Grilled baby back ribs on a gas grill are easy with a few simple steps. Delicious, juicy, and fall-off-the-bone tender BBQ ribs will make you the grill master with these easy step-by-step photo instructions.
Great BBQ baby back ribs are easier than you think to cook on your backyard gas grill with a great homemade dry rib, a touch of smoke (optional), and your favorite barbecue sauce.
Grilling perfect ribs only need a few skills. First, you must correctly set up your grill for low-and-slow cooking and smoking (if you want). And you must know your endpoint when the ribs are done; that is it; the rest is a personal preference.
👨🍳How to make this recipe
- Set up the grill for indirect grilling and smoking at about 250°.
- Trim the ribs of the membrane and apply a dry rub.
- Place on the indirect heat side and start wood smoke if using.
- Cook for 2-3 hours until internal temperature of 190°+ and ends of rib bones are showing.
⏰How long to cook on a grill?
Three hours is a good estimate for cooking a medium size rack of ribs. If the ribs are a bit small or you are unsure about your grill setup, start checking at about 2 hours. A thick slab may take 4 hours. If you are cooking more than one slab with a vertical rack, add about 30-60 minutes.
There are the variables of the grill and meat, so there is never an exact time for something like this.
🐖The Ribs
What are Baby Back 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 usually weighs 1 ½ to 2 pounds.
Since they are meatier and in higher demand, baby back ribs will cost more but are well worth the price, in my opinion.
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. While this recipe centers on baby back ribs, the same method can be used for spare ribs or St. Louis ribs.
Trimming the ribs for cooking: There are two things to do before applying your rub. First, check all boney areas for bone chips. And second is to remove the thin membrane from the inside of the ribs. This is not required but highly suggested.
The Dry Rub
I included a nice simple 8:3:1:1 rub in the recipe. A great rub, but if you have a pork rub you love, use it.
This makes enough for two slabs. Cut it in half to have less leftover if you want, but I will save it for next time. You can add a pinch of cayenne pepper for some heat if you wish.
- 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
♨️Grill Setup
One of the major factors in successfully grilling ribs is the grill set up for low and slow indirect grilling at 250°. Also, you will want a method of smoking on the grill. You get both things right, and you will have great ribs. Get them wrong, and you have no chance.
Fortunately, it is not that hard. I have included a summary of the high points below. But please review these details on the grill setup with my complete guides if you are a novice griller or need some pointers.
How to Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking
A Beginners Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas Grill
🌡️Grill Temperature
Most smokers and top grillers like to cook ribs in the 225°-250° grill temperature range. While higher temperatures will cook faster, that is not better. It will tend to cause dried-out meat.
Indirect Heat
You will use indirect heat, meaning the meat will not be directly over the burners. All grills are different, but you will need to learn this for your grill for this and other recipes.
You will need a large grill surface area and a grill surface thermometer to get a surface temperature of about 250°. You will also need a way to check and monitor the surface temperature of the grill where the ribs will be cooking.
You will also need a drainage pan under the ribs. This is usually under the grids but CAN NOT rest on the burners.
Please see the reference links above for much greater details.
Smoking
Many larger grills now have a smoking box built-in but 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 too fond of oak for this.
Please see the reference links above for much greater details.
When are the ribs done cooking?
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 depend on the temperature and the rib bone exposure.
1) 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.
2) You want to see some bones. This means the ends of the rib bones are sticking out some. This happens when the meat is cooked and shrinks.
3) When you pick up the ribs with tongs holding them about ⅓ of the way up, they crack some. I have been known to have slabs of ribs break in half, so I do this less.
They will take longer if you use a larger rib like a St. Louis or spare ribs. Never cook by time; cook to an endpoint.
❓FAQs
Pork ribs have a thin membrane on the back of each rack of ribs, which is the lining of the lung cavity. It does not have to be removed, but most experts want it removed (and I do, also.) I think you get more rub flavor if you remove it.
This is easier than you think. I like to use my fingers and a butter knife. And many times, 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 that you won't be perfect the first time.
Yes. It is all about grill setup and getting the temperature correct. It will need a large surface area for indirect grilling. But it will be harder to maintain a consistent surface temperature for several hours.
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 your oven is much easier than on a grill. So you can cook in the oven with foil (Easy Oven Baked Baby Back Ribs) and finish on the grill if you want.
📖Related Recipes
Easy Oven Baked Baby Back Ribs
Memphis Barbecue Sauce - A Wonderful Thing
Marlowe of Memphis BBQ Dry Rub
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo 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. I have included an 8:3:1:1 rub in the recipe but use what you want. 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 1 ½ 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
How to Grill Baby Back Ribs on a Gas Grill
Ingredients
- 1 rack baby back ribs - or more
- 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
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. I have included an 8:3:1:1 rub in the recipe but use what you want. 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 1 ½ 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.
