Description
This Crockpot Ribs recipe delivers tender, juicy pork ribs cooked slowly with a flavorful brown sugar and spice rub, enhanced by sweet barbecue sauce and a touch of hickory liquid smoke. Perfectly set-it-and-forget-it, these ribs are ideal for a comforting meal with minimal effort, yielding fall-off-the-bone deliciousness.
Ingredients
Scale
Ribs and Sauce
- 1 rack back pork ribs
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce
- 2 tsp hickory liquid smoke (do not add more than this!)
- More Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce for serving
Rub Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp paprika
Instructions
- Remove Silver Skin: Carefully lift an edge of the silver skin from the back of the ribs in the middle section and tear it off in one piece. Removing this membrane ensures tenderness and better flavor absorption.
- Cut Ribs: Slice the rack of ribs into 4 equal sections to fit better into the slow cooker and allow even cooking.
- Prepare Rub: In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, onion powder, black pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Thoroughly rub this spice mix onto all surfaces of the ribs using your hands, coating evenly for best flavor.
- Set Up Slow Cooker: Place the rubbed ribs inside the slow cooker. Pour 1 cup of water and 2 teaspoons of hickory liquid smoke around the ribs. You can alternatively add the liquid smoke into the rub instead of the water if preferred. Then, pour ½ cup of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce evenly over the ribs.
- Cook Ribs: Cover and cook ribs on low for 7 to 8 hours, or on high for 4 hours, until tender and cooked through.
- Finish and Serve: Warm additional barbecue sauce and brush it over the ribs if desired before serving. Enjoy tender, flavorful ribs straight from the crockpot.
Notes
- Can this be doubled? Yes! Use two racks of ribs and double all ingredients except keep the liquid smoke at 2 teaspoons. Cooking time remains the same. Keep the lid on during cooking.
- Other Cuts: Any pork ribs work well in this recipe. Cooking time stays consistent regardless of rib type.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 rack (approximately 4 ribs)
- Calories: 450
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 700mg
- Fat: 28g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 18g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 35g
- Cholesterol: 110mg
