Learn how to cook perfect Grilled Baby Back Ribs on a gas grill that are tender, juicy, and packed with BBQ flavor without a smoker or years of experience. With a simple dry rub and a few tips, this foolproof recipe will have you cooking ribs like a pro.
🐖Ingredients
Baby back ribs: St. Louis or spare ribs will also work
BBQ dry rub: your own or brown sugar, salt, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper
Wood chips: if smoking, I use hickory.
BBQ sauce: for serving
Equipment: Grill surface and an instant-read thermometer
Jump To (scroll for more)
- 🐖Ingredients
- 👨🍳How to Grill Baby Back Ribs—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
- ⏰How Long to Grill Baby Back Ribs (Time Guide)
- 🔥How to know when the ribs are done?
- 👍Rib recipes you should try
- 🤔Reference Posts
- 🌡️Why use a grill temperature of 250°?
- 🤔What is indirect heat?
- 🔥Smoking on a gas grill
- 🥣Dry rub suggestions
- 🍽️What to serve with BBQ baby back ribs
- ❄️Storage and reheating tips
- ❓FAQs
- 🐖About Baby Back and Other Pork Ribs
- 📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
Featured Comment from Matt :
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Delicious. Wife also loved them. These are the best ribs I've cooked so far - this basic recipe is a keeper, and I'm going to stick with it."
With easy-to-follow instructions, this recipe covers everything beginners or experts need to know: grill setup, cooking times, temperature, and how to add wood smoke. I’ll also share tips on seasoning, prepping the ribs, and knowing exactly when they’re done.
The best BBQ ribs are easier than you think to cook low and slow on your gas grill with homemade dry rub and your favorite barbecue sauce. I consider BBQ ribs of the three classic BBQ grilling recipes you can do the gas grill, along with BBQ Beef Brisket and Smoked Pulled Pork Butt.
👨🍳How to Grill Baby Back Ribs—Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
1. Grill Setup
1a. Set up the grill for indirect cooking with a temperature of 250° on the indirect side. Clean and oil the grill grates.
1b. If smoking, use a built-in smoking box, a cast iron smoke box, or a foil pouch with holes. I use hickory wood chips.
2. Preparing the slab of ribs
2a. Prepare the ribs. Remove the inner membrane and check for bone chips. Tips for removing the membrane are in the FAQ section.
2b. Mix the homemade dry rub and apply it to all sides of the ribs.
3. Grilling the ribs
3a. Grill with indirect heat for 2 to 3 hours. Longer for St. Louis or spare ribs.
3b. Optional: smoke for 30-60 minutes.
4. Check for doneness
4. The ribs are done at an internal temperature of 190°+ (200°-205° preferred.) Other endpoints are discussed below.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
⏰How Long to Grill Baby Back Ribs (Time Guide)
Three hours is a reasonable estimate for cooking a medium-sized rack of baby back ribs on a gas grill. If your ribs are smaller or you are unsure about your grill setup, start checking at about 2 hours.
A thick slab may take 4 hours. If cooking more than one slab with a vertical rack, add 30-60 minutes. There are the variables of the grill and the meat, so there is never an exact time for something like this.
Cooking time will be longer if you use a larger rib, like a St. Louis or spare ribs. Never cook by time; cook to an endpoint.
🔥How to know when the ribs are done?
You need to know when the ribs are done. If they are grilled too long, they are dry and overcooked. But too short, and they are tough. Here are three things to check, but I generally depends on the temperature and the rib bone exposure.
- 🌡️Temperature at 190°+, but 200°-205° is better. It is hard to get an accurate temperature due to the thin meat and the bones interfering. Use an instant-read or meat thermometer.
- 🦴You want to see some of the rib bone ends—this means the ends are sticking out. This happens when the meat is cooked and shrinks.
- 🔪When you pick up the ribs with tongs, holding them about ⅓ of the way up, they crack some.
👍Rib recipes you should try
There are other good choices for your ribs. Check out Ribs in the Oven, which are baked in foil, Crock Pot Baby Back Ribs, or try some Grilled Boneless Pork Ribs.
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🌡️Why use a grill temperature of 250°?
