321 ribs

Many competitive barbecue teams use the tried-and-true 3-2-1 method when cooking St. Louis Style Ribs. This recipe and video will show you how easy it is.

Competition St. Louis Style Ribs (3-2-1 Method)

slabs St. Louis Style Ribs

yellow mustard

rib rub

butter

brown sugar

honey

grape juice

sauce

Flip the ribs, so that the bones are facing up. Using a paper towel, pull off the membrane and discard.

Trim off the bones on each end. They're too small to be used as turn-in ribs. Trim off the flap of meat on the backside. Trim and remove any excess fat.

Rub the backside with mustard and rib rub. Let rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. Flip and rub the topside with mustard and rib rub. Let rest in the fridge while you heat your grill to 225F degrees.

Place the ribs on the grill meat side up. Smoke with the lid closed for 3 hours.

Place two sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil on the counter. Top with 4-5 pats of butter, 1-2 tablespoons brown sugar, a liberal drizzle of honey and 1/4 cup juice. Place the ribs on the butter, meat side down. To the bone side of the ribs, add 4-5 more pats butter, 1-2 more tablespoons brown sugar and another drizzle of honey. Wrap tightly, crimping up the ends.

Place back on the smoker for 2 hours.

Remove from the smoker, and unwrap from the foil. Flip the ribs over. Brush with sauce. Return to the smoker for one more hour.

Remove from the smoker. Let rest a few minutes and slice. For competitions, select your 6 best bones for the judges.

If you’ve ever gone to a BBQ competition and had the Pitmasters ribs, you will quickly notice something. The ribs are individually cut and the meat actually stays on the bone, until you bite it off with your teeth.  Follow this recipe, and serve competition worthy ribs right at home!

Smoked Pork Ribs - BETTER THAN 321 !!!

Racks Baby Back Pork Ribs

TBSP Melted Honey (Real honey

TBSP Butter

TBSP Rib Rub (Try our homemade dry rub rub.)

Trim

Rinse the ribs in cold water and pad dry. Trim any excess fat or connective tissue. Only leave what you want to eat. 

Membrane Removal

On the bone side of the ribs, remove the membrane. A quick trick is using a piece of paper towel to help grip the membrane. Once you get a good grip of the membrane, simply pull until it is completely removed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7Iq_Douzqc

Demonstration of removing membrane from back of pork ribs.

Removing rib membrane edited

Once the ribs are prepped, I apply my favorite rub generously. Make sure to cover all the sides and edges of the ribs.Cover the ribs and keep in the fridge for 2 hours or more. 

Preheat Smoker

Remove the ribs from the fridge and allow to warm slightly on the counter. Fire up the smoker to 225F. I use Pecan or Cherry, when smoking ribs. 

Cook

Once the smoker is at proper temp, place the ribs on the grill meat side up.

Spritzing

Now you can pretty much wait for the three hours to pass or some fanatics prefer to spritz their ribs every 30-45 minutes with a 50/50 mixture of apple cider vinegar and water. Adding moisture to the ribs aids in a smoky bark. After three hours, remove the ribs and place each rack meat side up on a large piece of Heavy Duty tin foil. 

Baste and Wrap

Brush melted butter over the tops of the ribs then followed by brushing the melted honey. You can spritz the ribs for extra moisture at this time. Flip the racks around so the bone side is facing up. Brush with melted butter and melted honey. 

Leave the racks bone side up and wrap the ribs tightly. Place back on the smoker bone side up for 45-60 minutes. Keep the temp at 225F. Optional: If you want the ribs more tender or closer to fall of the bone, cook in the foil for 1.5-2 hours.

Sauce

Remove the ribs from the foil and place back on the grill. Brush the ribs with your favorite bbq sauce. Cook for approximately 30-45 more minutes at 225F.

Finish

Check for doneness by using your grill tongs and pickup up the ribs and give them a slight bounce. If the meat starts to slightly split, the ribs are done.Remove from the smoker and cover in foil. Let rest for 10 minutes. 

Cut and Serve

Be a professional and take a sharp knife (I use a Henkel Serrated Bread Knife) and cut each rib individually. You’ll notice how the ribs don’t fall apart as you cut. Also look for that beautiful pink smoke ring. 

