Smoked Country Style Ribs Recipe

Meaty country-style ribs come out of the smoker with a rich coating of sauce and a flavorful seasoning that will make your taste buds perk up instantly. This easy smoked country style ribs recipe is a household favorite that I’d like to share with you.

A good friend of mine introduced me to this recipe many years ago. I’ve always been a fan of St. Louis style ribs with plenty of meat on the bone. However, one Saturday we were visiting this good friend. 

He’s outside tending to the smoker, but won’t tell me what’s inside. Low and beyond, an hour or so after we got there, we sat down to a feast of smoked country style ribs. The smell was divine. The taste heavenly. The mere thought of these ribs makes my mouth water. 

Of course, I had to ask him for the recipe. It took me a few weeks of cajoling, in person and over the phone, before he decided to give in. I dragged out the smoker the next weekend to give it a try myself. It took me a couple of tries to get it right because I chose the wrong ribs for the recipe. 

I thought St. Louis style ribs would be a good substitute. They do well in the smoker and offer a traditional rib cut that is appealing. The results of my experiment was okay, but nothing particularly special. The key was the country style ribs. 

Once I got over my need to change the recipe, it’s become a family favorite. 

What Makes A Good Country Style Ribs Recipe 

Most country style ribs sold in grocery stores these days are actually boneless strips of loin muscle with a line of intercostal meat. That’s why most have a distinct fat line between the two types of meat. You can find a country style rib, with the bone intact, that comes from the upper shoulder end of the loin.

A country style rib is naturally meatier than other types of ribs. It also has a generous amount of fat that you need to breakdown through cooking for maximum flavor. For this reason, cooking them low and slow is ideal. 

The smoker, of course, is a natural choice. However, they also work in the slow cooker or braised in a low-temperature oven. 

The meat actually tastes quite good with just salt and pepper. However, with their wonderfully meaty flavor, these ribs can easily take quite a bit of seasoning. A rich BBQ rub followed by a thick sauce does wonders for it.

How To Make The Best Smoked Country Style Ribs

Like most of my smoked recipes, I like to start off with my three basic spices as a base which is salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. I spread a good amount on all sides of each rib.

After the base spices, I coat a good amount of BBQ rub. For the rub, you can either make your own or use a premade BBQ rub you can purchase at the store. I used Weber’s dry smoking rub for this recipe but you can use any rub you like. 

For some, they like to smoke this meat dry with no sauce. For this recipe, I coated the meat with my favorite BBQ sauce and added brown sugar for sweetness. I used Dinosaur BBQ sauce for this recipe but you can use any BBQ sauce that soothes your taste.