The best grill temperature is 250°. Most smokers and top grillers like to cook ribs in the 225°-250° temperature range. A lot of that “moisture” you love is melted collagen, which doesn't melt rapidly.
The collagen in ribs starts melting at about 160° and increases up to 185°. If you rush the cooking at a higher temperature, the collagen will not completely melt before drying or burning the meat.
🤔What is indirect heat?
Using indirect cooking means the meat will not be directly over the heat source. All grills are different, so you must learn this for your grill.
You will need a large grill surface area to cook ribs and a grill surface thermometer to measure the surface temperature. I suggest adding a drainage pan under the ribs. This is usually under the grill grids, but it CANNOT rest on the burners.
🔥Smoking on a gas grill
Many larger grills now have a built-in smoking box; if not, use a cast-iron smoking box or aluminum foil packets of wood chips.
I suggest hickory, but cherry, pecan, mesquite, and apple are commonly used. Some people like oak, but I'm not fond of oak for ribs.
Please see How to Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking for more details and troubleshooting.
🥣Dry rub suggestions
I included a simple 5 spice dry rub for ribs in the recipe using common pantry ingredients. For Memphis style ribs, use my Memphis Dry Rub. Or use the rub of your choice, like a Cajun blackening rub or Chipotle BBQ Dry Rub.
This rub recipe makes enough for two slabs. Cut it in half to have less leftover if you want, but I save it for next time. You can add a pinch of cayenne pepper for some heat.
- 8 tablespoons brown sugar - ½ cup
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
🍽️What to serve with BBQ baby back ribs
This is a dry rub rib recipe, meaning the sauce is served on the side at serving. My favorite is my Memphis Barbecue Sauce recipe, but use the sauce you like.
Other typical side dishes are baked beans, Macaroni Salad, Caprese Pasta Salad, Microwave Corn on the Cob, and Baked French Fries. Serve with Old Fashioned Cornbread or Cornbread Biscuits.
❄️Storage and reheating tips
Store leftovers sealed airtight and refrigerated for 4 days or frozen for 4 months.
If frozen, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat leftovers in the oven on a rimmed tray sealed with aluminum foil (preferred) or in the microwave.
❓FAQs
Pork ribs have a thin membrane on the back of each rack, which is the lining of the lung cavity. It does not have to be removed, but most experts want it removed (and I do, too). Removing it increases the rub flavor.
This is easier than you think. I like to use my fingers and a butter knife. Often, the best part of the knife is the handle. Work your way under it in the area of a rib near an end. Then, once you can get a good hold on it, start pulling at an angle, and it will come off. It is an acquired skill, so you won't be perfect the first time.
No, but some people do. It will interfere with smoking. But it will not interfere much with cooking time. I prefer to have the surface and rub exposed to the grill environment for good bark development.
Maintaining a constant temperature in an oven is much easier than on a grill. So, you can cook in the oven with foil (Oven-Baked Baby Back Ribs) and finish on the grill or a broiler.
Yes. It is all about grill setup and getting the temperature correct. Indirect grilling requires a large surface area. However, it will be harder to maintain a consistent surface temperature for several hours.
The most important thing is low and slow indirect grilling at 250°F. If I let the indirect side wander up to 300°, they always have some dryness. Brining ahead of time can help. A spritzing with apple juice every 30 minutes will also help, but it will prolong cooking time since the grill will take some time to recover from so much hood opening.
Some people apply BBQ sauce in the last 30 minutes or so of cooking, which helps keep the surface moist and pleasantly caramelized.
Some will wrap the ribs tightly in the last half of cooking, but I love the crispy bark, and the steam with wrapping will interfere with one of my favorite parts.
🐖About Baby Back and Other Pork Ribs
Back ribs are cut from the top/back part of the rib, where it meets the spine. They are called baby back since they are shorter than the other rib cuts. They will usually be 10-12 ribs that are 4-5 inches, give or take a little, and typically weigh 1 ½ to 2 pounds.
Other pork ribs are bone-in spare ribs and St. Louis ribs. St. Louis ribs are spare ribs with the sternum, some cartilage, and rib ends removed. Since baby back ribs are meatier and in higher demand, they will cost more but are well worth the price, in my opinion.