Learn step by step how to prepare perfectly smoked 3-2-1 ribs on a Pit Boss pellet grill!We cover how to prep, season, cook, and sauce your ribs using the 3 2 1 Method and why the Pit Boss pellet grill makes it so easy to cook these ribs.Whether you’ve got baby back ribs, St. Louis Cut, or a full untrimmed rack of pork spare ribs, we’ve got you covered to modify this tried and true 3 2 1 technique as needed.

Pit Boss Smoked 3 2 1 Ribs

Racks of Ribs (Baby Back or St. Louis Style)

Tbsp Yellow Mustard

Your Favorite BBQ Sauce

Dark Brown Sugar

Paprika

Tbsp Course Ground Black Pepper

Salt

Tbsp Chili Powder

Tbsp Granulated Garlic

Tbsp Onion Powder

Tsp Cayenne Powder (optional for heat)

Apple Juice

Apple Cider Vinegar

Cup Dark Brown Sugar

drizzles drizzles Honey

drizzles Parkay Squeeze butter

drizzles Tiger Sauce

Remove the membrane from the back each rack of ribs using a knife to get it started in one corner, then grabbing on with a paper towel and pulling towards the opposite corner.

Apply a thin layer of yellow mustard to the front and backs of each rack of ribs and rub to coat entirely.

Use your favorite BBQ rub or mix the Rib Rub ingredients listed above together in a bowl or shaker.

Apply a generous amount of rub to the fronts and backs of each slab of ribs. Its ok to leave some rub leftover to apply more throughout the cook if needed.

Let the rub set on the ribs at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes before putting them on the Pit Boss.

While the rub is setting, mix the apple juice and apple cider vinegar together in a spray bottle.

Prepare the Ribs and Spritz

Remove the fire pot from the bottom of the Pit Boss and clean out any ashes left over from the last cook. Replace it and make sure it is secured in place with the clips on either side. Also, wrap the drip tray in aluminum foil to limit cleanup needed later.

Add your chosen pellets to the hopper, start the Pit Boss pellet grill and put it on the &quot;Smoke&quot; setting.

If there are no pellets in the auger, hold the &quot;Prime&quot; button until you hear pellets begin falling in the fire pot. This will speed up the auger to prime it full of pellets before you start preheating.

Once the Pit Boss begins to produce thick white smoke, let it run for about 5-7 minutes until the smoke turns more of a clearish blue color. This means the fire rod has fully heated up to burn the pellets more cleanly.

Next, set the temperature to preheat the Pit Boss pellet grill to 350°F. We will drop this temperature before we start cooking.

Fill an aluminum pan with water pan if you want to add extra moisture, and place it on the far left side of the Pit Boss pellet grill. Place a disposable bucket liner in the grease bucket as well if you want to limit cleanup later.

Once the Pit Boss has come up to 350°F, drop the temperature on the control panel to 250° and clean the grill grates with a good grill brush and close the lid.

Start the Pit Boss Pellet Grill

Once the Pit Boss is making smoke and down to 250°F, place the ribs on the grill with the thickest sides to the right (the hotter end of the grill). Use a Rib Rack if preparing more than 4 racks of baby back ribs at once.

Close the lid and let the ribs cook for about 90 minutes. You can spritz gently as necessary to keep the meat moist if it begins to look dry.

After 90 minutes rotate the ribs if one side appears darker than the other and begin checking them about every 15-20 minutes.

While they are smoking, you can prepare your foil and wrapping ingedients.

Stage 1 - Smoke the Ribs

Lay out 2 long pieces of heavy duty aluminum foil on top of each other on the counter, long enough to double wrap the rack of ribs front and back with the two pieces. Repeat with the other rack.

Spread ½ cup of brown sugar on each set of aluminum foil, then drizzle some honey, parkay squeeze butter, and Tiger Sauce on each. (this is optional)

Once the ribs are a nice dark amber color and especially if you begin to see any very dark burning on the bones or ends, usually around the 2.5 hour mark, remove them from the grill using tongs or heat resistant gloves.

Place the ribs face down into each pile of aluminum foil and add more of the ingredients to the back (top) of the ribs if you wish.

If you would rather not use the wrapping ingredients listed above, place the ribs in the foil face up and add a small amount of apple juice, soda, or beer to the aluminum foil to add some moisture.

Wrap the ribs tightly in the double layer of aluminum foil and place back on the Pit Boss and continue to cook at 250°F.

