Oven-Barbecued Pork Spareribs Recipe

Oven barbecued pork spareribs

The Spruce

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 2 hrs 30 mins
Total: 2 hrs 50 mins
Servings: 4 to 6 servings

You don't have to have a smoker or a grill to make these tender, flavorful spareribs. The oven bakes them slowly to tender, succulent perfection. The ribs are brushed with an easy homemade spicy barbecue sauce the last 45 minutes of baking time.

Although cooked indoors, these ribs are perfect for a summer barbecue as you can make them ahead of time—and leave plenty of room on your grill for the rest of your cookout fare. Serve these flavorful juicy ribs with mashed potatoes for a weeknight meal or a potato salad for a casual dinner on the deck.

"Tender and juicy, fall off the bone ribs." —Renae Wilson

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Ingredients

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients. Preheat the oven to 325 F.

    Ingredients for oven barbecued spareribs
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  2. In a small saucepan, heat the butter with the vinegar, water, brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, and black and cayenne peppers. Cook, stirring until butter has melted.

    Heat vinegar
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  3. Remove from the heat, let cool a bit, and then cover the sauce and refrigerate until it's time to baste the ribs.

    Remove from heat
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  4. Remove the silver skin from the back of the ribs. Use a kitchen towel or paper towel to grasp the edge of the skin and then pull. It should pull off in one piece.

    Remove silver skin
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  5. Cut the pork ribs into serving size pieces of one, two, or three ribs each. Place the spareribs on a rack in a roasting pan, meaty-side up.

    Cut ribs and put on pan
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  6. Roast uncovered for about 1 1/2 hours.

    Roast uncovered
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  7. Brush with the sauce and continue roasting for about 45 minutes to 1 hour, turning and brushing with the sauce several times, until ribs are cooked through.

    Brush with sauce
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  8. Serve with your favorite sides and enjoy!

Tips

  • If you prefer your ribs to have a grilled flavor, bake them until they're nearly done and then grill them for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until charred.
  • Or, for really saucy ribs, place the ribs in a roasting pan and cover with the sauce mixture. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. Cover the pan and then roast for 1 1/2 hours. Uncover and continue roasting for 45 minutes to 1 hour, occasionally basting with the liquids in the pan.

Recipe Variations

  • If you like a more traditional tomato-based barbecue sauce, glaze them with a store-bought or a spicy barbecue sauce about 15 minutes before they're done. By changing the type of barbecue sauce—from smokey to sweet—you will completely change the taste of these ribs.
  • If you prefer beef ribs over pork ribs, make sure to use beef back ribs and not short ribs; beef back ribs cook similarly to pork ribs whereas short ribs will dry out with this cooking method. 
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
1454 Calories
126g Fat
1g Carbs
79g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 6
Amount per serving
Calories 1454
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 126g 162%
Saturated Fat 41g 205%
Cholesterol 422mg 141%
Sodium 421mg 18%
Total Carbohydrate 1g 0%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 1g
Protein 79g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 77mg 6%
Iron 5mg 30%
Potassium 1016mg 22%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)