I have tried to make ribs many ways (in the oven, straight on the grill) but the most tender, moist and delicious ribs I have ever made were done in the slow cooker. So, it’s my new way of making them and they turn out amazing EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. They are messy and you need a million napkins on the table but I promise that this Slow Cooker Tender Pork Ribs recipe will soon become a family favorite.
And you can even start them at 1 pm and have super tender meat on the table by 5 pm. It’s great for an easy comfort meal that doesn’t take a ton of preparation time.
Ingredients:
1 full rack of baby back ribs (my family prefers pork so that is what I always buy)
1 bottle of your favorite barbeque sauce (we like Sweet Baby Ray’s)
kosher salt, brown sugar and red pepper flakes
Directions:
- Cut the full rack of ribs in half so that they fit in your slow cooker. Put about 1/2 inch of water in the bottom of the slow cooker and then place the two pieces of ribs on top.
- Sprinkle the top of your meat with kosher salt, brown sugar and red pepper flakes (to taste)
- Cook the ribs on high for 4 hours.
- Line a sheet pan with foil, then remove the ribs and lay them out on the sheet pan.
- Brush your ribs generously with your family’s favorite barbeque sauce.
- Broil the ribs until the sauce is caramelized and gooey and delicious!
- Serve the ribs with more sauce and wait for the praise to come rolling in 😉 (it will!)
We like to serve our ribs with smashed red potatoes and roasted brussels sprouts with bacon (which are one of my favorite side dishes) in the winter or a green salad and some corn on the cob in the summer. A year round meal that no one ever complains about!