When you’ve been making a recipe the exact same way for over a decade, you know it has to be good. And when everyone you serve it to asks you for the recipe, you know it has to be really, really good. So I can confidently say that these are some of the best keto ribs you will ever make.
Now, if you prefer your ribs more saucy, you’re more than welcome to brush them with some sugar-free BBQ sauce. But no matter what, you must try this method of slow-braising the meat until it’s fall-off-the-bone tender. Then a quick grilling or broiling to brown them up and finish them off.
Once you try this recipe, you’ll never cook ribs any other way again. Pair them with some cauliflower potato salad or keto coleslaw for the perfect summer meal.
One reader says
“I followed the recipe exactly (I don’t believe in changing a recipe, then posting a comment. Not fair.) I have to say, they’re the absolute best, ever. I will be making ribs more frequently due to this excellent recipe. Thank you. 😊” — Maureen P.
Why we adore this recipe
- Easy method: The active prep time for these ribs is only 10 minutes. Just rub on the spice blend and get cooking!
- Incredibly tender: The meat falls off the bone easily. In fact, I have to be careful not to overdo it or they become hard to eat.
- No sugary sauces: You can leave the ribs as is or use some of my keto bbq sauce. Whatever floats your boat!
- Balanced spices: The bold spice blend delivers flavor in every bite. And you can adjust the heat level to your liking.
- Versatile cooking: After braising, you can toss them on the grill or broil them in the oven.
- Keto and sugar-free: Too many dry rub recipes add unnecessary carbs and sugar. But these ribs have only 1.3 grams of carbs per serving.
Ingredient Notes
- Seasonings: Kosher salt, chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
- Pork spare ribs: Choose the meatier St. Louis style spare ribs instead of baby back ribs.
- Sugar free bbq sauce: If you feel you need it!
Overview: How to Make This Recipe
- Make the rub: Combine the spices in a small bowl or shaker jar.
- Coat the ribs: Rub the spice mix over both sides of the ribs and place on a large roasting pan.
- Bake: Add the water and cover tightly with foil. Bake until the meat is tender, checking occasionally that the water has not evaporated.
- Grill: Grill or broil the ribs until browned. Brush with keto BBQ sauce, if using.
Expert Tips
The secret to these amazing keto ribs is actually three secrets. All three factors come into play to make the most tender and delicious ribs you will ever eat.
- The cut of ribs
- The dry rub
- The cooking method
For the ribs, I recommend spare ribs over puny baby back ribs. Spare ribs have more meat and more fat, so they come out more tender and juicy. They tend to be a lot less expensive as well.
The cooking method utilizes slow braising in the oven, which loosens all the tough, fibrous membranes and makes the meat unbelievably tender. But unlike most braised recipe, the cooking temperature is quite high. You need to trust the process. This recipe wouldn’t be such a popular one if it didn’t work!
You then only grill or broil the ribs for a total of about 8 minutes, to crisp up the outside. Sometimes the ribs are so tender, I can hardly transfer them to a platter without things falling apart. My husband and I developed this recipe over several years. But it was the now-defunct Gourmet Magazine that introduced me to the high-temp braising method.
The dry rub is adapted from a recipe by Steve Raichlan. His recipe takes sugar, of course, and mine does not. And somewhere along the way, I started adding chili powder, and we found we liked it so much, it became our standard recipe.
It’s really insanely easy to make. I like to make big batches of it so I can have it any time I want. I add all the spices to a shaker jar so I can sprinkle it all over the ribs more evenly.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can prep the dry rub ribs up to 24 hours in advance by adding the spice blend to both sides. Store in the refrigerator if you plan to do this. You can also cook the ribs immediately after rubbing with the spice blend.
Absolutely! You can braise the ribs earlier in the day and then finish on the grill just before serving. We’ve even stuck them in the fridge overnight before and then let them come to room temp before grilling them at serving time.
This keto dry rub rib recipe has 1.3g of carbs and 0.5g of fiber per serving.
Keto Dry Rub Ribs Recipe
Ingredients
Dry Rub:
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp chipotle or cayenne powder
Ribs:
- 1 (1,300 g) rack pork spare ribs
- 1 cup water
- 1 recipe Easy Sugar-Free BBQ Sauce, (if desired)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF.
- For the dry rub, mix all of the ingredients together in a small bowl or shaker jar. Rub all over both sides of the ribs.
- Arrange the ribs in a large roasting pan (cut in half if you need to, to make them fit). Add the water and cover the whole pan tightly in foil.
- Bake one and a half hours, until meat is very tender. Check occasionally that the water has not evaporated away, as this can burn your ribs. If you are doing more than one rack in the same pan, you need to increase the cook time to 1 hour and 45 minutes.
