Korean Country Spare Ribs: A savory Asian-inspired marinade gives plain ol’ pork ribs a gigantic flavor boost. You’ll marinate the ribs all day long while you enjoy your summer days out of the kitchen. Toss the ribs on the grill for 10 minutes and enjoy!
Every summer roles around and we go through the same conversation:
Me: “What should we make for the bbq/party/cook-out?” Him: “Chicken?” Me: “Cutlets or on the bone?” Him: “On the bone with bbq sauce.” Me: “Ugh.”
There’s almost nothing I dislike more than eating bbq chicken off the bone.
Fried chicken? Sure – love it! But goopy bbq sauce dripping off rubbery chicken legs? Nope.
So I changed things up a few years ago and started making these Korean country spare ribs. Kyle has the inability to turn down pork in any form so swaying him from his traditional bbq bone-in chicken was like giving candy to a baby.
To make these ribs, I coated country spare ribs with brown sugar and then marinated them in a mix of soy sauce, mirin (rice wine – not rice wine vinegar), toasted sesame oil, garlic and onions for around 9 hours.
The long marinating time for this recipe leaves the ribs completely soaked through with flavor. So when you grill the Asian marinated ribs, the flavor isn’t running out of them or off of them, like when you baste ribs with a sauce over a hot fire.
These Korean country spare ribs taste a bit like the boneless spare ribs you get from a really good Chinese restaurant except you know exactly what ingredients they’re made with. So there’s that.
There’s definitely a reason why we’ve made these grilled Korean spare ribs no less than 2 or 3 times each summer for the past few years: they are outstanding, insanely easy to make, and now truly one of our favorite summer meals.
It’s an incredibly easy marinade recipe to make and once the ribs are marinating, you’ve got the entire day to not worry about prepping your meat for dinner. That will leave you some time to make your sides!
Needs Sides for These Ribs?
Whether you’re looking for hot or cold side dishes to go with these ribs, I’ve got you covered!
Mac and cheese and grilled corn are obvious choices, as is this bacon ranch potato salad and these baked beans.
More “adventurous” side dishes would be some broccoli slaw, crunchy noodle salad, this amazing avocado cucumber salad, my very favorite Mexican street corn salad, and these twice baked potatoes with bacon and caramelized onions.
How will you ever choose?!
Korean Country Spare Ribs
Yield: 10 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Marinating Time: 9 hours
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 9 hours20 minutes
Korean country spare ribs are the answer to ho-hum grilled ribs. A savory Asian-inspired marinade gives plain ol' pork ribs a gigantic flavor boost using basic easy to find Asian ingredients. Are you ready to up your BBQ game this summer?
Small bunch of chives, chopped, for serving (optional)
Instructions
If the ribs are really fatty, trim off some (not all) of the fat before laying them out in two large, deep baking dishes (I use disposable aluminum pans). Rub the ribs with the brown sugar; set aside while you make the marinade.
In a medium bowl, whisk the soy sauce, water, mirin, onion, garlic, sesame oil, and black pepper together. Pour the marinade over the ribs, evenly dividing it between the two baking dishes/pans. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or up to 12. Allow the ribs to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before grilling.
Preheat a gas grill high for 10 minutes. Turn down the heat to medium-high and grill the ribs for 3 to 5 minutes per side, depending on the size and thickness of the ribs (i.e., large ribs need more time). Transfer the finished ribs to a large platter, cover, and let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Sprinkle the chopped chives over the ribs as you serve them.
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Country-style ribs, on the other hand, are cut from the rib end of loin meat at the shoulder. This cut has many more bones than spare ribs, and they look more like pork chops. While spare ribs may feel and look more prominent, country style ribs feature more meat. Regardless, they're both delicious when cooked right.
Follow this tip: Pre-cooking the ribs before they hit the grill not only gives you more control over the cooking temperature, but it can also make for more tender meat. You can oven-bake, boil, or even use the slow cooker for pre-cooking before firing up the grill.
Place the ribs on the preheated grill above the drip pan.Keep the ribs away from direct heat.Cook, rib side down.Rotate the ribs 180 degrees end-to-end every 15 to 20 minutes.
But best of all would be to build a wood fire on one side of the grill and slowly barbecue these ribs over woodsmoke. No matter what you do, let the ribs cook untouched for 90 minutes. At the 90-minute mark, turn them and paint them with your barbecue sauce – we like the sweet-spicy Dr.
They are meatier than other rib cuts, so you'll end up with lots of tasty meat with fewer bones to discard! Country style pork ribs are best when cooked low and slow to a high internal temperature to break down the tough connective tissue and make them super tender.
A little vegetable oil is all you need for the spice rub to adhere to the ribs. Use your hands to rub a few tablespoons of oil all over the ribs before applying the rub and it'll stick perfectly. Mustard is another popular option!
Foil-Wrapped Ribs On The Grill. Wrapping your ribs are key if you want to lock in all of the moisture and flavor! Double wrap each rack of ribs securely and enjoy some ribs in no time.
The reason you would boil ribs before cooking them is simple. This process helps tenderize the ribs and makes them more juicy. It not only shortens the cooking time significantly, but it also helps make the meat far easier to chew.
Essentially, the vinegar solution "cleanses" the meat and makes the flavors shine through without any "gamey" flavor. According to Elizabeth, you don't need a charcoal grill to achieve deliciously-barbequed ribs.
Bake in the oven for 3 hours. Be sure to start warming up your grill before the 3 hours are up. Once done, remove the ribs from the oven and place on the BBQ over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes or just until they are browned.
You want to create a pocket with the foil so you can retain the moisture while they cook. Place the ribs on the opposite side of the grill from the ignited burner and leave them there for two hours. Make sure the temperature doesn't fall below 200 degrees or go over 300 degrees.
Place ribs directly on clean grill grate and grill for 2 hours, rotating every 45 minutes or so to ensure even cooking. After two hours, remove ribs from the grill and wrap tightly in foil.
Essentially, 3 2 1 ribs go like this: 3 hours of smoking the ribs directly on the pellet grill.2 hours wrapped in foil, still cooking on the grill.1 hour of cooking, unwrapped and slathered in barbecue sauce.
Baby back, sparerib, and St.Louis cut are the most popular of the different types of pork ribs. Pork goes well with a wide range of flavors and seasonings because it is sweet and mild.
Spare ribs, sometimes called St. Louis style ribs, come from the side and back of a pig and are thought of as a traditional rib. They are the least meaty pork rib but are cheaper than baby backs and the most commonly used rib in restaurants.
Country-style ribs are from the shoulder (or blade) end of the loin. With these, you'll find the most meat per bone and the least amount of fat. You can eat with your fingers but they have enough meat to knife-and-fork them.
I love cooking with these ribs because they're really versatile. In either cut, they have enough fat and marbling to keep the meat moist, unlike leaner cuts like tenderloin or loin. These “ribs” are also great for stews and kebabs, or when you need just a little bit of pork for a stir-fry.
Introduction: My name is Melvina Ondricka, I am a helpful, fancy, friendly, innocent, outstanding, courageous, thoughtful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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