Individually Smoked Pork Ribs

5 from 4 votes

Individually smoked pork ribs deliver that flavorful barbecue bark in every bite, because all sides of the meat are exposed during the cook.

Prep Time30

Cook Time3 30

Total Time4

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Prep the Ribs: Remove the ribs from the packaging and pat them dry. Remove the silverskin and slice the ribs between each bone. Season on all sides with the pork rub.
Gas Grill: Heat your grill to 250F degrees with one burner set to medium-low and the other burners off. Add a foil pouch with Cowboy Apple Chips for added flavor.
Pellet Grill: Heat your pellet grill to 250F degrees with Cowboy Charcoal and Apple Pellets.
Charcoal Grill: Use a charcoal chimney to light Cowboy Charcoal Apple Briquets. Once ashed over, dump the coals into one side of your grill, leaving an indirect heat area for the ribs. Let burn for 15 minutes. Adjust the vents so the heat is around 250F degrees.
Ninja Foodi Grill: Place the air fryer basket in the grill. Set the grill to roast with a temperature of 250F degrees. Set the time for 2 hours.
Grill: Place the ribs on the grill bone-side-down over indirect heat with the thickest pieces closest to the heat.
Spritz: Fill a spray bottle with water. Spritz the ribs every 20-30 minutes and cook to an internal temperature of at least 200F degrees. The ribs on the Ninja Foodi Grill will take about 1 1/2 hours. The pellet grill will take about 2 1/2 hours. The charcoal and gas grills will take 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
Sauce: Once the ribs reach at least 200F degrees, brush them with barbecue sauce and let them continue cooking for 5-10 minutes.

Different types of grills have different total cook times. The ribs cooked on the Ninja Foodi Grill and pellet grill will cook faster than ribs cooked on the gas or charcoal grill. This is in part because those grills circulate the heat during the cook.
To keep the rib meat moist, be sure to spritz them heavily every 20-30 minutes or when they look dry. The liquid will help retain moisture and will help create the bark.
Ribs cooked to 200-208F degrees will be perfectly tender.
Sauce is totally optional. If you prefer a dry-rubbed rib vs. a wet rib, you can skip that step.