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!
Kay says
I made these tonight and they are to die for. Whole family loved them. I followed your recipe to the letter except I added a bit of garlic powder along with the salt and pepper to start. I used Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ and they were just mouth watering good. Thank you.
Tracy says
Thanks, Kay! So happy to hear you enjoyed them!
Natasha Smith says
this is what i just did also! mine are going in oven now! but had to add that garlic powder lol
Brandyn says
This was delicious! We just made them for lunch. Super easy. Thank you!
Tracy says
Thanks, Brandyn! So glad you enjoyed them!
Val B says
Would this be the same for carnitas? Can I flavor the meat with a rub and then not bast with sauce and have same result?
I heard someone say to just slow cook these the whole way then when ready to make the tacos, put some of the meat in a cast iron pan and brown the edges a little. You that would be necessary if I follow your recipe without sauce?
Thanks in advance
Tracy says
Hi, Val, if you’re wanting to make carnitas, I’d use this recipe: https://bakingmischief.com/2018/05/01/carnitas-recipe/ or https://bakingmischief.com/2018/08/23/slow-cooker-carnitas/ if you want to make them in the slow cooker. The meat will have much more flavor for tacos.
Those recipes call for a whole shoulder roast, but country-style ribs are just a shoulder roast cut into strips, so you can use country-style ribs to make carnitas no problem. Hope that helps, and just let me know if you have any other questions.
Shanna says
Mine are in the oven now. We bought two 16oz boneless country style ribs. When I took them out of the package, they were each in 4 sections, so now instead of two 16oz portions, I have eight 4oz portions. Hoping these turn out good!
Tracy says
Hey, Shanna, 4 ounces is smaller than the ribs I usually see. If they’re already pretty tender when you get to the bbq sauce step, I’d check on them after about 20 minutes. If the meat is done (you can pull it apart with a fork), pull the meat early so it doesn’t dry out. If the bbq sauce isn’t quite baked on enough for you, you can turn the broiler on for a couple minutes to help it along (but watch it closely so they don’t burn).
Hope you enjoy the ribs!
jo says
tlhanks for sharing a great recipe.
Lyndsy says
I’m about 50% through cooking these and I just realized I forgot to cover the ribs with more foil. Oops. I put it on for the last 45 mins of step 1. Hopefully they will be okay. If you happen to see this right now and have any thoughts on the matter let me know.
Tracy says
Hey, Lyndsy, I’d do just what you did, maybe also add a little water or broth to the pan if the ribs look dry. Hope they come out okay!
cynthia warren says
Easy and good. I don’t think I had enough marblinging mine were chewy and followed recipe to the tee. It didn’t say lean on the meat package but I notice very little marbling on my cuts. The leftovers made great pull pork sandwiches. I just think I have to pay attention to make sure cuts aren’t too lean.
Catherine says
O!
M!
G!
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The pieces in two sections, one got Lawrey’s seasoning salt, the other pink sea salt. Then I got two kinds of BBQ sauce since sweet sauce is not as good to me, so I tried two (Bulls Eye “Original” and Jim Beam “Smokey Barrel”) in case one was too sweet. And I left 2 pieces undone.
The Lawrey’s and either sauce is excellent. Even the plain is excellent. The Smokey Barrel flavor has a little back of the throat heat, which is great.
(Pink sea salt is also excellent, but the Lawrey’s has edge.)
thanks for the recipe!
Tracy says
LOL, so glad you enjoyed them, Catherine! Lawry’s is the way I usually go with these too, but never tried the Smokey Barrel flavor sauce. I’ll have to keep my eyes open for it!
Linda kelly says
These ribs were very, very dry… It has been a very long time since I cooked country style ribs because they always came out dry. Thought I’d try this recipe – followed it to the T, but the ribs (while tasty) were very dry. My suggestion is to either cook them for 2 hours at a lower temperature (maybe 250), OR cook at 300 for 1 hour, then lower the temperature to 275 – lather on the bbq sauce & cook for 45 -50 minutes. All I can do with the leftovers is cut them up & put into some beans – can’t reheat & eat. I was so disappointed.
marilyn bolton says
I followed the recipe, dry ribs a few of mine were underdone , any less cooking they wouldn’t have been safe. the rest were really juicy, so I think your ribs were smaller. maybe try cooking less, like you say. dry ribs are the worst!