Your Own Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- The two most important points to success are grill setup and knowing the endpoint of cooking.
- If you are unsure of your grill setup or doing smaller ribs, start checking at 1 ½ 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 some.
c) When you pick up the ribs with tongs, holding them about ⅓ of the way up, they crack some. - This post is for one slab of baby backs. You could do two side by side if you have enough space or use a rib rack. The time is about 2-3 hours. If you have a large slab of ribs or do a rib rack to cook more slabs, you will need to 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 Beginners Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas GrillTo adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Originally published May 11, 2014. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Don
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
total failure and I followed this to the core.
Andy
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
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
Matt
Delcious. 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.
I cooked them for the first time tonight on my Genesis II. It was tricky figuring out the right temperature and they reached 195-ish after 2.5 hours, so I'm going to have to play with the setup. Someone on this page writes about switching one off and on again at certain intervals. I might try that, but I'd rather just be able to let them sit.
The ribs were still fantastic despite not having gone at least three hours in the grill. Super juicy, tender, and almost fall-off-the-bone. They're going to be even better once I can figure out the surface temperature problem.
Janel
I do not know how you got the wood to smoke...on a gas grill at such a low temperature
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Janel,
Welcome to the blog.
It will smoke. If you use an aluminum pouch or castiron box, put it over the direct heat side. If you have a built-in box, use it. More details at https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/set-gas-grill-smoking-low-slow-cooking/
Hope that helps.
Dan
Valerie Pickett
Outstanding ribs! Thank you for a great recipe!
It was my first time cooking ribs on the grill! The man and I went to a local meat shop and purchased the ribs so I didn't want to fail. Looking at a lot of recipes yours was the most complete and easy to follow.
The only question I have for next time is how to ensure the top of the ribs are a little less chewy?
Will be checking out the rest of your site. Thank you again❣
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Hi Valerie,
Welcome the blog.
By the top, I assume you mean the outside of the meat where the rub is. The chewie is some dryness of the meat from dry cooking, you can add some humidity to the environment with water in the drip pan. Some people "mop" with various solutions.
Hope that helps some.
Thanks for the note and rating.
Dan
Jubran
Just tried these out on our new Weber Genesis II 310 for Memorial Day - came out delicious!
Our grill is a three burner, so we started off with the two sides on and one off in the middle. The heat was rising a bit too rapidly at first with two burners, so after an hour I turned one of the burners off, then on again after another hour. After 3 hours, both racks were right at 190F, so I finished them with a quick sear on medium heat over direct flame to finish it off, and it came out great. It looks like experimentation really is needed with each unique grill.
One concern I had was with the wood chips. After three hours, I had no smoke coming out of the hickory wood chips I bought, despite being hot to the touch. I think next time I'll do without soaking first and see how it turns out.
Thanks for the great recipe, Dr. Dan.
Matt
Jubran, did you have the burners on low the entire time? I may try your method of switching one off then on again.
Greg
I've been using your method for 2-3 years now. Family, friends, and visitors always ask how it's done after they've eaten (can't really beat that as a compliment when it comes to ribs).
Brad
WOW! DrDan, thanks so much! Thanks for your attendant article "How To Set Up Your Gas Grill for Smoking and Low and Slow Cooking." That got me to experimenting with my grill as you suggested, with your guidelines in mind. I have a nice 4-burner CharBroil with Grill Grates installed. Previously, I've had OK results to burned results. Tonight, my birthday, we had fantastic ribs. I figured out to use my outside burners on low with the outside Grill Grates taken off. That gave me the indirect heat at 250º. I used the shallow aluminum drip pan with water. I also did an America's Test Kitchen suggestion and brined my ribs before cooking. I also cooked them with the meat side down. Your rub recipe is totally awesome! I got totally fall off the bone tender and moist meat. Couldn't decide whether to use BBQ sauce or not because the rub was incredible.
Thanks again, you are the (grillin') Man!
em
Hi DrDan,
I am just want to confirm that you are using Fahrenheit temperatures? Our grill was purchased in Finland and uses metric, but we can do the conversions ourself, of course!
Emily
DrDan
Yep, Fahrenheit. As a doctor I used metric for everything. Here everything is American.
Alec
I have a surface thermometer but a question about location. For the gas grill ribs, do I want the thermometer to reach 250 on the heat side or the indirect side? Or should it be places somewhere in the middle of the BBQ?
DrDan
I do near the back of the indirect side, That is the surface temp you want the ribs to cook at. If you don;t have room there then right next to the ribs away from the direct side.
Let me know if other questions.
