St. Louis Ribs - Learn How To Do Smoked Ribs Like A Pro

Two racks of St. Louis style ribs on a cutting board

5 from 4 votes

St. Louis Ribs - Learn How To Do Smoked Ribs Like A Pro

Do you want to step up your St. Louis ribs game and serve some fantastic smoked ribs? Try using a mop vs. wrapping. It's a Game-changer.

Prep Time15

Cook Time4

Course: barbecue, BBQ

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pork, ribs, smoked ribs

Servings:

Calories: 278kcal

Equipment

Smoker

Ingredients

The Ribs

2 racks Spare ribs Or spare ribs cut to St. Louis Style

The Rub

1/2 cup Paprika
2 tbsp Smoked paprika
2 tbsp Garlic powder
1/4 cup Chili powder
3 tbsp Kosher salt
3 tbsp Black pepper
2 tbsp Onion powder
3 tbsp Brown sugar
1 tbsp Dried oregano
1 tbsp Cumin
2 tsp Dry mustard
1 tsp Cayenne powder

The Mop

3/4 cup Worchestshire sauce
2 tbsp Apple cider vinegar
6 tbsp Butter
1 tbsp Black pepper
2 tsp Kosher salt

Instructions

Preparing The Rub

Combine all rub ingredients in a bowl. Whisk to combine well. Transfer to spice shaker or set aside.

Preparing The Ribs

Trim excess fat and bits off of both sides of ribs.
Flip to the bone side. Trim off the diaphragm flap of meat (if needed).
Remove the silver skin (membrane).
[See video, post regarding cutting ribs down to St. Louis Style cut]
Liberally apply the rub to both sides of the ribs. Set aside 1 hour before smoking

Preparing The Mop

Add all the mop ingredients to a saucepan and keep warm.

Smoking The Ribs

Preheat the smoker to 275 degrees F. Add your preferred wood.
Place ribs in the smoker bone side down and thicker sides facing the heat source.
Smoke the ribs for three hours, mopping the ribs every 30 minutes.
After three hours, start checking for doneness. Using a meat thermometer, monitor your ribs.
Pull the ribs from the smoker when the internal temperature reaches 195 degrees F.
Allow the ribs to rest for 15 minutes.
Turn the ribs over and make clean cuts between each of the bones.
Serve and enjoy!

Notes

The rub recipes yields close to 2 cups of rub. I typically use a 1/3 of it for two racks of ribs.

The mop yields about 2 cups. I use a little more than half on two racks of ribs.

A note on meat temperatures. 195 will give you a clean bite. A little lower will produce a bit more tug, while a higher temp will give you a 'fall off the bone' experience.

I would not cook them over 205 nor lower than 185.

Nutrition