JENNIFER says
If you get Western style (not sure what the difference is but they appear a deeper red) they are hardly ever dry. I always go for western because the Country can be dry.
Also if they are dry and you reserved some of the liquid you can pour some back on and shred it for pulled pork. But you really have to overcook the Western style for them to dry out.
Katie says
Trick I learned a few years back to enjoy these tasty and inexpensive ribs (slow cooked or on the grill) is soaking them in salt water (brine) first. Think it was 1/4 or 1/3 cup of salt for about 8 cups of water or whatever was going to cover the meat completely. Let it soak about 30 mins in the brine before taking the meat out for baking or grilling and it keeps it tender and moist.
Tracy says
Thanks for the tip, Katie!
Bridgette says
Agree, cook time was too long, and I used big Costco country style pork ribs. I’d recommend using your meat thermometer to get a better idea of when they are due to come out of the even.
Boston JBC says
I hope to try this recipe but I don’t have a roasting pan (gasp!). I see hacks like building a grid with extra chopsticks (we have those!) but I wanted to check if you recommend putting the meat directly in the pan or on a rack so the drippings can fall away. Thank you in advance and I can’t wait to try these! Yummy!
Tracy says
For these, you can cook them right on the pan, no need for a rack (or chopsticks 😉 ). The drippings actually help keep the meat moist during the first part of the cooking time.
Myra Niphoratos says
Would the cooking time be different with “boneless” ribs? This recipe looks delicious and am dying to try it!!
Tracy says
Hi, Myra. This will work with boneless or bone-in. My local grocery store sells them in mixed packs, so I usually end up cooking both types at the same time. Hope you enjoy them!
Eve says
Just made these, and they were perfect. Followed the recipe to a T. Thank you so much!
Tracy says
Thanks for reporting back, Eve. So glad you enjoyed them!
Ruthann Forgione says
This is a great technique!! Moist and fall of the bones deliciousness!! I use ahso sauce mixed with pineapple topping in the end. Thank you for the recipe! never going back to the way I cooked them before.
Tracy says
Thanks, Ruthann! Pineapple topping in the sauce sounds divine!
Holly says
So easy, so delicious! Thank you:) I had the country ribs in my freezer and BBQ sauce. Not much else. Just seasoned the ribs, baked as directed, sauced, added baked potato side and “voila”…my family has dinner. This is a cheaper cut of meat, but cooked correctly, oh so yummy so I stock up. Patience is the key and it sure is worth it.
Tracy says
Thanks, Holly! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Jamie Buchholz says
So…..For years I’ve only ever made ribs in a crock pot. Well, a crock pot stealing gremlin seemed to have walked off with mine. I thought I would give your recipe a try, and, OMG. I’m never making ribs in a crock pot again. So delicious, flavorful, and literally fall off the bone goodness!! Thank you so much for sharing.
Tracy says
Thanks, Jamie! Sorry about your crock pot, but so glad you enjoyed the ribs! 😉
Michelle says
I’ve always made beef ribs because they were so simple to do. But lately I’ve been wanting pork ribs and since my son loves them, I figured I’d take a crack at making some at home. Thank you so much for this recipe!!! I have some in the oven right now and I can’t wait to dig in.
Tracy says
Thanks, Michelle! Hope you guys enjoyed them!
Caroline says
I made these delicious spare ribs today with a homemade BBQ sauce that I whipped up with what I had in the refrigerator and pantry. Followed the directions exactly and WOW I’m amazed at how delectable and easy. Thank you!
Tracy says
Thanks, Caroline! So glad you enjoyed them, and I bet your homemade sauce was amazing!
MichelleInNewOrleans says
Just so you know, Sandra, these aren’t “spare ribs” — they’re what’s called “country-style ribs,” which are actually cuts of pork shoulder. If you cooked real spare ribs like this, they would be a disaster!
Sommerly says
SO SO SO SO SO GOOOOOOD!!!!!!!! I just made this for my family. Thank you SO much!!! I will never do ribs any other way. These are beyond delicious, amazing, moist, tender…just fabulous!! I’ll make over and over, thank you for sharing!!
Tracy says
Thanks, Sommerly!! I’m so so so so 😉 happy you enjoyed them!!