Dan
Stephen Reedy
I'm low and slow cooking mine on a small grill. With the burners going front to back. I lined the back portion of the rack with foil to help keep it in indirect heat, and placed drip pans directly on top of the foil. My grill also has the upper rack which is where I placed the ribs so the drip pan is underneath. I lack a temperature gauge so I actually have no idea what temperature the ribs are getting. I suppose this is going to be trial and error until I get a thermometer. I did have to rotate the ribs about 2 hrs into the process because the side facing the directcheat blackened, while the back did not. I hope these turn out ok my girlfriend and her mom are coming over to help eat these! I'll try to post a picture of the finished product if I can
DrDan
I'm afraid this is not going to go well for you. You are totally driving blind. I'm a huge believer in thermometers. I'm more of a "science guy". I'm not sure the way you have it set up is very "indirect".
https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/grill-temperature/
https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/set-gas-grill-smoking-low-slow-cooking/
Jeff
Hey DrDan
That's awesome information, I really appreciate it!!! I will definitely get one of these on grill thermometers and try it out, and this time have better success! One last question (sorry to keep bothering you!) in your opinion, where I found the ribs to be to salty, do you think if I had cooked at the right temp the salt wouldn't have been as powerful or it didn't matter and it's just my taste buds?
Again thanks for all your help and advice, it's greatly appreciated!
DrDan
Again a taste thing. Cut back the salt in the rub or use less rub.
Have a good day and let me know if you have other questions.
Dan
Jeff
Hi DrDan
It's a 4 burner grill I bought new in may. I used the far left burner for the smoke and indirect heat source. The thermometer is located in centre of lid. I'm not sure if this link will work but it is almost identical to this one (broken link removed—DrDan)
As for the smoke, I guess my smoker box worked as it should have then? As I said I. New at this and had the understanding that you were supposed to smoke the whole duration of the cook (as in like a smoker unit would do)
Thanks for the fast reply, anything you can think of to ask or tell me to help hone my skills I would greatly appreciate!
Cheers
Jeff
DrDan
Hi again.
The thermometers in grill hoods are unfortunately horrible. They are cheap and measure the air temp at the top of the grill, not the surface temp. So your issues are temperature related. Probably the same issue Gadge, the commenter before you, had but didn't realize.
I used grill surface thermometers for years. They only cost about $10 and will last most of grill season until you can't read it anymore. Amazon, Home Depot or Lowes will have them. I now use a fancy Theromoworks remote monitor.
The amount of smoke is more a personal taste thing. I find 20-30 minutes to be my taste. Type of smoke is also a taste thing. I like hickory usually. The soaking of the chips is frequently recommended but most pros don't care.
Jeff
I tried this recipe and didn't have the desired outcome. It was also my first time doing ribs on a BBQ so I more than likely did something wrong. First I found the ribs to be very salty. Second, I kept the heat constant at 270-280 range and cooked them for 4 hours, checked the internal temp and it was reading 140. Thirdly, when the ribs were finished cooking they were, not tough but also not fall off of the bone, somewhere in between but leaning more to the tough side. I did the water tray below the indirect side under the ribs, so I don't know why I had this outcome. Any advice would be great.
On the same topic but different note, if I could get some help about smoking would be good. I have 2 smoker boxes, soaked the apple wood chips, filled the box and it was literally 45 mins before it stared to smoke. Worst off, it only lasted for 20 mins at best! Once the smoked stopped I removed that box and put In the new box with fresh chips, and same thing, 45/50 mins before smoke started and only lasted for 20 mins. So I made a smoker packet out of tinfoil and tried it with dry chips, had to wait over an hour and got 30 mins of smoke. Each time the smoker pack/box was over the only lit burner. I have no idea if it is normal or not. Again any feed back would be great. One last thing, should I smoke the whole ti,e they are cooking, or only for a short period at the first or at the end? Like I said this was my first attempt, I have been trying to up my barbecuing skills this year and I would like to get a good hold of this technique.
Sorry for the long post, thanks for any help and the recipe!! Cheers
DrDan
Hi Jeff,
My first question is the thermometer? New? Old? Location? Number burners on the grill. I just sounds like the temperature was off.
Next the smoking. I usually I only do smoke for 20-30 minutes. But it starts the smoke usually within 5-10 minutes and last the 20 plus minutes. Again I question the temperature.
What do you think?
Dan
Gadge
I put the ribs on the gas grill. It didn't even make it the 3 hours you suggested. After 2 hours on the grill, I checked it and it was burned all to hell. Completely ruined.
Grilly mcbuzzedrealgood
Check his instructions for INDIRECT heat
Woody
OMG......used Jack Daniels wood chips.. usually have left overs but these chips gave it the WOW factor