Country-style Pork Ribs ribs are a great rich and fall-apart tender alternative to traditional ribs. Cheap, easy to make, and SO good, this might just be your new favorite way to eat pork.
One of the first really popular recipes on this site was my No-Fuss Easy Oven-Baked Ribs. The recipe’s designed to use beef back ribs, but since the post went live people have been asking about using it to make country-style pork ribs.
And asking.
And asking.
And asking.
And every single time, I would have to admit that I had no idea because I’d never eaten, let alone cooked, country-style ribs.
Whelp, I finally got sick of saying “I don’t know,” and feeling like I was missing out on something (because clearly, people love these things), so I tried them for myself, and now I am so angry.
Guys, I am so angry I haven’t been making these for years because country-style ribs ARE AMAZING. And this is coming from someone who is usually firmly Team Beef Ribs over pork.
These ribs are so tender and rich and easy to make. Two ingredients, ten minutes of hands-on prep time, and you end up with these absolutely beautiful ribs with meat you can shred with a fork.
And if you’re sitting there going sure, that sounds great, but WTF are country-style pork ribs? Read on, friend.
What Are Country-style Pork Ribs?
Country-style pork ribs aren’t ribs at all. They’re cuts of pork shoulder, which is the same meat you use to make pulled pork and carnitas. If you get bone-in “ribs,” you’ll recognize the distinctive y-shaped bone you get when you buy a bone-in pork shoulder roast.
This means that one, just like pork shoulder roasts, country-style ribs are super cheap, usually about $2/pound.
Two, they’re way meatier than regular pork or beef ribs (and don’t have all that gross cartilage), so you’re getting more meat for your buck.
And three, they have that wonderful marbling of fat which helps keep them moist during the long, slow cooking process on the way to tender, fall-apart ribs.
And speaking of long, slow cooking…
How to Cook Country Style Pork Ribs in the Oven
For fall-apart meat, country-style ribs really need to cook long and slow. Otherwise you’re going to get chewy pork.
The good news is that the cooking time is almost entirely hands-off. After a minimal amount of prep to get the ribs ready to cook, your oven’s doing most of the work here.
You start by salting and peppering your ribs and placing in a single layer in a roasting pan or baking dish. If you use a baking tray, make sure it has a fairly high rim, as the meat will release a lot of liquid as it cooks.
Cover with foil and bake at 300°F for 2 hours. Go read a book and sip some lemonade in front of a fan.
When your timer goes off, carefully uncover the meat–the steam will be hot–and drain the liquid from the tray. The meat looks super gross and sad at this point, but don’t worry. The next time it comes out of the oven, it will be beautiful.
Brush a generous coat of your favorite BBQ sauce over the meat.
Lower the temperature to 275°F and then bake uncovered for another hour. Your ribs are done when the meat has a beautifully baked-on coat of BBQ sauce and when you can pull it apart with a fork.
Brush with a little more sauce, give the ribs a couple minutes to rest, and then serve with some mashed potatoes or macaroni salad, and a simple veggie side like Garlic and Butter Green Beans or Oven-roasted Broccoli, and enjoy!
Country-Style Ribs Recipe Notes
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- If making for guests, I recommend making two ribs per person. That’s going to be a really generous serving, but you won’t have to worry about anyone going hungry. If making a lot of ribs, you can make two trays at a time. Just add 15 minutes to the initial cooking time and swap them halfway through both cooking periods so that they cook evenly.
- You can use bone-in or boneless country-style ribs for this recipe. Since they are covered for most of the cooking time, both come out equally moist and tender. My local stores sell them in mixed packs, so I usually cook with both at the same time.
- Be very careful removing the ribs from the oven the first time. Hot liquid can slosh out of the pan, and the steam will be very hot when you remove the foil.
- For brushing on BBQ sauce, I love these silicone basting brushes that can go through the dishwasher.
- Looking for more simple meaty mains? Try my Tri-tip in the Oven, Broiled Steak with Mustard Sauce, Carne Asada, and Quick Rosemary Pork Chops.
Easy Country-Style Pork Ribs in the Oven
Ingredients
Special Equipment
- Foil
- Roasting pan or rimmed baking sheet
- Silicone basting brush optional
Country-style Ribs
- Country-style pork ribs*
- Salt and pepper
- Your favorite BBQ sauce
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 300°F. Salt and pepper both sides of your ribs and place in a single layer in your pan, fattier side up.
- Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake for 2 hours. Carefully (steam and liquid in the tray will be hot!) remove ribs from the oven and check the meat. They should be starting to become tender. If they still feel tough, re-cover them and place them back in the oven for 15 to 30 minutes.
- Transfer ribs to a plate and drain liquid from the pan. Return ribs to tray and brush with a generous coating of BBQ sauce.
