Copycat Chili's Baby Back Ribs

Each slab of ribs will serve 2-3 adults depending on the size. Once the ribs are cooked and the BBQ sauce prepared, it takes only 30 minutes from frozen to finish the ribs off. I like to do 2 slabs of ribs and then divide it into smaller sections and freeze them. You can then adjust the amounts as needed when serving them.

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.

Step 2

Stir together brown sugar, salt, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne in a small bowl.

Step 3

Remove skin from back of ribs (loosen with a knife and then grasp with a paper towel). Rub 3 Tbsp of spice blend all over ribs. Put remaining spice mixture aside (this will be used for the BBQ sauce.)

Step 4

Line edged cookie sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil--it will need to fold up over the ribs so be generous. Place the ribs on the foil; pour cola over the ribs. Fold the foil over the ribs and seal.

Step 5

Bake in preheated oven (275) for 2 hours and 30 minutes. When you check, the ribs should feel like they will fall apart and the bones feel lose. You may need to cook it for additional time--it depends on the size of the ribs.

Step 6

Once ribs are cooked, they can be frozen and finished on another day, or finished in the oven. It takes only 30 minutes to finish the ribs from frozen.

Step 7

Make BBQ sauce: combine ketchup, water, molasses, vinegar, mustard, liquid smoke, and reserved spice blend in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. (Need 6.5 Tbsp of rub to make bbq sauce.) Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat. (To make it easy to use, I pour it into an empty ketchup bottle. Store in the fridge.)

Step 8

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Step 9

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place the ribs on the cookie sheet with the curved side up. Apply the homemade BBQ sauce and brush it evenly over the ribs.

Step 10

Put ribs in the oven for 10 minutes.

Step 11

Take the ribs out of the oven, flip them over, and apply BBQ sauce on the top side of the ribs, brushing it on evenly. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes.

Step 12

Take the ribs out of the oven and apply another layer of BBQ sauce. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes.