How to Brine Ribs

Learn how to brine ribs that produce “fall off the bone” crowd-pleasing deliciousness. This marinade is used with simple ingredients to improve the flavor of any rib rack. Get the advanced preparation done before your guests arrive and it makes a great hosting meal so you won’t be slaving over the stove instead of enjoying the company of others. Serve ribs alongside homemade coleslaw, mashed potatoes & gravy, and corn on the cob for a meal that knocks the socks off of everybody! The only thing you’ll regret about this recipe is not making more racks of ribs.

WHY DO YOU NEED TO BRINE?

Brining improves flavor. I don’t really think you need anymore reason than that to do it. However, if you ever have problems with any meat turning out dry, try brining it to make it juicy. The muscle fibers also start to work down a bit during the marinade, causing your meat to be extra tender, so brining is great for tough cuts of meat.

Basically, brining moisturizes, tenderizes, and adds flavor to your meat. 

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WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Large sealable plastic bag

Pork Ribs

Large roasting pan 

Medium saucepan 

Barbecue sauce – homemade or your favorite store bought

Instant read thermometer

BRINE INGREDIENTS

Water

Soy sauce, coconut aminos, or liquid aminos 

Brown Sugar

Molasses

Salt – your salt is either helping your health or hurting it, check to make sure you are using real salt.

HOW TO BRINE RIBS

In a small saucepan, combine water, brown sugar, molasses, salt, and coconut aminos (or whatever you choose to use here) I like to use coconut aminos, as I find it to be the healthiest option out of the three. 

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then let cool down to room temperature.

Use a paper towel to dry off the ribs. Place ribs in a large bag. Place that inside of a large baking pan. Pour the marinade over the ribs, trying to cover every surface of the meat and shut the bag. Try to get the thickest part of the ribs on the bottom, as that will soak up the most brine. Place inside of fridge overnight or up to 24 hours. If you remember to turn the ribs over from time to time, you get extra points. 

COOKING THE RIBS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 

Discard the marinade. Place meat inside of a roasting pan and cover with foil. Cooking time is 2 hours- 2.5 hours. 

Next, when ribs are cooked and bone tender, brush tops of the ribs and back side of each rack of ribs with the bbq sauce of your choice . Use tongs to keep from burning your hands. Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Another 30 minutes of cooking should bring these ribs to a tender rib that falls right off the bone. You can grab the meat thermometer and make sure the temperature is at 190 degrees F.

FINISHING UP

Finally, just before serving the ribs, turn your broiler on high. Blacken the ribs a bit for a few minutes to give them a bit of that BBQ look.

SERVE THE RIBS

EXTRA THINGS TO KNOW

A baking bag makes clean up a lot easier.

Obviously, if you don’t want to bake your ribs in the oven, you can use a gas grill or a charcoal grill to barbecue the rack of ribs.

This recipe works with pork ribs, beef ribs , baby back ribs, pork loin, and many more cuts of meat! If using a really tough cut of meat, try adding a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar to really help tenderize the meat more.

Feel free to try different add ins for the marinade. Salt peppercorns, sesame seeds, garlic powder, apple juice, lemon juice, mustard powder, and kosher salt are all great add-ins!

To get the the recipe for these exact ribs, including my homemade barbecue, check out my article on the best bbq ribs in an oven.

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