- Turn oven down to 275°F and bake ribs, uncovered, for 1 hour more, or until you can pull the meat apart with a fork (if your ribs were small and already pretty tender when you put them back in the oven, start checking after 20 minutes). Brush with another coat of BBQ sauce, rest for 5 minutes, serve and enjoy!
Mikey Amador says
I’ve been using this recipe for a few years now and my family loves these ribs. I always get comments about how you can cut through them with a fork too… Thank you for this recipe.
Lisa Dembek says
Great recipe. Just took them out of the oven after 2 hours and so tender. Brushed Korean BBQ sauce then put them back in covered up with tinfoil and cooked 45 more mins and the are just falling apart. My ribs cut really big but still cooked in about the same amount of time per your recipe. Strange though I had no excess liquid. But they are just perfect. Thank you.
Michelle J Francis says
This recipe is perfect and my go to for 5 years now! We are a family of seven, (five are our children) and even my two SUPER PICKY eaters love these ribs. Very simple to make and doesn’t cost a ⁵64 tlot. These ribs have become our 4th of July tradition. The only recommendation I have is to keep a stock pile of them in your freezer.
Terri says
I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out perfect. Tender, delicious and oh so easy.
Julie J says
Always did country style ribs on the grill, but I was in no mood to whip out the grill so I looked up recipes for the oven and came across this recipe. Tried it last night and it was amazing. I used a bbq rub on mine for the first 2 hours and then bbq sauce. Let’s just say I made enough for an army and there were no leftovers. Family loved it. This recipe is a keeper. Yum!!!
Keith A Mertz says
Made as suggested but used General Tso’s sauce instead of BBQ. Absolutely the best ribs. Many thanks.
Erika says
Delicious way to make country style ribs!! I get random pork cuts from a meat co-op and had no idea what do with this cut, and this recipe saved my day! My pork was extra lean so I did need to make a small water bath inside my foil to keep things really tender, so keep that in mind if your ribs don’t have a lot of fat on them!! Take advantage of the long cooking time and make your own homemade BBQ sauce also!
Melanie says
Wow! I just put my CSR in the oven and decided to read some of the reviews… I cannot wait for these ribs to finish cooking! I’ll report back after we eat. Thanks!
Michele says
Great method! Ribs came out fork-tender and flavorful. This is how I’ll be cooking ribs from now on!
Tammy says
Mahalo Mahalo Mahalo! Wow we get these on sale quite often on the island and I have tried and tried again to get the perfect consistency between pulled pork and a chewy rib and this is it!!! Amazing! Fam raved, thanks for sharing your trial and error, this definitely works!
Tracy says
Thanks, Tammy!!
Nan says
Thanks so much for this!!!! My mom had cooked her ribs this way for decades but I never did ask the temperatures and lengths of time. I used to try to bake these on what I THOUGHT was the approximate temperatures and lengths of time, but I always failed in reproducing what my mom did. I used this recipe last night and it came out exactly how tender my mom’s did!!! Thanks so much again. It’s like having a piece of my mom back!
Sheila says
My country ribs looked normal in the package. When I opened the package, they were all mammoth sized T-bone looking. I didn’t have an extra pan, so I salted and peppered in layers in my toaster. I added 30 minutes of cooking time before draining because of the thickness. You’re right; they look gross. I rearranged layers as I basted them and added 20 minutes of cooking time. They were juicy and yummy, but the bbq sauce on the bottom layer was watery. But delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Maria Evans says
Hi! So the cook temps and times are spot on! I do have a few recommendations to take it up a notch… I first add a little white vinegar to the ribs rubbing it in as it is a natural tenderizer. After that I season with garlic salt, season salt, soy sauce and pepper. Okay, here’s the kicker… I bake mine in a casserole dish, reason being…. Beer, I cover the ribs in bud weiser topping with freshly minced garlic and onion. The smell is where it’s at, that is how you know you added “enough” of each ingredient. Just thought I’d share! I use this recipe as a marinade for steaks, grilled chicken, you name it!
Sheila says
This was excellent!! Time and temps were perfect and the meat was extremely tender. Will cook them this way from now on. Thank you!
Emma Kelly says
Okay, bbq ribs are probably one of my all time favorite comfort food and anytime I can make an oven meal I am game, lol. These were great! Have any favorite bbq sauces Tracy? Looking to try some different recipes or store-bought ones to mix it up and would love any suggestions if you have them.
Kelly says
I make this recipe so often I have a dedicated pan just for this. I line the bottom with parchment paper. I cut the parchment paper to shape before I start – I cut 2 (two. When I turn the oven down and apply the sauce, I remove the ribs to a paper plate, drain the pan and discard the first parchment. Replace the liner, and put the ribs back in – oh so delicately – they’re already falling apart tender! We call them COWBOY RIBS, and it’s one of my all-time favorite meals. Thank you so much for this!