Baked Baby Back Ribs with Whiskey Glaze

Skip the grill and make the most amazing baked Baby Back Ribs with Whiskey Glaze right in your oven! These cooked low-and-slow ribs are downright finger-licking good, and that glaze? It’s so good, you’ll want it on everything!

Y’all, I have a confession to make. You may know that I’m a huge foodie, but I’ll go to extreme lengths to get my hands on scrumptious eats. For example, once, I drove 60 miles to get a hot dog that a magazine claimed was the best in the South. Long story short, the hot dog didn’t live up to my expectations, but I didn’t let that deter me.

Which is how these ribs came about. I saw a rib joint featured on TV and was drooling over the ribs they showed. It was ONLY 2 hours away by car, so we made the trek, and WOW, were the ribs good! I couldn’t keep driving 2 hours each way to satisfy my rib craving, so I buckled down and created these baked Baby Back Ribs with Whiskey Sauce. They might not be quite as good as what I got from that rib restaurant, but they’re pretty darn close! And the best part is that I can eat them in less time to drive to the rib joint and back!

Ingredients

• 2 slabs of baby back ribs – Silver skin removed and cut in half. See my tips below.
• BBQ spice mix – I like Penzy’s BBQ 3000 but use what you have on hand.
• Onion – Finely chopped.
• Water
• Tomato paste
• White vinegar
• Brown sugar
• Honey
• Worcestershire sauce
• Whiskey
• Garlic – Fresh garlic; minced.
• Onion powder
• Molasses
• Chili powder

How To Make The Best Baked Baby Back Ribs with Whiskey Glaze

1. Preheat your oven to 300-F.
2. Rub the BBQ spice mix on the front and back of the ribs. Wrap the rib sections individually in foil and bake them on a sheet pan with raised edges for 2.5 hours. Let them rest 10 minutes before unwrapping.
3. While the ribs are cooking, combine the onion, water, tomato paste, white vinegar, brown sugar, honey, Worcestershire sauce, whiskey, garlic, onion powder, molasses, and chili powder in a saucepan.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat. Simmer on very low for at least 90 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Baste the ribs with the whisky glaze and broil them under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until they’re hot and bubbly.
6. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe Tips

• Ribs have silver skin on the backside. This is a tough membrane and should be removed before cooking. It can be pulled off by cutting a bit of it away from the back of the ribs and then grabbing the loose flap with a paper towel and pulling it off.
• You can prep the ribs up to a day in advance by seasoning them with the BBQ spice and then wrapping them with foil. Bake them when ready.
• You can make the glaze up to 2-3 days in advance. Keep it in the fridge and warm it up before using it.
• How many baby back ribs per person? Count on about 6 ribs per person. 
• You can also grill the ribs to finish them. Preheat your grill to high, remove the cooked ribs from the foil, and grill them for 3-4 minutes per side, basting them with the glaze before flipping them.

Serving Suggestions

These baked Baby Back Ribs with Whiskey Glaze are so good that they’ll steal the show! I love serving them with other tasty eats like Mexican Street Corn Salad, homemade buttermilk onion rings, or sweet potato fries.

Storage

Store any leftover ribs in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days, but I doubt they’ll last that long!

Other Delicious Rib Recipes

• Country Style Ribs
• Mayonnaise Crusted Ribs
• Crockpot Braised Ribs