Nana’s Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs and “Barb”-ecue Sauce

This slow-roasted then grilled recipe for fall-off-the-bone pork ribs is famous in my husband Eric’s family. His grandma, “Nana,” has been making these ribs every 4th of July for decades. Her “Barb”-ecue sauce recipe (her name is Barbara) is absolutely incredible! 

I just got back from an awesome girl’s weekend with my sisters and my mom. It was super fun, but first I have to tell you about Eric, slaving away at home with the kids. He was working in the yard, shaping our bushes with a hedge trimmer, and I get this text: “I cut another power cord.”

That’s right, this is the SECOND time he’s accidentally cut his own cord while doing yard work. I pretty much laughed until I cried.

Destroying power equipment aside, Eric’s pretty great at being a single dad while I’m off galavanting. Here he is with the kids. Aren’t they adorable??

Us girls had an awesome weekend too. Here’s part of our list of things to do:

movie marathon
cooking class
No planning
small hikes every morning or evening
give each other pedicures
go to bed on time
arts and crafts

We did all of them, except for the “go to bed on time” part. Which is a real shame, because I think we were all looking forward to that part. But we’re just too darn entertaining. We kept each other up late every night, either chatting or watching Mr. Darcy fall in love with Elizabeth Bennett. I can’t say I have any regrets. Just baggy eyes.

We had a great time at the cooking class, even if it was a little disappointing (not very hands-on). The class was Fried Chicken 101, and basically all I learned is that even trained chefs can’t make fried chicken properly. We had to put almost all of it in the oven to finish cooking the center. It was still super delicious.

Let me tell you what else is delicious: these famous ribs (and they’re not even deep fried.) Instead they are rubbed down, slow cooked at a low temperature for 3 hours in the oven, slathered in a killer homemade sauce, and grilled to flavorful perfection. This recipe is from Eric’s grandmother Nana. Her name is Barbara, and the recipe card that she gave me years ago is titled ‘Ribs with “Barb”-ecue Sauce.’ How cute is that?

Nana makes a HUGE batch of these ribs every year on the 4th of July. We continue the tradition even when we’re not in Montana to celebrate with them. This year we were at my parents house, and I introduced them to the glorious thing that is Nana’s Ribs, to much moaning of approval. It’s just really hard to not like ribs. Especially when they are slow roasted, slathered, and grilled to perfection. This would be a great recipe to make for Labor Day this weekend!

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Nana’s Fall-Off-The-Bone Ribs and “Barb”-ecue Sauce

4.84 from 6 votes

Prep: 30 minutes mins

Cook: 3 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Standing Time: 30 minutes mins

Total: 4 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Servings: 8 Servings

This slow-roasted then grilled recipe for fall-off-the-bone pork ribs is famous in my husband Eric's family. His grandma, "Nana," has been making these ribs every 4th of July for decades. Her "Barb"-ecue sauce recipe (her name is Barbara) is absolutely incredible! 

 

Ingredients

For the ribs:

• ▢ heavy foil
• ▢ 7 pounds racks of ribs
• ▢ Applewood rub, or your favorite dry rub

For the sauce:

• ▢ 2 cups ketchup
• ▢ 2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
• ▢ 2 teaspoons chili powder
• ▢ 2 teaspoons salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoons celery seed
• ▢ 2 cups water
• ▢ 1/4 cup brown sugar
• ▢ 4-8 drops Tabasco sauce

Instructions

• Lay out a generous amount of heavy foil on a large rimmed baking sheet. Lay one rack of ribs on the foil and rub generously with Applewood rub. You can be generous. I used 2-3 tablespoons per rack, but it is really up to you.
• Wrap the foil around the ribs so that it is completely covered.
• Repeat with the other rack of ribs.
• Let the ribs sit for 30 minutes. Or overnight. Or no time at all, if you're in a hurry.
• Preheat your oven to 250 degrees F.
• Put the ribs in the oven and roast for about 3 hours. Take the ribs out when they are fork-tender.

For the sauce: Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a 3 quart pot. Stir together over medium high heat until the mixture comes to a boil.

• Lower heat to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes, until thickened slightly. Remove from heat and allow the sauce to cool. It will thicken more as it cools down.
• When the ribs are done, take them out of the oven and unwrap the foil. Cut the ribs into 1, 2, or 3 piece sections, whatever you like.
• Heat your grill to medium high, about 450 degrees F.
• Generously brush the ribs with the barbecue sauce. Or pull an Eric and dunk them in the sauce completely. (The ribs are cooked. Stop looking at me like I'm a heathen.)
• Grill the ribs for about 2-3 minutes per side, until there are grill marks.
• Remove from the grill and cover with foil until ready to serve.
• Serve ribs with the remaining sauce. Eat with your hands!

Notes

*You can use any kind of ribs that you like. Spare ribs or Baby Back are good. Spare ribs are what I used for these photos. They are a lot meatier than Baby Back, so they will serve more people.

A note on the sauce: I like to have this much sauce for 2 racks, but this is a generous amount. If you are doubling the recipe, you may only need to 1 and 1/2 the sauce recipe.

I made this once without grilling before we bought a grill. After removing the ribs from the oven and brushing with sauce, raise the temperature to 300 degrees F. Return it to the oven uncovered for 20 minutes. Brush with sauce again, cook another 20 minutes, or until fork tender.

Source: This recipe is from Eric's grandmother, Barbara Johnson, or Nana. She's also the contributor of this classic Beef Barley Soup.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.5rack | Calories: 883kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 44g | Fat: 65g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Monounsaturated Fat: 24g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 222mg | Sodium: 1602mg | Potassium: 1068mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 475IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 4mg

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Calories: 883

Keyword: barbeque, Ribs, sauce

Did you make this? I'd love to see it!Mention @thefoodcharlatan or tag #thefoodcharlatan!

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