Country Style Ribs are slabs of pork cut from the Boston Butt and they can be amazing when they are smoked. I cooked some of these up on my Z Grills pellet grill using a great commercial dry rub and barbecue sauce.
Let me show you how to smoke these amazing beauties on your pellet grill!
Prepare the Country Style Ribs for the Smoker
Country style pork ribs have a ton of internal marbling so they do not need to be brined in order to stay juicy when they get smoked.
I typically really on just a dry rub, smoke and barbecue sauce to flavor the pork but, if you have some extra time and want to add another layer of flavor then you can always soak the meat in this awesome pork steak marinade.
Marinade
- 1/2 can Coke
- 1/2 can Sprite
- 2 cups apple juice
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup kosher salt
If you do decide to marinate the meat then let it soak in the refrigerator for at least one hour and up to four hours. After the meat marinates pat it dry with paper towels.
The most important part of prepping this cut is to remember that that country style ribs are created by running a Boston butt through a band saw. As a result there are often small bone fragments and dislodged fat deposits on the surface of the meat.
Do everyone a favor. Take a paper towel and wipe down both side of the meat to get rid of any bits and pieces left behind by the band saw.
When it comes to seasoning the meat I like to go with something on the sweeter side. You can use our Award Winning Rib Rub if you are looking for a homemade dry rub. You could also use this All Purpose Rub.
All Purpose Rub
- 1/2 cup paprika
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated garlic
- 2 tbsp onion powder
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp oregeno
- 2 tsp cayenne
If you have a decent barbecue store near you then I suggest picking up some Meat Mitch pork rub.
Season the ribs liberally with your rub and let the meat site for at least 15 minutes to give the rub time to start melting into the meat.
You want the surface of the meat to look damp when it goes onto the smoker.
Set Up Your Pellet Grill for Smoking
I was cooking on my Z Grills pellet grill and had it set to “Smoke Mode”.
The Smoke Mode setting on a Z Grills has the smoker running at about 180F. This will be about the same for the Smoke Setting on your Pit Boss.
If you are smoking country style ribs with a Traeger grill that does not have a Smoke mode then set your grill to 180F and either:
- Use a smoke tube filled with hickory pellets to get a little extra smoke flavor.
- Smoke the ribs at 180F for a few extra hours.
I like to burn hickory pellets when smoking country style ribs because this cut cooks quickly and I want to get as much smoke flavor as I can in the short time the meat is on the smoker.
Smoke The Ribs
I start by smoking the meat in Smoke Mode (180F) for 30 minutes to lay down a nice smoke flavor profile.
After 30 minutes I bump the temperature up to 250F and let the ribs smoke another 30-40 minutes until they hit an internal temperature of 130F.
At this point the rub should have set and the meat will be sweating a little.
Baste both sides of the meat with barbecue sauce, I used Meat Mitch Whomp!, and let the ribs continue cooking for another 15 minutes or so until an internal temperature of 145F is reached (this is the same temp for pork steaks).
Remove the smoked country style ribs from the smoker, slice thinly and enjoy some of the juiciest smoked meat you will ever encounter!
Smoked Country Style Pork Ribs on a Pellet Grill
Ingredients
- 3 lbs Country Style Pork Ribs
- 3 tbls Meat Mitch Pork Rub Or use our Award Winning Rib Rub
- 1/2 cup Meat Mitch Whomp! barbecue sauce
- 1/2 can Coke Optional Marinade
- 1/2 can Sprite Optional Marinade
- 2 cups apple juice Optional Marinade
- 1 cup water Optional Marinade
- 1/2 cup kosher salt Optional Marinade
Instructions
- Wipe both side of the country style ribs clean with paper towels.
- If desired, combine the optional marinade ingredients and marinate the meat for one hour in the refrigerator.
- Season the meat liberally with the dry rub.
- Allow the meat to rest for 15-30 minutes to allow the dry rub to start dissolving into the meat.
- Smoke the country style ribs in Smoke Mode (180F) for 30 minutes using hickory.
- Raise the temperature of your smoker to 250F and allow the meat to cook for another 30 minutes.
- Baste both sides of the meat with barbecue sauce.
- Allow the country style ribs to smoke another 15-30 minutes until an internal temperature of 145F.
- Slice the meat thin and enjoy!