How To Cook Ribs On A Charcoal Grill – Complete Guide

Your charcoal grill isn’t just for burgers, hot dogs, and steaks. With a little ingenuity you can set your grill up to cook ribs low and slow. These will end up juicy and fall off-the-bone tender. Basically, the method turns your charcoal grill into a smoker.

While this tutorial focuses on using a charcoal grill, such as a weber kettle grill, you certainly could use a gas grill or a pellet grill. Whether you make charcoal Weber ribs, gas grill ribs, or pellet smoked Traeger, the technique is similar.

Pro Tip #1: I recommend a 22 inch diameter or larger grill for cooking ribs.

You can cook pork, beef, or lamb ribs using your grill. While we love beef charcoal ribs, for the purposes of this article we’ll use classic pork ribs. There are 3 basic types of pork ribs to choose from. Spareribs are the largest with flat bones and quite a bit of connective tissue. St. Louis style ribs are spareribs with the rib tips removed. Baby back ribs are smaller than the other two and have a bit more meat to bone ratio. We will be using baby back ribs in our recipe. They are tasty and easy to find in most markets.

Pro Tip #2: When purchasing your ribs, ask the butcher to remove the membrane from the back side of the ribs. This can be quite chewy if not removed.

Now, let’s get to how to cook ribs on a charcoal grill. The step-by-step guide includes using a dry rub and a barbeque sauce. The barbeque sauce recipe follows the main recipe. You can make that while the ribs are cooking or even the day before. It stores quite well in the refrigerator for a few days.

 

How to Cook Ribs on a Charcoal Grill: A Step-by-Step Guide

Equipment and tools

• Charcoal grill
• Charcoal chimney
• Newspaper
• Charcoal briquettes
• 3 small blocks of mesquite or hickory wood
• Lighter
• Disposable foil pan
• Paper towels
• Tongs
• Aluminum foil
• Cutting board
• Sharp knife

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 5 to 6 hours

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 rack baby back ribs (approximately 12 ribs)
• 1-1/2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons apple cider or apple juice
• 1/2 cup barbeque sauce (recipe follows)