While this recipe centers on baby back ribs, the same method can be used for pork spare ribs and St. Louis ribs. They will just take a bit longer.
📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
Grilled Baby Back Ribs for Beginners
Video Slideshow
Ingredients
- 1 rack baby back ribs
- ½ cup rub of your choice
Excellent rub if you don't have one. Enough for 2 slabs. Cut in half to have less leftover if you want, but I save it for next time.
- 8 tablespoons brown sugar - ½ cup
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Set up the grill for indirect cooking over a drip pan under the indirect area, but not on the burners, with ½ to 1 inch of water. Stabilize temperature at about 250°. Clean and oil the grill grates.
- Prep the ribs. Remove the inner lining and check for bone chips.
- Rub with about ½ cup of a dry rub of your choice or my suggested rub. The rub will work fine if applied just before grilling or the day before. If applying early, then wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
- Place over the drip pan and start your smoke—30-60 minutes of smoke is enough. Then keep your hands off for about 2-3 hours total from the start of cooking. Add some time to that if cooking more than one slab. It may be 4 hours or more. If you are unsure of your grill setup or doing smaller ribs, start checking at 1½ hours.
- The ribs are done when: First, an internal temperature of 190°+ (200°-205° preferred.) Second, some ends of rib bones are sticking out. Lastly, when you pick up the ribs with tongs holding them about ⅓ of the way up, they should crack.
- Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- The three most important points to success are grill setup, keeping the right grill surface temperature, and knowing the endpoint of cooking.
- If you are unsure of your grill setup or doing smaller ribs, start checking at 1½ hours. Also, review How To Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking.
- The endpoint:
a) Temperature,190°+ (200°-205° is better.) It is hard to get an accurate temperature due to the thin meat and the bones interfering. Use an instant-read thermometer.
b) The ends of the rib bones are sticking out a bit.
c) When you pick up the ribs with tongs, holding them about ⅓ of the way up, they crack a bit. - This post is for one slab of baby backs. If you have enough space, you could do two side by side, or use a rib rack. If you have a large slab of ribs or do a rib rack to cook more slabs, you must add some time. And if you use a larger rib like a St. Louis or spare ribs, they will also take longer.
Helpful links
How to Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking A Beginner Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas GrillYour Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Originally published May 11, 2014. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
JimN says
Lots of good advice here. While I will usually stoke ribs (either baby back or st St Louis style on my charcoal smokers, its just to hard to requite the temp in the winter. I like the fact you talk about the importance of temperature at the grill surface and temp oof the food. I find an electronic thermometer with an ambient temp probe (for the grill surface) and probes for the meat to be invaluable.
The only quibble I have its "falling off the bone". To each his own but it is generally regarded that there should be some resistance when you chew on the rib. It should come off cleanly with a little tug but not fall off.
Don says
This is the dry rub that I use on chicken, beef and pork. I keep a large shaker bottle in my spice cabinet and some in a zip-lock bag so I'm always ready. It will clump some after a while but the back of a spoon takes care of that.
1 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup chili powder
1/2 cup white sugar 1 Tbsp onion powder
1/2 cup kosher salt 1 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 2 tsp dry mustard
Thomas says
total failure and I followed this to the core.
Andy says
Dr Dan
What are your thoughts on wrapping the ribs in foil for the middle stage of the cook? I’ve read about 2-2-1 namely cook open for 2 hours to form bark, wrap in foil for 2 hours to counter stall and preserve moisture then finish open again.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Andy,
Welcome to the blog.
What you are asking is about "the stall" which occurs when fluid comes out of the meat at about 150 degrees. It will go to the surface and evaporate. That will slow cooking and the meat will not be quite as moist. I have a long discussion on my grilled brisket recipe. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/cook-brisket-gas-grill/#the-stall
It is fine to do but be sure to remember you are cooking to an endpoint and not just by time. I have never done this for ribs but find miminal effect on my briskte. If you do it, be sure to wrap tightly since you need as little air as possible in the wrap. If you use foil, be sure not to have holes in it from the bones.
But I don't bother with it.
Hope that helps.
Dan