Low and Slow Ribs (No Wrap)
On May 13, 2021 (Updated October 24, 2023)
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These Low and Slow Ribs are always worth waiting for! So grab a drink and some friends, because cooking these low and slow ribs is almost as fun as eating them!
Low and Slow Ribs
For this post, we’re going old school and cooking up some low and slow ribs. These are the kind of ribs you throw on the grill, hang out on the deck with friends and a drink, and eat when they are done. There’s no real specific time frame here, though you can plan on maybe 5-6 hours or so.
Honestly, low and slow is my favorite kind of cooking. This method takes a little practice to know when your ribs are done based on what you and your family like, but practice makes perfect and the payoff is juicy, smoky, rib-loving goodness.
If you hate ribs that fall off the bone, this recipe will be your best friend. These low and slow beauties create that perfectly done bite-through rib that traditionalists and competitors love to serve and eat. These ribs are also some of the juiciest of all of my rib methods. While slicing the ribs, juice covered my knife and cutting board. I had liquid rib love running down to my wrists by the time I finished cleaning the first bone.
Make sure to have some towels handy, these guys are gonna be messy and delicious!
Smoked No Wrap Ribs
These ribs are cooked the entire time on the smoker unwrapped. This gives you insanely delicious and smoky ribs that simply scream BBQ. Since they’ll be in the smoke the entire time, make sure to give some thought to the wood you choose to pair with your pork.
I cooked the ribs in this post over indirect heat with apple wood pellets, but any other fruit wood or mild hardwood (hickory, oak, alder) will produce awesome results. Go for a wood smoke that will complement the pork and not overpower it.
Low and Slow BBQ Pork Ribs
Most of my rib recipes (like my popular 3-2-1 Smoked Ribs and Hot and Fast Ribs) are foiled with an apple cider and butter braising liquid to keep them moist and tender while cooking on the smoker.
This recipe skips the braising step, so you have to keep them moist another way. Steam and basting are the magical solutions to this conundrum. Using a small saucepan heat apple cider and butter and then place it in the grill with the ribs. The steam from the liquid will keep the ribs from drying out.
Basting the ribs every 45 minutes to an hour will really help the smoke particles cling to the meat and form a beautiful red mahogany smoke ring. With these powers combined, you’ll end up with juicy, tender ribs every time.
How to Cook Ribs Low and Slow
Low and slow ribs are cooked exactly like the name suggests. You’re going to preheat your grill to a low temperature and cook them nice and slow until they’re done. Let’s chat about the process a little (and for a full, detailed recipe with ingredients and notes, scroll to the bottom of this post!
- Prep the ribs. Pat the ribs dry with a paper towel. Trim off any excess fat on the ribs and remove the membrane on the back of the ribs. Quick tip: Grab a dry paper towel and grip one side of the membrane with the paper towel. Pull to remove.
- Season. Grab a bottle of my Hey Grill Hey Rib Rub (or make it yourself using my recipe for Best Rub for Ribs), and go to town seasoning the ribs. Don’t be shy. Give them a nice coating on all sides.
- Make the basting sauce. Melt butter and apple cider in a saucepan and place it on the smoker alongside the ribs.
- Smoke. Smoke the ribs for 1.5 hours without lifting the lid. After an hour and a half, brush the ribs liberally with the sauce every 45 minutes. Continue smoking for another 3.5-4.5 hours or until the ribs have reached your preferred doneness (see the paragraph below about doneness).
- Sauce. Sauce at the end or don’t, it’s up to you. The smoke flavor is going to shine through either way and the rub is perfectly sweet and hot enough to carry the flavors on its own. I like to use my Everything BBQ Sauce with these ribs, but just about any sauce will taste awesome (especially those with a ketchup base).
- Enjoy. Allow the ribs to rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving.
How Long to Cook Ribs Low and Slow
The biggest conundrum when cooking ribs using this low and slow method is wondering how long they will take to cook. The beauty of this method is that the ribs are done when they’re done.
Each rack of ribs will cook differently, so no two racks will cook the exact same length of time. We can estimate that they’ll likely take anywhere from 5-6 hours (give or take an extra hour both ways). Before you enter into this recipe, make sure you are not under any super restrictive time limits for making these ribs. They’re done when they’re done.
Low and Slow Rib Doneness
But how do you know when the ribs are done? There are four different criteria to meet to determine doneness:
- Temperature. Ribs are done when they reach an internal temperature between 185 and 190 degrees F.
- Bend. Grab the slab with some tongs. If the ribs “bend” or droop a bit they’re done.
- Crack. When testing for the bend, if the surface of the ribs crack slightly, they’re ready for eating.
- Pull. These St. Louis ribs do not fall off the bone. They should, however, pull off the bone easily.
Once the ribs meet all 4 criteria, you can feel confident they are ready to remove from the heat and get into!
More Pork Ribs Recipes
Here at Hey Grill Hey we know a thing or two about ribs. Whether you’re grilling or smoking them, we’ve got a recipe for you. Check out the most popular pork ribs recipes below!
Low and Slow Rib Recipe
Hey Grill Hey is here to ensure you master a BBQ recipe like a total pro. In fact, we hope each recipe and tutorial makes you feel like a backyard BBQ hero so you can feed the people you love.
