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–+ servings

Heath Riles Competition St. Louis Ribs on a Pellet Grill

This recipe comes from Heath Riles who created this process to smoke these delicious competition, St. Louis. These are very flavorful and worth going through all the steps to recreate.
Servings 10 people
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Resting Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 hours 35 minutes

Equipment

  • Pellet grill or smoker
  • BBQ brush or mop
  • Tinfoil
  • Instant read thermometer
  • Pan with elevated rack
  • Heat resistant BBQ gloves

Ingredients

Ribs

  • 2 Racks St. Louis spare ribs
  • 4 tbsp Yellow mustard
  • 2 tbsp Heath Riles garlic jalapeno rub
  • 5 tbsp Heath Riles pecan rub
  • 5 tbsp Heath Riles honey rub

Wood

  • Hickory pellets
  • Cherry pellets
  • Charwood charcoal cherry pellets (optional)

Butter Bath

  • 3.5 oz Heath Riles butter bath & wrap mixture
  • 1.5 cups Apple juice

Glaze

  • 3 tbsp Heath Riles Sweet BBQ rub
  • 4 oz Heath Riles Sweet BBQ sauce
  • 2 oz Heath Riles tangy vinegar BBQ sauce

Instructions

Step 1: Prepare the Ribs (40 minutes)

  • A. Remove the spare ribs from their packaging and pat dry.
    B. Remove the membrane covering the bones.
    C. While working on both racks of ribs side by side, spread about 1 tbsp. of the yellow mustard per rack over the bone side of the ribs.
    D. Sprinkle a light layer of the Heath Riles garlic jalapeno rub over the. bone side of the two racks of ribs you just coated with mustard. Press the rub into the ribs to help the rub stick.
    E. Sprinkle a medium coating of the Heath Riles pecan rub over the bone side of the two racks of ribs and press it into the ribs to help the rub stick.
    F. Sprinkle a medium layer of the Heath Riles honey rub over the bone side of the two racks of ribs and press it into the ribs to help the rub stick.
    G. Flip the two racks of ribs over so they are bone-side down, and repeat the previous steps C - F by adding mustard, jalapeno rub, pecan rub, and honey rub just like you did on the bone side. Keep using your hand to press the rub into the ribs to help the rub stick
    H. Let the ribs sit for 15-20 minutes after seasoning. This is an excellent time to start your pellet grill.

Step 2: Prepare the Pellet Grill (5 minutes)

  • A. Add a mix of hickory and cherry pellets to your pellet grill's hopper.
    B. Set your pellet grill to 275°F. If you have the option, set your pellet grill to a high smoke number like 8-10. You’ll be leaving your pellet grill at 275°F for the duration of this recipe.

Part 3: Add Ribs to the Smoker (2-2½ hours)

  • A. Place the ribs directly onto the grill grates bone side down. Immediately after placing them on the grill, put a hand on each end of the rack and gently press the bones together. This will bunch up the ribs a bit and straighten the bones.
    B. Close the lid and leave them to smoke for 2 - 2½ hours.
    C. Check the ribs after 2 hours. You'll know they're ready for the next step if the rub is sticking to the meat. Check this by touching them with your finger. If little to no rub comes off, you can move to the next step. If rub is coming off, leave them on the grill and check again in 10 - 20 minutes.
    D. Once the ribs pass the previous step, Part 3C, take the racks off the pellet grill. Prepare the liquid in the next step ahead of time. This will help you move quickly from this step to wrap the ribs in foil.

Part 4: Prepare the Butter Bath Liquid (5 minutes)

  • A. Take 3½ ounces of the Heath Riles BBQ Butter Bath & Wrap and blend with 1½ cups of apple juice. This should be done in advance while the ribs are smoking.
    Conversion Chart
    The Heath Riles BBQ Butter Bath & Wrap comes in a 12-ounce packet with instructions to mix with 5½ cups of apple juice. You don’t need the entire 5½ cups when smoking two racks of ribs. The 5½ cups are enough for seven racks of ribs.

Part 5: Wrapping the Ribs (15 minutes)

  • A. On a flat surface, lay down four long sheets of tin foil. You'll be using two sheets per rack of ribs. If necessary, lay the 2 sheets off-centered from each other.
    B. Sprinkle a light layer of the honey rub onto the tin foil where you intend to lay the rack.
    C. Lay one rack of ribs, bone side up, onto the tin foil directly on top of the honey rub.
    D. Sprinkle a light layer of honey rub over the bone side of the ribs.
    E. Pour half of the prepared butter bath liquid, onto the ribs.
    F. Fold over two layers of tin foil so the ribs are tightly wrapped.
    G. Repeat part 5 for wrapping the other rack of ribs. When completed, you should have two racks seasoned again with honey rub and tightly wrapped in foil, keeping the butter bath liquid inside.

Part 6: Smoking Wrapped Ribs (1 hour)

  • A. Return the now wrapped ribs to the pellet grill.
    B. Smoke for 1 hour before checking.
    C. After an hour, pull back the foil to expose the racks. Use an instant-read thermometer to check the rib temp between the bones.
    D. Once the temperature reads 204 - 209°F, it's time to pull them off the grill. If you don't reach that temp in the first hour, keep checking them until you get there. If one rack reaches temp before the other, pull it off and keep it wrapped to hold in the heat while you wait for the other rack to be ready.

Part 7: Prepare the Glaze (5 minutes)

  • A. Prepare the glaze by combining 4 oz (½ cup) of Heath Riles Sweet BBQ sauce with 2 oz (¼ cup) of Heath Riles tangy vinegar BBQ sauce in a bowl. If you need more sauce, just follow the 2 to 1 ratio when combining both sauces.
    B. Optional: you can add honey or spicy honey to the glaze.

Part 8: Glaze the Ribs (20 minutes)

  • A. After removing the wrapped ribs from the grill, open up the foil for just one of the racks while still leaving the rack inside the foil and bone side up. Tilt the rack to drain any liquid resting on top of the ribs.
    B. Dust a light to a medium coating of the Heath Riles Sweet BBQ rub over the bone-side of the rack.
    C. Mop some of the BBQ sauce mixture onto the bone side of the ribs.
    D. Remove the rack from the tin foil and place the rib's bone side down onto a wire rack inside a pan or baking sheet.
    E. Repeat the previous steps, A - D, for the other rack of ribs.
    F. Repeat the seasoning and saucing steps for the other side of the ribs. Begin by dusting the racks with the sweet BBQ rub, then mop the remaining BBQ sauce all over the ribs.

Part 9: Smoke the Glaze (15 minutes)

  • A. Place the pan holding the ribs into the smoker. Keep the grill temperature at 275°F.
    B. Smoke uncovered in the pan for about 15 minutes.

Part 10: Rest, Slice, & Serve (5 minutes)

  • A. Remove the pan from the smoker and place the ribs onto a cutting board.
    B. Let them rest for about 5 minutes before slicing. Take a long slicing knife and slice through the meat between each bone.
    C. Serve warm and enjoy!
Author: Dee Sefcik
Calories: 161kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, BBQ
Keyword: BBQ, Heath Riles, Pellet Grill, Ribs, Spare Ribs

Nutrition

Serving: 4oz | Calories: 161kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 9mg | Sodium: 5086mg | Potassium: 87mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 5IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 1mg