky BBQ Pork Ribs
Fall-off-the-bone pork ribs glazed in a sticky, smoky barbecue sauce. A summer BBQ essential.
Shop the ingredients
The exact cuts from our counter, delivered fresh across Essex.
Great ribs are a two-stage cook: gentle heat wrapped in foil to tenderise, then fierce heat with a glaze to lacquer. Do both and the meat will slide off the bone without ever being boiled — boiling ribs is a crime in most southern states.
Method
Mix the paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, black pepper, brown sugar and salt into a dry rub.
Pat the ribs dry and remove the thin membrane from the bone side — slide a knife under it and pull. Coat the racks generously with the rub.
Wrap each rack tightly in foil and place on a baking tray. Cook at 150°C (130°C fan) for 2 hours.
Meanwhile, make the glaze: combine all the glaze ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes until thickened and glossy.
Unwrap the ribs and brush generously with glaze on both sides.
Increase the oven to 220°C (200°C fan) — or move to a hot barbecue. Cook for 15-20 minutes, brushing with more glaze every 5 minutes, until sticky and caramelised at the edges.
Rest for 5 minutes, then slice between the bones and pile onto a board.
Pro tips from the block
- Remove the membrane: it's tough and blocks the rub. Thirty seconds of effort, a far better rib.
- BBQ method: cook indirect at 120-130°C for 3 hours with soaked wood chips, then glaze over direct heat for real smoke.
- Glaze late: sugar burns. Only glaze once the ribs are tender, never at the start.
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