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**This post was originally published in April 2015. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.
Low and Slow Ribs
Video
Ingredients
- 1 rack St. Louis pork ribs
- 1 cup apple cider
- 2 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Rib Rub recipe link in notes
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter melted
- 1 cup Everything BBQ sauce or your favorite BBQ sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the grill. Preheat your grill for indirect grilling. The target temperature on your grill is 225 degrees F. I recommend using fruit woods like apple, peach, cherry, or hardwoods like hickory or oak.
- Trim the ribs. Pat the ribs dry with a paper towel. Trim down any excess fat and remove the thin membrane on the back of the ribs using a paper towel for grip.
- Season. Season all sides of the pork ribs liberally with Hey Grill Hey Rib Rub. You can purchase this rub directly from my store or you can make your own (link in recipe notes).
- Melt the butter and cider. In a small saucepan combine the butter and apple cider. Place on your grill alongside the ribs.
- Smoke the ribs. Place the seasoned ribs directly on the grill grates. Close the lid, and cook for an hour and a half without opening the lid.
- Baste and finish smoking. After the ribs have cooked for an hour and a half, baste them liberally with the apple cider mixture. Close the lid and continue to cook for 3 ½ to 4 ½ hours, basting the ribs every 45 minutes to an hour with the cider mixture.
- Add BBQ sauce. As your ribs near their final target temperature (I usually aim for around 185-190 degrees F), coat the ribs with BBQ sauce and return to the grill for an additional 30 minutes to set your sauce (this step is optional).
- Rest, slice, and serve. Remove the ribs from the grill. Allow them to rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Purchase it from the store HERE: Rib Rub
- Make it from scratch using this RECIPE: Best Dry Rub for Ribs
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I only do my ribs this way now after previously always doing them 321 style (a lot more work!). I think the meat is less mushy this way. I also don’t wrap my pork butts anymore either, they take longer but the meat is better. I keep forgetting to buy apple cider so sometimes I will use a beer in a pan with the butter and baste them with that. Turns out great! (I have a smoker)
I followed this recipe as written. The bone side was charred. They were delicious minus the char. Do you flip the ribs during cooking?
We’re you cooking over direct heat?
I’ve been cooking ribs like this for years on several kinds of grills/cookers. About 5 or 6 hours at around 210F is all you need to know. This business about wrapping in foil, and especially the idea of wrapping them up like a baby when they’re done and putting them in an insulated cooler is madness. Just cook the dang things, baste them with a little oil/vinagar along the way, sauce them for the last 45 minutes or so, and crank up the heat for the last 20 minutes if the sauce looks like it needs it. Then eat.Pro tip: If you are a two person family, cooking a huge Boston butt is a problem because there is simply too much meat. But we still like BBQ sandwiches. We’re both from Memphis so we like our sandwiches with chopped (not pulled) pork with a little slaw and a blob of BBQ sauce; i.e. Memphis style. The day after cooking ribs, my wife and I strip the left over meat, chop it up, and (depending on how many ribs we ate) we usually have enough for two or four big BBQ pork sandwiches. Perfect.
Just did a pre-Thanksgiving trail run with St. Louis style, to see if I wanted to include them in the menu. Followed instructions to the letter and only took 3 hours! They were perfect! Maybe the altitude speeded them up, I’m a mile high in Denver.
That sounds more like your smoker was running hotter than it says it was. You should check it with an accurate external thermometer. Glad you liked the recipe!
Love your recipes. I have found that my offset takes longer than my Weber Smokey Mountain even if it is at the same temp. I believe because of the massive amount of air passing over the meat.
This was the best rib recipe I have tried so far. My ribs were a bit thick, and at 225F they took about nine hours to hit 188F. We had to wait a bit for dinner but my guests didn’t complain; they were too busy chomping down on these firm, super smokey ribs!
Wow! These were the best ribs ever! I used applesauce because I didn’t have any cider and while it seemed a little weird basting with applesauce it came out great! If I wanted to add some heat would you recommend crushed or cayenne pepper in the rub? Or some hot sauce in the BBQ sauce?
Hey Grill Hey, I’m totally new at smoking and I used this recipe/technique using baby backs on my gas grill. I used a mix of hickory and apple as my wood in a smoke box. I was able to keep my temp around 250 and took about 4 hours. These ribs were amazing! Made me look like I knew what I was doing! The bark was so amazing I didn’t even finish with sauce. I just wanted to leave a comment for anyone wanting to use their gas grill and/or baby back ribs, this works well.
Made these using baby back ribs, came out perfect bite off the bone done. Best ribs I have ever made.
Tried this method today on 3lbs of St louis style ribs. My first attempt ever at cooking ribs. All went well, with exception that i reached IT of 190’s in 3 .5 hours as opposed to the 5+ hrs recommended. I have an electric smoker and my cooking temp stayed a steady 225 degrees.
Why did i finish up so early???
Each piece of meat is different and some may cook faster than others. With them cooking that quickly though it sounds like your smoker was much hotter than 225. Use an external thermometer and verify it’s actually as hot as it says.
“ Now these ribs won’t fall off the bone like this recipe, but they do create that perfectly done bite through rib that traditionalist” – that link is broken for “this recipe” – curious to know what that recipe is