Pit Boss Ribs Recipe

5 from 27 votes

These Pit Boss ribs are smoked low and slow, wrapped with apple juice until tender, then finished hot with barbecue sauce for smoky, fall-off-the-bone pork ribs that aren't overly sweet.

Prep Time10

Cook Time4 15

Total Time4 25

Course: Dinner, Main Course, Main Dish, Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Author: kara

Equipment

Ingredients

2 racks St Louis style pork ribs (about 4.5lbs each)
3 cups apple juice
¼ cup avocado oil
1 cup dry rub
1 cup barbecue sauce

Instructions

Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs and trim away any large pieces of excess fat. Pat the ribs dry with a paper towel.
Coat both sides of the ribs with avocado oil. This is the binder for the seasoning, so be sure to coat the full surfaces of the ribs. Then season generously with the dry rub on both sides.
Cover the ribs and refrigerate while the smoker preheats.
Preheat the Pit Boss to 200°F.
Place the ribs directly on the grill grates, bone side down. Close the lid and smoke for 2 hours.
Remove the ribs from the smoker and increase the temperature to 250°F.
Place each rack on a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Bring the sides of the foil up around the ribs like a foil boat. Pour 1½ cups of apple juice alongside each rack, then seal the foil tightly.
Return the wrapped ribs to the smoker and cook at 250°F for 2 hours.
Increase the smoker temperature to 350°F and remove the ribs.
Carefully open the foil away from you and pour out the apple juice and cooking liquid. Leave the ribs sitting in the opened foil.
Brush the ribs with barbecue sauce.
Return the ribs to the smoker and cook for 15 minutes, until the outside has set and the sauce is sticky.
Remove the ribs from the smoker and let them rest for 10 minutes.
Slice between the bones and serve.

Video

Notes

St. Louis-style ribs are what this recipe was developed with. Baby back ribs or full spare ribs may need different cooking times.
Use a savory dry rub rather than one that is heavy on brown sugar. The apple juice and barbecue sauce already add sweetness.
Heavy-duty foil works best for the foil boats. If using regular foil, double it up to help prevent leaks.
Pour the apple juice alongside the ribs inside the foil boat rather than over the top so you don't wash off the seasoning.
Barbecue sauce is optional if you prefer dry ribs.
Rack size and smoker temperatures can vary. Toward the end, look for meat pulling back from the bones and very little resistance when you probe between them.

Nutrition