Action Jackson once asked me, “How do you like your ribs?” My answer (before he shot me with a grenade launcher) was smoked with a Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce. He apologized for blowing me up and together we sat down and had a fine meal of them and he gave them his seal of approval. It’s a relatively easy dish to make and if you don’t want to make your own BBQ sauce, you can substitute in your favorite bottled brand just fine. This is a favorite in the Friday Night Frights household and I’m always sure to make enough so we have leftovers the next day.
Dr. Pepper Baby Back Ribs
A sweet and tasty take on a bbq staple.
Equipment
- Smoker
Ingredients
Rib Rub
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp smoked paprika
- 2 tbsp sweet paprika
- 1 tbsp coarse ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 dash cumin
BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup Favorite BBQ Sauce
- 1/2 cup Dr. Pepper
Instructions
BBQ Sauce
- Combine BBQ sauce and Dr. Pepper in a saucepan
- Heat on high until boiling and then reduce to a simmer for ten minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Set aside to cool and place in a sealable container. It will keep for a week or two so you can make it ahead of time.
Ribs
- Mix together rub ingredients and coat both sides of the ribs liberally with it.
- Seal ribs in foil and place in fridge for several hours or overnight if you have time.
- Preheat smoker to 225°.
- When smoker hits the desired temperature, take the ribs out of the foil and place onto the grate.
- Smoke the ribs until they start to break when you pick them up with a pair of tongs. (About 4 hours)
- In the last twenty minutes, coat the ribs with BBQ sauce and place back on the smoker to tighten it up. I usually do one coat but you can do more if you prefer.
- Remove from smoker to rest. Then slice them and serve them with your favorite sides.
