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!
Barbara Kenyon says
Had these for dinner. My ribs were 6oz each. I cooked them as instructed for the first step. I pulled them out and coated with bbq sauce and put them back in the oven at the lower temperature but only left them in for 20 minutes. Unfortunately mine turned out extremely dry. Not sure why.
Cheryl says
Made these Country Pork Shoulder Ribs for the first time ever making ribs. They were delicious. I will b .passing this recipe on to my 2 daughters. Thank you, can’t wait.to try some of your other recipes.
Tracy says
Thanks, Cheryl. I’m so happy your first time was a success! I hope you enjoy the other recipe too!!
Linda says
My neighbor showed me a trick. Precook the ribs in a 9×13 pan with water and vinegar cover with foil. Put in oven 2 hours at 300. They will be so tender. Then bake them an hour with BBQ sauce yummy
Tracy says
Thanks for sharing, Linda!
Don Herman says
These are fantabulouso. Haha. Seriously, I’ve made them twice now, and they come out perfect every time. And so simple! You can change them up however you like – use some fancy BBQ sauce (like I did – found it in the supermarket markdown bin!) Maybe add some Liquid Smoke or an herb rub. But the basic recipe is great – thanks for putting it out there.
FYI – your Hamilton Beach food processor ad you have on the page doesn’t go anywhere.
Tracy says
Thrilled to hear, Don! I do want to try these with liquid smoke the next time I make them. It’s been on my list. 🙂
And thanks for the heads up about the ad. Sounds like a bad ad snuck though. I’ll keep an eye open for it.
Geraldine OToole says
Amazing you saved my life tonight. I am so glad I found you when I googled Country Style Baked Ribs. Now I just need a good homemade barbecue sauce. Thanks Again!
Tracy says
Thanks, Geraldine! And if you find one, please let me know. I’m still looking for my perfect homemade sauce recipe too!
sue says
These were so good and super easy. I put a dry rub on mine before the baking them. Yummy
Tracy says
Yay! So glad they worked out for you, Sue!
Wayne says
I made this recipe with my ribs. All my family ate them all. I also put a couple little spoons of butter in pan for the first cooking time. Then drain them them for second cooking and coated them with sweet baby’s Rays.They were awesome.Thanks you
Tracy says
So glad to hear it, Wayne! And I love the idea of adding a bit of butter at the beginning.
TARA says
Delicious! I followed your recipe exactly and the results were excellent. I will fix them this way from now on. Thank you!
Tracy says
Thrilled to hear it! Thanks, Tara!
Julia says
Absolutely loved this! Made a few tweaks, as I literally never follow a recipe 100%, but this was so yummy I will actually make it again! Thank you!
Tracy says
So glad you enjoyed it, Julia!
Mariya says
Tracy, this is really a great recipe. I will make this at the next chance i get.
Tracy says
Thanks, Mariya!!
Alina says
Tracy, it looks so yummy! I love the step-by-step instructions, making it an easy recipe to follow!
Tracy says
Thanks, Alina!!
Sandy says
This is the second time I used this recipe, and again they turned out great. This time I sliced a yellow onion and layered them on the bottom of the pan, I used kosher salt and black pepper for the seasoning and laid them over the onion.
Just as before, I checked them at an hour and a half and they were fork tender. I added orange marmalade to the barbecue sauce, it gives the sauce a nice tangy flavor, and I poured it over the ribs and spread the sauce evenly over them all. Then I baked them for about twenty minutes longer plus a few minutes under the broiler this time.
They turned out awesome! This is the way I will always go for this cut of meat, thanks for sharing.
Tracy says
Thanks, Sandy! I’m so glad they’ve worked out for you. And orange marmalade sounds amazing. I’m going to have to try that next time!
Katie says
Thank you so much for this recipe! I used a Korean style bbq marinate (5 hours pre cook) and I had large ribs so I cooked it 2:20 covered, drained, (and I read your directions about taking it out before an hour if they are tender) and took it out after 30 minutes uncovered because the meat was getting “crispy” on top. They TURNED OUT PERFECT!!
Tracy says
Thanks, Katie! Making these with a Korean-style marinade sounds so good!
Rob Randall says
These are AMAZING. My house smells great as an added bonus. Thank you for sharing this recipe
Tracy says
Thanks, Rob! So glad you enjoyed them!
teachermrw says
Tracy…these were truly some of the BEST ribs I have eaten! And, your recipe was so easy to follow. Although I don’t think that country-style pork ribs will replace my beloved pork baby back ribs, I will certainly cook and serve these again.
Tracy says
Thank you! I’m so, so glad you enjoyed them!
Amber says
Hands down the BEST && EASIEST ribs I’ve ever made! I am no cheft at all. Always on the go, I clicked easy oven baked ribs and boom this one I tried. I am SO thankful I did! Thank you, for sharing this!! My kids loved it, it was literally fall of bone and tasty I surprised myself haha!! You’re amazing, thank you again!!! 🙂
Tracy says
Yay! Thanks, Amber. I’m SO glad you guys enjoyed the ribs!!
Anna says
Tracy, this looks amazing! Thank you, I will try this right away)
Tracy says
Hope you enjoy them, Anna!