Smoked Boneless Beef Short Ribs
On July 21, 2020 (Updated October 25, 2023)
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These Smoked Boneless Beef Short Ribs are the most delicious, melt-in-your-mouth short ribs. They’re easy to make and bursting with good, beefy flavor. Enjoy them as-is or in tacos, nachos, sandwiches, and more!
What are Boneless Beef Short Ribs?
Beef short ribs are taken from the front portion of the cow (including the chuck, rib, brisket, or plate areas). They are called “short” ribs because the cut includes only includes a small portion of the rib. But lucky for you, they often have lots of tasty, beefy meat to enjoy!
Beef short ribs are available bone-in and boneless. Boneless beef short ribs are cut from the chuck or the plate areas of the cow, and, as the name describes, have been separated from the bone. They’re great to smoke and provide lots of meaty goodness that you can shred and enjoy just like to would any pulled pork or chicken recipe.
Boneless beef short ribs can be hard to come by, but lately I’ve had good luck finding them at Costco. You might also be able to chat it up with your local butcher and get some boneless beef short ribs from them.
How to Smoke Boneless Beef Short Ribs
These boneless beef short ribs have a fantastic flavor. They’re very tender and lend well to the added flavor of a nice, long smoke. They’re also pretty foolproof, so you don’t have to worry about messing them up. Finally, they are SUPER versatile, making them a great meal to smoke up on the weekend with plenty of leftovers to enjoy throughout the week.
- Fire up the smoker. Turn on your smoker and allow it to preheat to 275 degrees F. I used oak wood for this recipe, and it tasted delicious.
- Season. Simple olive oil and some of my Signature Beef Seasoning is all these short ribs need. If you don’t have any Beef Seasoning in your pantry, I recommend using equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Drizzle the olive oil over the ribs and season on all sides.
- Smoke. Place those gorgeous ribs on the grill and cook for 3-3.5 hours.
- Wrap and smoke. Wrap the ribs in an aluminum foil pouch. Add beef broth to the foil pouch with the ribs and seal tightly. Return to the smoker and continue to smoke these short ribs until the internal temperature reaches 205-210 degrees F.
- Rest, shred, and serve. Remove the wrapped ribs from the smoker. Keep them sealed and allow them to rest for 30 minutes. Then remove the ribs from the foil and enjoy. You can shred these or eat them as is. My family likes these over nachos and in tacos and quesadillas.
These ribs are cooked similar to a brisket, except we take the temperature up to 205-210 degrees F. This meat is tougher than brisket, so cooking it until it reaches at least 205 degrees ensures that the meat will be tender and shred well.
How Long to Smoke Boneless Beef Short Ribs
Every cut of meat is different in how long it takes for it to fully cook in a smoker. These ribs took me around 8 hours from start to finish, but yours could take longer or shorter depending on the meat and your smoker.
Make sure you cook to temperature and not to time. Always check the temperature of your meat with a reliable meat thermometer to determine doneness. I also recommend you plan ahead and give yourself a little wiggle room with time just in case your meat is done sooner or later than you expect.
Bottom line: meat is done when it’s done. Keep an eye on the temperature and I promise it’ll be worth the wait.
More Smoked Beef Ribs Recipes
When in doubt, smoke some beef ribs! They’re sure to be bursting with flavor and that smoky bark on the outside just can’t be beat. If you need some other recipes for smoked beef ribs, check out a few of my favorites below:
Smoked Boneless Beef Short Ribs Recipe
Smoked Boneless Beef Short Ribs
Video
Ingredients
- 2-3 pounds boneless beef short ribs
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons Signature Beef Seasoning
- ½ cup beef broth
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker. Preheat your smoker to 275 degrees F. Oak wood works well with these beef ribs.
- Season the short ribs. Drizzle the olive oil over the short ribs and season on all sides with the Beef Seasoning. If you don't have any Beef Seasoning on hand from Patio Provisions, you can use equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
- Smoke the beef short ribs. Place the seasoned ribs directly on the grates in the smoker. Close the lid and smoke for 3-3.5 hours. This smoke is similar to a brisket smoke.
- Wrap and finish smoking. Remove the ribs from the smoker and wrap in foil to make a pouch. Pour the beef broth over the ribs. Close the pouch tightly and smoke until the ribs reach an internal temperature of 205-210 degrees F (this smoke goes higher in temp than brisket because it is pretty tough).
- Rest and serve. Remove the ribs from the smoker, and let them rest in the sealed foil for 30 minutes. You can serve each short rib individually (you should have about 6 cuts of short ribs), or you can shred it and serve it on top of chili, stew, tacos, or nachos. Enjoy this meat any way you would enjoy pulled meat.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I finally nailed it after like 3 attempts:))
3 hours at 205F super-smoke
1 hour at 225 super-smoke
2.5 hour at 225 foil pan with half cup or less of broth. I had to reposition prob after 1.5 hour as temps at the bottom was lower since it’s seating in broth and rendered fat.
Take out from foil pan and back on smoker for 10-15 min.
Just wow, I wish I could attach a picture:) Fork tender pull apart.
Thanks for the recommendation mike. I was reading their recipe and thinking that’s going to way over cook. I’m gonna try your times and temps. Makes more sense to me with my experience.
Couldn’t find bone in, so got the boneless at costco. Thanks for the smoke details, I’ll follow accordingly. Going to dry for 8 hours, and cover with the big bad beef rub. I like going on the smoker bare for the last 15 min to dry the outside before serving!!!
Thank you. I have tried this recipe multiple times and it does not come out as pull a part. The last one I started with 185 for 2 hours and 205 for another hour and a half to get to 165. Wrapped it and bumped to 245 for 2 hours to get to 205 and still it was not pull apart.
What temp should be on pellet smoker? It cooks way to fast at 275. Probably will be less than 2 hours before it heats 175. Should i go lower at 205 for 3 hours?
Try 225 and make sure your pellet smoker is actually at the temperature it says it is with an accurate external thermometer. Some of them are known for being pretty far off.
If I wrap or put in a covered foil pan, I put them in the oven to finish. The meat will not get any more smoke so I can save my pellets for another day.
I did this recipe last week for mother’s day. 100% the best meat I’ve ever smoked. Thanks for the recipe and video.
This might be a more general question, but should you flip these ribs or any meat on a pellet grill?
I often flip on the pellet smoker. It is technically convection, but there is a heat source on the bottom and I find things cook more evenly if I flip.
Can I wrap in butcher paper instead of foil?
Absolutely!
I’ve got less than 2 lbs of some pretty SMALL boneless short ribs. There are 4 pieces, maybe 5-6 oz/each. In your opinion, could I expect them to take significantly less time than the qty/amount you use for the average recipe?
Most likely. Just monitor your temperatures very closely and they should turn out fine for you!
Can these be placed in a covered aluminum pan after the initial smoke as opposed to wrapped in foil?
Yes!
Hi. Can these beef ribs be prepared in a air fryer wrapped
In aluminum foil tightly?
I’m not sure! I don’t have an air fryer.