This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Also known as brisket on a stick, these Smoked Beef Ribs are tender, juicy and full of amazing beef flavors. Smoked on the offset, this 6 hour cook was worth the wait. It’s low and slow bbq at its finest. Simple seasoning is all you need to enjoy a great tasting meal that is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
Don’t miss my Smoked Beef Short Ribs and Grilled Beef Ribs for more beef rib ideas.
Table of Contents
What are beef ribs and where to find them?
The mighty beef ribs. Also known as dino bones or brisket on a stick, they are one of my favorite cuts of beef. Cut from the rib section (surprise!) they are packed full of beefy flavor AND insane marbling. Because of all that intramuscular fat, they are ideal for low and slow bbq. They need to be cooked for a long time to get them tender and delicious.
Grocery stores will slice ribs into thin strips and sell them as short ribs. That is not what you want. You want the full rack! Call your local butcher shops and ask if they have them in stock or if they can order them. You can also ask at the meat counter of your local grocery store. I bought my ribs from Wild Fork which is a great specialty meat store near me.
Step 1: Prepare and season the ribs.
The rack will have a meaty side and bone side, similar to pork ribs, with 3 bones in total. Start by removing ALL the fat from the meaty side to expose the meat. This not only removes excess fat that’s not needed, but it also exposes the meat where the bark will form during the smoking process. For those new to BBQ, bark is the outside crust that’s formed when cooking with smoke. It provides flavor AND texture. Check out my Easy Smoked Brisket recipe for more tasty low and slow BBQ.
On the bone side, there is a thick membrane which also needs to be removed. You can leave it on or pull it off. I honestly don’t thin it matters as much as with pork ribs, since there is very little to no meat on that side. I like to leave it on so the ribs are less likely to fall apart when cooking.
Keep the seasoning simple with a 50/50 mix of kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. This mix will make the beefy flavor shine through, as well as help with the tasty bark that we want on the outside. Before any of our rub hits the meet, however, I like to use a binder to help it stick to the meat. I used yellow mustard. Don’t worry, you will not taste it once cooked. After coating them with mustard, apply an even but generous coating of the salt/pepper mix all over the ribs. Don’t be shy with the seasoning! The ribs can take it. Next, let them sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes. This will allow the seasoning to stick better to our ribs.
Dad’s Seasonings
Must have grillin seasonings!
Step 2: Time to smoke beef ribs.
These particular ribs were smoked on my Jess Pryles Signature Pitts and Spitts offset smoker. But worry not, you can use any type of smoker to cook these. Fire it up and bring the temperature up to between 250-275 degrees and set for indirect heat. That will be our cooking temperature range for the duration of the cook. Yes, you can make them in the oven as well, but they won’t have that delicious bark or the smokey flavor.
Place the ribs on the smoker meat side up. Cooking low and slow has one big downside….the slow part. Good bbq takes time and this will be no different. For an average 3 bone rack of smoked beef ribs, you’re looking at a cook time of anywhere between 6-8 hours. All you have to have to do during this time is just make sure the smoker temperature stays in the 250-275 range. We won’t be wrapping the ribs, we’ll cook them straight through until finished. Since beef ribs very fatty and have the most insane marbling, there really is no need to wrap them.
I like to check on them every hour or so and if they are looking dry on the outside, spritz them with apple cider vinegar. Keeping the outside moist will also help with bark formation.
The ideal finished temperature for beef ribs is anywhere between 205-210 degrees. Once they hit 205, you can start checking for tenderness. What’s that mean? It means that when you take your temperature probe and insert it into the meat, it should go in without any resistance. Check a few different spots and make sure they are very tender. This is the most important part of the cook. Use the internal temperature as a guide but don’t pull them off the smoker until they are probe tender. Pull them off too soon and they will be tough and chewy.
Pull the smoked beef ribs from the smoker, wrap them in pink butcher paper and let them rest in a room temperature cooler for about an hour. The wrap will help keep the meat warm while still allowing it to breath so that beautiful bark on the outside won’t soften up on us. And the meat needs the time to rest to stop the cooking process and to allow all the juices inside to redistribute.
After the rest, take the ribs out of the cooler, slice between the bones and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions:
Absolutely! Follow the same temperature and time guidelines and you will have a delicious rack of beef ribs.
I like to cook my beef ribs like a brisket. Low and slow and no sauce. The 3-2-1 method is ideal for pork ribs but no so much beef ribs. They need a longer cook to get tender and delicious.
Other Low and Slow Recipe Ideas:
If you tried this Sweet and Tangy BBQ Sauce or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the📝 comments. I love hearing from you!
Smoked Beef Ribs
Ingredients
- 1 rack Beef plate ribs
- 1/4 cup Kosher Salt
- 1/4 cup Pepper
- 2 tbsp Yellow mustard
Instructions
- Trim the fat from the meat side of the ribs.
- Coat the ribs with yellow mustard. this will act as a binder and will help the seasoning stick.
- In a small bowl, mix the salt and pepper. Make sure it's well combined.
- Season both sides with a 50/50 mix of salt and pepper. Apply an even amount all over the beef. Allow to sit at room temperature for about an hour.
- Set the smoker for 250-275 degrees, indirect heat, and place the beef ribs directly on the rack.
- Spritz the outside with apple cider vinegar if it's looking dry. This helps the meat stay moist and helps with bark formation.
- Start checking for tenderness when the ribs hit an internal temperature of 204 -205 degrees. Remove them from the smoker when our thermometer goes in without any resistance. Like a hot knife through butter.
- Wrap the ribs tightly in pink butcher paper and rest them for at least an hour in a room temperature cooler.
- Remove from the wrap, slice between the bones, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- If you can’t find a full rack of beef ribs, ask the butcher at the meat counter. Sometimes grocery stores have them in the back for cutting into smaller pieces.
- Use the temperature as a guide but don’t pull the ribs from the smoker until they are probe tender.
Nutrition
Check out the Recipes Page for other tasty ideas!
Dino ribs or brisket on a stick! Give it a try!
They were so delicious
Solid recipe. I crutcheed it, when it reached 165, with foil and put it meat side down for the rest of the smoke and turned heat down to 235. Retained more moisture. Used a prime rib rub from costco. super happy with results. thank you for the recipe.
I normally wrap meat side down with brown sugar and butter for the 4th and 5th hours and then flip the rack tearing the paper open at the top so the meat is exposed again..
I’ll try your method today(:
Thank you! Looks so beautiful!