Bourbon Maple Ribs Recipe
Juicy and Tender Bourbon Maple Spare Ribs
It’s that time of year that we gather around for weekend cookouts and celebrations. Ribs are usually always on the menu because that’s a crowd pleaser that makes everyone happy. And best of all, this bourbon maple marinade hits the spot. This is always a treat to share with friends and it’s a hearty comfort food that we love treating ourselves to. Now that the weather is warming up it’s fun to start cooking for bigger groups again.
Video: Amazing Oven Baked Pork Ribs:
Cooking. Going out to a movie. Going for a walk and holding the hand of someone you love. Watching or playing sports. Curling up to a book. These seemingly trivial acts are often places of comfort and help remind us of the pleasures in life. Gather friends into our homes and allow ourselves to laugh and cheer. That is what comfort and all of its trivialities does. That is why we share.
Here is one of our favorite comfort foods, ribs. To be specific, Bourbon-Maple glazed St. Louis cut spare ribs. Sweet from the maple, a tinge of smokiness from the bourbon, and cooked to nearly fall off the meat packed-bone tender. These are cooked using the same method we used for the Sriracha-Hoisin ribs. And with the bourbon open, go ahead and pour yourself a little sip.
-Diane and Todd
How to Make Bourbon Maple Ribs in Oven
Baking Dish Method – Quick & Easy! Cut the racks in half if needed to fit in your baking dish. Pour some apple juice over the rib & season with salt & pepper, cover with foil and then bake. After the first hour, brush both sides of ribs with sauce. Finish baking uncovered, brushing with sauce another couple times.
Foil “Boat” Method – Great for easier cleanup! Cut the racks in half to help make them more manageable. Create foil “boats” out of a double layer of foil. After the first hour, brush both sides of ribs with sauce. Keep foil sides upright to keep the juices surrounding the ribs as you finish baking, brushing the ribs with the sauce a couple more times.
Air Fryer Ribs – We’ve also developed recipes for cooking ribs in the air fryer our ebook Air Fryer Easy Meals. They came our surprisingly awesome and now is one of our favorite ways to cook ribs. Using the cooking methods in the ebook, you can use the Bourbon-Maple sauce or any other of your favorite sauces to cook some amazing air fryer ribs.
Try our other popular Rib Recipes Here
This recipe was originally published in 2012 and re-published in 2019 with a new video.
Bourbon-Maple Glazed Pork Ribs - Oven Baked
Ingredients
Ribs
- 3 pound (1.36 kg) rack St. Louis cut (preferably) Spare Ribs , rinsed and patted dry
- 1 Tablespoon (15 g) Kosher Salt
- fresh cracked Black Pepper to taste
- 1 cup (240 ml) Apple Juice
Bourbon-Maple Glaze
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) Apple Juice
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) Maple Syrup
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) Bourbon
- 1/4 cup (65 g) Tomato Paste
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) Fish Sauce (optional but very tasty)
- 2 Tablespoons (30 g) Brown Sugar
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) Kosher Salt
Instructions
Sauce Instructions
- *For time efficiency; this can be done beforehand or while the ribs bake for the initial hour. Combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan (1/2 cup apple juice, 1/2 cup maple syrup, 1/4 1/4 cup bourbon, 1/4 cup tomato paste, 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1 Tablespoon fish sauce-optional but highly recommended, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt). Cook on medium-high heat, bring to a simmer then cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Set aside until ready to sauce ribs.
Ribs Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). If needed, remove the silver skin from the bone side of the ribs (some butchers will have this already removed for you.)
- Cut the rib rack in half and place the ribs, meaty side up, in a 9x11 inch baking dish (or other appropriately sized dish). Pour the 1 cup apple juice over the ribs and then season both sides liberally with salt & pepper. Cover with aluminum foil.
- Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 1 hour 15 minutes. Remove from oven, remove foil, and brush both sides of the ribs with sauce.
- Return the ribs to oven uncovered. Continue to Bake at 350°F (175°C) for another 30 minutes.
- Check the tenderness of the ribs and brush the ribs with sauce again. Continue to Bake at 350°F (175°C) for another 15-45 minutes, depending on how tender you like your ribs.
- Remove ribs from oven. Brush the ribs a with a little more sauce, slice & serve (for a little extra crust follow next step before slicing).
- Optional for a little extra crust - Heat oven to broil and place oven rack about 6 inches down from the top. Brush ribs with glaze again and broil for 2 minutes or until slightly singed. Slice & serve.
- Optional for extra crust and to serve from the Grill - Heat the grill for direct heat on medium-high (if you have that option). Slice the ribs into serving sizes (usually 1-2 ribs together). Sear each side of the ribs for 2-3 minutes or until each side has a little char. Serve warm.
Notes
-
Make 2 “boats” out of doubled up sheets of heavy duty foil large enough to enclose each rib section (*refer to sriracha-hoisin ribs photos for visual guide). Place ribs, meaty side up, in boats and pour 1/2 cup of apple juice in each of the boats.
-
Seal foil boats closed around the ribs, trapping the juice in with the ribs and being careful not to break the foil. Place on sheet pans. Bake as directed in the recipe above (however leaving the foil open but with the sides standing up enough to keep the juices around the ribs when it calls to bake uncovered).
Video
Nutrition Information per Serving
I made this last night with the last of some Makers Mark. I used real maple syrup, not that fake stuff. On the final 15 minutes of cooking I had to extend by another 20 minutes. Probable because I cut the rack in half and stacked them. The results were AMAZING! The taste was so good I don’t have words. I am definitely keeping this recipe.
I feel right at home when I make these ribs. It’s the closest flavor to what my grandad used to make for us as kids. Amazing job! We all love it.
These are the best juicy ribs ever! Great job on adding the bourbon. It’s my favorite part of this recipe.
I am just thinking outside the box here… You see a lot of recipes with bourbon, maple, and pecans. I wonder if it would be a great added touch to sprinkle some flavored pecan pieces on top to give it a little more texture and a unique look. Just say’n but then I am partial to pecans. (your pics are awesome)
Tried this recipe last night. I didn’t have apple juice but had canned pear juice that came with my peaches. I didn’t measure exactly so it came out a little runny but was still delicious!!!
Your post is so comforting for sure. The Connecticut tragedy has made me realize how important it is to value life, friends, family as we never know when it might end. Tragedy like these are so hard for me to digest as innocent life were lost. I can imagine the plight of the parents. The Christmas celebration they would have planned, the memories they wanted to make for years to come was shattered in no time. I have no words to explain their loss.
I completely agree and felt that anything I tweeted or posted this past weekend was completely irrelevant in the light of what has happened. I made sure to take a step back and look at what is really important and not what I think is important. I think we all have different ways to cope with sorrow and those are the avenues we should use.
Take care…
Wow, your post was so comforting today. After crying for days, your poignant words were just what I needed to read. You are so right in reminding us that it is the small pleasures in life that help get us through the dark times. I’m now going to make some Bourbon Maple Ribs for my family.
Thank you.