Stage 2 - Wrap the Ribs

Begin checking the ribs after about 45-60 minutes and every 15 minutes after that. Once you see the meat pulling away from the ends of bones and tenderizing, you can take them out of the foil. This may only take 1 to 1.5 hours for baby backs rather than 2 for St. Louis Cut and untrimmed spare ribs.

Carefully remove the ribs from the foil and save the juices in the foil to add to your sauce later. Place the ribs back on the Pit Boss, face up, and cook for about 30 more minutes at 250°F before saucing.

While the ribs are cooking, prepare your sauce by mixing you favorite sauce(s) together with some of the juices retained from the foil. Mix in a cup or bowl and set aside.

After the ribs have been back on the Pit Boss unwrapped for about 30 minutes and firmed back up a little, gently brush the sauce on with a basting brush.

Close the lid and continue cooking for another 30 minutes to let the sauce thicken and set on the meat.

Stage 3- Firm and Sauce the Ribs

Remove the ribs from the Pit Boss and let them rest for about 15 minutes.

Turn the ribs upright on their edge so that you can more easily see the ribs running along the bottom up and own.

Using a good meat slicing knife cut from top to bottom between the bones in the center of the racks to serve a half rack to each person. Or you can cut them into 2-3 rib portions of serving on a platter to a larger crowd.

Include some sauce on the side for guests to add extra if they desire and enjoy!

Slicing and Serving the Pit Boss 3 2 1 Ribs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvm1U-TfQX8

The absolute best Smoked Ribs on my Pit Boss Austin XL. I bought a pack of spare ribs and trimmed them up to a St. Louis style rib. I seasoned these ribs with a SPG and Killer Hogs BBQ Rub. These Ribs are to die for and will impress even the most snobbiest BBQ eaters! ENJOY!

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The BEST Smoked Ribs | How To Smoke Ribs | Pit Boss Austin XL

Learn step by step how to smoke perfect baby back ribs on a PIt Boss pellet grill using one of our favorite homemade rubs. We cover how to prep, season, cook, and sauce your baby backs using the 3 2 1 Method used widely in BBQ competitions

Pit Boss Baby Back Ribs

Racks Baby Back Ribs

Your Favorite BBQ Sauce (such as Blues Hog)

½ Tsp Cayenne Powder (optional for heat)

drizzles Honey

drizzles Tiger Sauce (optional

Membrane

Remove the membrane from the back each rack of baby back ribs using a knife to get it started in one corner, then grabbing on with a paper towel and pulling towards the opposite corner.

Mustard

Use your favorite BBQ rub or mix the rub ingredients listed above together in a bowl or shaker.

Apply

Apply a generous amount of rub to the fronts and backs of each slab of baby back ribs. Its ok to leave some rub leftover to apply more throughout the cook if needed.

Let the rub set on the ribs at room temperature for about 20-30 minutes.  This is a good time to start up your Pit Boss (see next section)

Spray

While the rub is setting and the Pit Boss is preheating, you can also mix the apple juice and apple cider vinegar together in a spray bottle for spritzing later.

Ash Pot

Remove the fire pot from the bottom of the Pit Boss and clean out any ashes left over from the last cook. Replace it and make sure it is secured in place with the clips on either side. Also, wrap the drip tray in aluminum foil to limit the cleanup needed later.

Pellets

Prime

White

Once the Pit boss begins to produce thick white smoke, let it run for about 5-7 minutes until the smoke turns more of a clearish blue color. This means the fire rod has fully heated up to burn the pellets more cleanly.

Preheat

Water

Fill an aluminum pan with water if you want to add extra moisture, and place it on the far left side of the Pit Boss pellet grill. Place a disposable bucket liner in the grease bucket as well if you want to limit cleanup later.

Temperature

Place

Once the Pit Boss temperature has dropped to 250°F, place the baby back ribs on the grill with the thickest sides to the right (the hotter end of the grill). Use a rib rack if preparing more than 4 racks of baby back ribs at once.

Smoke

Rotate

Prep

3 - Smoke the Ribs

Pieces

Sugar

Remove

Down

Place the baby back ribs face down into each pile of aluminum foil and ingredients.

Wrap

2 - Wrap the Ribs

Check

Begin checking the wrapped ribs after about 45-60 minutes and every 15 minutes after that. Once you see the meat pulling away from the ends of bones and tenderizing, you can take them out of the foil. This may only take 1 to 1.5 hours rather than 2.

