Name: How Long to Smoke St Louis Style Ribs?
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 300 min
Ingredients: 2 racks of St. Louis-style ribs; 1 cup of barbecue sauce (either your preferred brand or homemade BBQ sauce); 2 tablespoons of olive oil; 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika or smoked paprika; 1 tablespoon of cumin; 2 tablespoons of kosher salt; 2 teaspoons of black pepper; 1 tablespoon of garlic powder; 1 tablespoon of onion powder; 1 teaspoon of brown sugar

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There’s nothing better than a delectable rack of smoked St. Louis style spare ribs that are cooked slow and low for the perfect BBQ flavor.

And what’s more important is knowing how long to smoke St. Louis style ribs, which is the question that will be answered in this guide.

I believe that BBQ requires two things: smoke and time. However, there are several ways to prepare them, and it is safe to say that everyone has their own way of doing it.

Keep in mind that smoking any food is certainly an art form that requires some practice, especially if you’ve never smoked one before.

As several well-known BBQ chefs say, it takes a whole lot of making bad BBQ to finally make good BBQ.

When it comes to smoking ribs, the most important thing to know is that you will need a smoker or grill that you can smoke out of.

You can definitely use a standard charcoal grill to smoke food on, and if you like to grill and smoke, then you can go ahead and take a look at pellet grills such as Traeger or even a stone-style grill like the Big Green Egg.

What Are St. Louis Ribs?

If you are not aware, St. Louis ribs are the most common ribs that are used in competition BBQ, given that they produce a nice, beefy bite that doesn’t just fall off the bone.

St. Louis ribs are spareribs that come with the top cartilage, sternum bone, and rib tips, which have all been cut away and, in turn, make this rack more rectangular.

These ribs are more flat and straight and have 10 to 13 bones. St. Louis ribs are more or less 5 to 6 inches in length. In addition, they can feed 2 to 3 adults thanks to their larger size.

Personally, whenever it is possible, I will always prefer to cook with St. Louis ribs.

However, that being said, these ribs take a little longer to cook compared to the popular 3-2-1 style of cooking baby back ribs.

In addition, they also come with small pieces of cartilage and larger bones.

I try to plan an additional 45 minutes to an hour of cooking time when I’m cooking with St. Louis pork ribs.

You will also be getting a simple recipe for smoked St. Louis ribs in this guide, in addition to a detailed answer to the question, “How long to smoke St. Louis style ribs?”

FOR YOU: Baked Boneless Pork Ribs in Oven

This recipe is a no-frills recipe for delectable ribs. This recipe uses extremely simple ingredients and classic methods to get you perfect St. Louis ribs.

How Long To Smoke St. Louis Ribs

Well, St. Louis ribs will take around 4 ½ to 5 hours in total to smoke. The initial smoke should take around an hour.

After that, it will take another 3 to 4 hours to get the ribs to a final temperature of around 195 to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Following this will yield classic “bite-through tender” ribs. However, you can continue to smoke your ribs to 200 to 203 degrees F if you would like the meat to be even more succulent and have more of that “fall-off-the-bone” finish.

Smoked St. Louis Style Ribs

The truth is that you don’t have to be a pitmaster to make mouth-watering, fall-off-the-bone succulent, smoked St. Louis-style ribs with this easy-to-follow recipe.

Course: Entrée
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 hours
Resting Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 5 hours and 40 minutes
Servings: 8

Equipment

Wood chips
Electric smoker or your choice of smoker

Ingredients

2 racks of St. Louis-style ribs

1 cup of barbecue sauce (your favorite brand or your homemade BBQ sauce)
2 tablespoons of olive oil

Dry Rub

1 teaspoon of sweet paprika or smoked paprika

1 tablespoon of cumin
2 tablespoons of kosher salt
2 teaspoons of black pepper

1 tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of onion powder
1 teaspoon of brown sugar

Laid-Out Instructions

First, you are to preheat the smoker to 250 degrees F, then put your favorite wood chips in the smoker tube. You can use mesquite for this recipe.
After that, get a small bowl and add the seasonings to it, then mix together until they are well blended.
Proceed to rub the ribs with olive oil (the oil does help the dry rub penetrate the meat more fully). In addition, you can use mustard rather than olive oil as the base coating. Personally, I prefer to use olive oil, given that it does not add another flavor to the ribs.

That being done, spread the dry rub lavishly over the ribs and make sure that you season all sides of the ribs for a well-balanced flavor.
Allow the ribs to marinate for at least a half hour, if time permits, before you proceed to place them in the smoker. Doing this provides the rub time to soak into the skin and meat. Plus, it gives the meat time to come to room temp before starting the smoking process. This helps the meat cook more evenly.
Afterward, place the ribs on the smoker rack of your preheated smoker and allow them to cook for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, remove the ribs from the smoker and wrap them in aluminum foil. Then return the foil-wrapped ribs to the smoker and cook for an extra 2 hours and 30 minutes, or until the ribs reach an internal temperature of 200 degrees Fahrenheit in the thickest part of the rack of ribs.
Time to open the tinfoil wraps and then slather your favorite BBQ sauce on the ribs, then return the ribs to the smoker and cook for an extra 30 minutes.
Proceed to remove the ribs from the smoker and allow them to rest for 15 to 30 minutes before you serve them.

After that, cut the ribs into sections and serve with your favorite sides.

FOR YOU: Sous Vide Pork Ribs Recipe

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I Smoke Ribs At 225 or 250 Degrees Fahrenheit?

It’s a fact that most pitmasters agree that 250 degrees F is the perfect smoking temperature for ribs.

Smoking at lower temps will only take longer for the ribs to cook and can yield tough, chewy meat.

Also, keep in mind that too high a temperature can cause the ribs to dry out quickly.

The preferred smoking temperatures range from 225 to 275 degrees F, with 250 degrees being the sweet spot.

Do St. Louis Ribs Need to Rest?

As already stated above, of course, St. Louis ribs need to rest. The ribs should rest for around 15 to 30 minutes before serving, given that the smoking process takes around 4 to 5 hours.

What’s the Best Rib Rub for Smoked Ribs?

You can always get a signature spice blend, and if you can’t get that, you can just swap out the spice blends and ribs for paprika, cayenne, brown sugar, black pepper, and garlic powder in this recipe.

How Are St. Louis Style Ribs and Baby Backs Different?

St. Louis-style ribs are cut and obtained from the belly side of the rib cage after the rib tips and sternum have been removed, which then yield a rectangular shape.

However, baby back ribs are obtained from the upper part of the rib cage and come in a curved, meatier shape.

Conclusion

Make sure you don’t soak them first when you are using wood chunks or chips and smoke the ribs on a rib hook; that way, they get even more exposed to the smoke.

That being said, this brings us to the end of this guide on “how long to smoke St. Louis style ribs.”