Traditional Country Style Ribs

Why This Traditional Country Style Ribs Works

In the oven, the low heat has time to slowly break down the tough parts of the country style ribs. The fat inside the meat starts to melt and soak through the ribs instead of running out into the pan. Because the pan is covered with foil for most of the cooking, the steam stays around the ribs and keeps them moist while they soften.

As the ribs sit in the sauce for a long time, the apple cider vinegar and Worcestershire sauce gently work on the meat and loosen it up. Brown sugar and barbecue sauce thicken as they bake, so the sauce goes from thin and runny to sticky and clingy. During the last uncovered stretch in the oven, the top of the ribs dries just a little and the sugars in the sauce darken and tighten. By the time they are done, the ribs are tender enough to pull apart, but still juicy, with a thick, glossy coating that sticks to the meat.

Mistakes To Avoid

Letting the ribs cook at a higher temperature to “speed things up” often makes them tough and dry. The outside dries and tightens before the connective tissue has time to soften, so the meat clings hard to the bone instead of turning tender and pull-apart soft.

Skipping the foil cover for the first long bake leaves the sauce exposed the whole time. The liquid evaporates too fast, the sugar in the sauce can start to burn on the edges, and the ribs end up chewy with a sticky, almost hard coating instead of a moist glaze.

Crowding the ribs in a deep pile in the baking dish causes uneven cooking. The pieces buried in the middle sit in a pool of liquid and stay a bit rubbery, while the ones on top dry out because they get more direct heat and less sauce contact.

Pouring the sauce on without mixing it well can leave clumps of sugar and spice. Those pockets burn in the oven and create bitter, scorched spots on the ribs while other areas stay pale and under-seasoned.