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!
Steph says
The best! Family was very happy, Thank you!
Andrea says
Would this work in a glass pyrex dish instead?
Tracy says
Yes, but I would add just a bit of water to the bottom of the dish before baking since Pyrex recommends it (from their website:”Add a small amount of liquid sufficient to cover the bottom of the dish prior to cooking foods that may release liquid.”).
Mary Rivet says
I think they were great. I added liq smoke to mine. After the 2 hrs were they were so tender and juicy that I did not go the extra hour. I broiled them instead. hubby loved them
Crissandra Lim says
it’s soooo good! the final cook we just cooked it for 15minutes because its so tender already and we only have small ribs. sooo goood though!!!!!!
Tracy says
So happy to hear it, Crissandra!!
Audrey says
Awesome!! Ver tender. Followed directions with the exception of added 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar and 1/4 c water to baking dish. These were great. Will make again!! Thanks
Tracy says
Those sound like awesome additions. So glad to hear you enjoyed them!
Debbie says
Made these tonight for the boyfriend and we loved them!! Your directions and recipe were so simple to follow. Thank you so much! I now have a company’s coming dush!!
Tracy says
Thank you, Debbie!! So happy you both enjoyed them!
TravATL says
These are indeed good, but I suspected, based on some of the comments that the temperature was a bit high for that length of time. I was only doing 7 boneless country style ribs, so I pulled them out at 90 minutes to check, and they were fine. Any longer probably would’ve done damage. Then with the sauce, I reduced the temperature to 250, and did them in 20 minute intervals. Pulling at 25 minutes. Perfect.
Pat says
I leave the foil on after I put the bbq sauce on and only uncover them for the last 15 minutes so they don’t dry out and give them another coating of sauce. They never fail.
Jeff says
Hiya Tracy! One of my favorite pork dishes are these country style ribs. I buy the boneless. Your recipe is simple and great as is. I’ve been making them this way for years. Sometimes instead of salt and pepper, I sprinkle with a good amount of name brand rib rub and then, being an elderly single guy cooking for only myself, I put two of them in a small disposable aluminum loaf pan that you can find in most stores. Cover with foil, just as your recipe says, then bake at 300 for two hours, then take the foil off, drain the liquid, and coat with a generous amount of my favorite BBQ sauce and bake an additional hour at 275, also as your recipe states (sometimes I don’t use the BBQ sauce. Just leave the foil on and bake the additional hour. The rub gives them a great flavor all by itself). When done, throw away the pan and enjoy an absolutely delicious dinner of BBQ ribs, mashed potatoes, and your favorite veggie. Anyone who is thinking about trying Tracy’s recipe, do it! It’ll become one of your favorites! (Make a few extras and use them for pulled pork sandwiches!).
Tracy says
Thanks so much, Jeff! And I fully agree about making extras for pulled pork sandwiches. It’s one of my favorite ways to eat these now!
Tracy S says
I made these ribs for dinner tonight and they are delicious! Fork tender. Thank you!!!
Tracy says
Thanks, Tracy! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them!
Chris says
I marinate my ribs overnight in BBQ sauce and use the same sauce in the pan when baking. I just took mine out of the oven after 2 hours at 300 and they are falling apart tender. (I normally bake them at 250 for a few hours as it gives me a little more time to be doing something else.) I’ll top them off with more sauce and maybe put them under the broiler as suggested in an earlier post.
Sherry Stover says
The flavor was wonderful and I followed your recipe by the letter unfortunately, just like most recipes I have tried. the meat was dry. Where did I go wrong?
Tracy says
Hi, Sherry, I’m glad at least the flavor was good! There are a couple things it could be:
1. Make sure to start with nicely marbled cuts of pork shoulder country style ribs. It should have veins of fat running through it, which is what helps keep the meat tender. If your meat is just a uniform pink color, it’s not going to be as tender.
2. Don’t remove the foil and pour off the liquid until the meat is beginning to become tender. If you can’t start to pull it apart with a fork, it’s not ready.
3. Keep an eye on it during the final uncovered cooking time. The final cooking time is really to allow the meat to finish cooking and the sauce to caramelize over the meat. If the meat seems done before the timer goes off, pull it! Because these “ribs” vary in size, the cooking time can really vary too, so they can be overcooked.
Hope that helps!!
Venita says
Hi, I am trying these Ribs out tonight, but mu pkg of Country Style Pork Ribs only weighs 1.58 lbs and are in small rib portions. How do I adjust the time so they are still tender, and don’t become dry and over cooked?
Thank you so much for your help.
Your Recipes sound amazing. I cannot wait to try them out.
Tracy says
Hi, Venita, depending on how small the pieces are, I would cook them for the full initial covered cooking time, and then coat with sauce, uncover, and keep a really close eye on them. If they’re finished cooking before the sauce is baked on, you can turn the broiler on for a couple of minutes (watching very closely) to help it along. Hope that helps!
Lorraine says
These were amazing. So good. So easy. Many thanks.
Tracy says
Thank you, Lorraine!
gator demon Sharon says
I was wondering what the quantity of “ribs” was: Lbs or Pcs. or does that even matter? Thanks; because I dont like to use outdoor grill.
Tracy says
Rib amount doesn’t matter too much unless you are doing a very small amount (they might take slightly less time) or so many that you need to use a second pan because you don’t want the ribs touching while they cook. Hope that helps!
Lorie McGill says
Found this recipe before 4th of July. Had a bunch of people over and thought I’d give it a shot- oh man I’m so glad I did! They were gone before some sides had even been touched!
Now I’m hosting my annual Halloween potluck and was requested to make these again by at least 6 people. The “ribs” come out perfect!!! You just need to pick whatever sauce you like best, that makes a big difference, don’t cheap out!
Thank you so much for posting this easy to follow recipe! Its my go-to and will be for the rest of my days!
Tracy says
Thanks, Lorie! So thrilled that these worked out for you!! And highly agree on choosing a good sauce. It makes such a difference.