- Preheat the grill or broiler. Grill or broil 4 minutes per side, watching carefully so that they don't burn. You can brush some of the BBQ sauce on before grilling or after if you wish.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Thanks so much for this recipe! Loved it!!????
OMG! Made the dry rub ribs tonight and they were nothing short of A-MAZ-ING! So good in fact, I forgot to take a picture and well they disappeared quickly. Non-keto spouse was thoroughly impressed. Thank you Carolyn! I’d give this 10 stars if I could…. I did it without the added BBQ sauce, I love dry rub… this has now officially become a staple ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Hi there,
Can I use a roasting pan with a lid instead of the foil?
Btw, thank you for this recipe, I’m making it today. Also thank you for your other recipes, I use them all the time.
I would think that would work, as long as it’s tight-fitting enough.
Made this last weekend, first time making my own rub and liked the flavours, but was way too salty! Even my husband who puts salt on anything thought it was mouth stingingly salty. So next time I’ll halve or even quarter the salt, I added a 1tsp of cayenne as well. Might try adding a tbsp or so of erythitol as it caramelises.
I think something must have gone wrong if you found it that salty…
I only started making ribs about a year ago. Used this recipe since Day 1 and my family and I love it. I modified it a bit from time to time by making everything in the rub 1 tbs except the Cayenne Pepper. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe
made this tonight without the sauces… so good!
Set you oven to 220 to 230 F and cook for about 3.5 to 4 hours covered, then under a broiler if you want to brown them Low and slow. That is how BBQ is done in a smoker. Low heat and slow cook for a long time. The meat will fall off the bones. Before applying the rub, slather the meat with with liquid smoke to get a BBQ taste.
That’s fine for a smoker but you should try my way for oven baked. Trust me… it’s fall of the bone delicious in a fraction of the time.
I made these for Sunday lunch and they were fantastic! No sauce used, none needed. My hubby, our daughter and son-in-law all raved about these ribs, and we’re all looking forward to having them again. And regularly. I made a jar of the rub to keep on hand. The son-in-law prefers to use dry rub instead of marinade in all his grilling, and he really loved your rib rub.
Instead of finishing the ribs on the grill, I started them on the grill to give them a nice sear and that lovely flavor. They turned out perfect. Thanks so much for this recipe
I’m not kidding. This is the best thing that’s happened to me since I began my keto journey three years ago. These ribs are THE BEST. And the barbecue sauce…just give me the jar and a spoon! I put this sauce on EVERYTHING. Hands down, this is my FAVORITE recipe. I make these ribs once a week. Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Hooray!
This recipe is absolutely the best! I will never do them any other way. Mine turned out so tender and tastey! Thank you so much!
Hi my names Pete, My wife, Lynn, broke her ankle in 2016 while she was laid up I fed her tv dinners. Very not good! When she started to regain mobility but weight was not coming back off she started dieting! First the Whole 30 then went right into keto without even realizing it!
We found an awesome dry rub on Amazon called Bad Byron’s Butt Rub!! Sooo tasty and reasonable price for a decent size container! Will have to try making my own some day thanks for the recipe!@
This was fantastic! We made this pretty much exactly as written (but marinated the ribs with the rub overnight), and, as suggested, used your Chipotle Whisky Barbecue Sauce (reduced on the hob for 1 hour) to go with it. We went for the less spicy version of the barbecue sauce (using 1/4 tsp chipotle powder) and it was just right for us 🙂 We didn’t need much of the sauce to glaze the pork, to be honest, a little goes a long way, so there’s plenty leftover for future pork ribs weekends… yay! These ribs were gorgeous with a side of garlic buttered zucchini with a squeeze of lemon on top – happy days and happy bellies! Thank you so much for this recipe, we loved it.
I made these the day before yesterday for dinner. I also made the Easy Sugar Free Barbeque sauce to go with them. Being from Texas, I’m picky about my barbeque. And, I can definitely say your recipes really hit the mark. They were great. This is going to be my forever recipe. In fact, they were so good, I had them for breakfast yesterday. I couldn’t help myself.
That’s great to hear!
Best ribs I’ve ever had!! My husband LOVED them!
Replace a tablespoon or two of your water with apple cider vinegar for a little flavor boost. That’s how I do my ribs and they are always a hit. I don’t use the water at all, though. Just put the ribs in a foil envelope after they’re rubbed in the spice mix, then add a splash of ACV and seal. Then into the oven.
I have missed ribs since going keto as all the premade sauces I used to use were too high in sugar. OH MY! This is better than anything that came out of a bottle. I left the ribs overnight in the fridge with the dry rub on. Cooked them tonight with a little water but uncovered, and basted with your BBQ sauce mix when there was half an hour left. Love your work. Looks like ribs are back on the menu! Thanks so much for your awesome recipes.