Juices

Baste

After the baby backs have been back on the Pit Boss unwrapped for about 30 minutes and firmed back up a little, gently brush the sauce on with a basting brush.

1 - Firm and Sauce the Ribs

Rest

Upright

Slice

Using a good meat slicing knife cut from top to bottom between the bones in the center of the racks to serve a half rack to each person. Or you can cut them into 2-3 rib portions of serving ona. platter to a larger crowd.

Serve

Include some warmed up sauce on the side for guests to add extra if they desire and enjoy!

Carving and Serving

Smoke fall-off-the-bone baby back ribs on the Ninja Woodfire Grill in less than two hours. You won&#39;t believe the bark.

Baby Back Ribs on a Ninja Woodfire Grill

baby back ribs

tbsp yellow mustard

barbecue rub

barbecue sauce

season

Season: Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs. Rub all over with yellow mustard. Add barbecue rub on all sides. Slice the rack in half. Let rest while you heat the grill.

heat grill

Heat Grill: Add a cup of pellets to the Ninja Woodfire Grill smoke box. Set the function to smoker, the temperature to 300F degrees and the time to 2 hours. Press start.

smoke

Smoke: Once the grill is ready, add the two halves of ribs to the grill and close the lid. Smoke for 90 minutes.

Sauce: If you like saucy ribs, brush sauce on top and continue smoking for 15 more minutes.

slice

Slice: Remove from the grill. Place on a cutting board so the bones are facing up and slice between each bone. Serve with more sauce.

Enjoy the most tender, finger-licking smoked pellet grill ribs using the easy 3-2-1 method! Featuring a perfectly balanced sweet, spicy and smoky dry rub, these fool-proof St. Louis-style pork spare ribs will be the star of your next summer barbecue party, and everyone will rave. These smoked ribs are a guaranteed hit.

Smoked Pellet Grill Ribs (3-2-1 Method)

dark brown sugar

chili powder

salt

black pepper

garlic powder

mustard powder

onion powder

smoked paprika

allspice

cayenne pepper

racks of St. Louis-style ribs

apple cider

Favorite BBQ sauce

In a small bowl, stir together the dark brown sugar, chili powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, mustard powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, allspice and cayenne pepper. Set aside.

Remove the ribs from the package and blot dry with paper towels. Flip the ribs so that the bone side faces up. Locate the thin membrane. To remove it, insert a sharp knife underneath the membrane and lift the knife up to separate the membrane from the meat. Grip the membrane with your fingers and continue to pull the membrane down the length of the ribs. If any membrane is left, we repeat the process until you remove it all.

With the bone side still facing up, rub the rack of ribs all over with the spice mixture and then flip the ribs and rub the mixture all over the meaty side as well as the sides. If possible, let the meat sit in the refrigerator with the rub for at least four hours or up to a day, though you can also smoke right away.

Prepare the smoker with a water pan and heat to 225 degrees. Grease the grill grates and add the racks of ribs meat-side up right on the grates. Close the smoker and smoke for three hours. If desired, pour the extra apple cider into a spray bottle and spritz the ribs every hour, though this is optional.

After three hours, lay several pieces of heavy-duty aluminum foil on top of each other, fold the edges up to create almost a makeshift pan and add 1 cup apple cider and 2 tablespoons cubed butter in the center. Place the rib rack meat-side down in the foil and completely seal the foil. (Please refer to process images in the post if that&#39;s helpful). Repeat with the second rack and remaining 1 cup apple cider and 2 tablespoons cubed butter. Place sealed ribs back on the smoker and smoke the ribs in this braising liquid for two hours.

Remove the ribs from the foil, brush the meat with BBQ sauce and place on the grates again meat-side up. Smoke for another hour (see notes).

Remove the ribs from the smoker, place on a cutting board and leave undisturbed for 10 minutes to allow the juices to settle. Cut the ribs into individual pieces. Serve with additional BBQ sauce if desired. Enjoy!

https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/video/upload/t_original/v1673535216/ifzWi779D.mp4

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Top Tags

Competition St. Louis Style Ribs (3...

Smoked Pork Ribs - BETTER THAN 321 ...

Pit Boss Smoked 3 2 1 Ribs

Pit Boss Baby Back Ribs

Baby Back Ribs on a Ninja Woodfire ...

Smoked Pellet Grill Ribs (3-2-1 Met...

The most viewed 321 ribs recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine