If you’re a fan of slow cooked, pulled pork or lamb, you will absolutely love pulled beef ribs!
Much the same as pork shoulder, pork ribs or shoulder of lamb, when you slow cook beef ribs, they will fall off the bone and shred into succulent, tender and extremely tasty pieces which will have your mouth watering immediately!
Don’t be alarmed, they are huge in comparison to baby back pork or lamb ribs, but ask your butcher to cut them in half to about 6 inches in length and then two of those will feed two hungry people or up to four people if you’re having other accompaniments with the meal.
For this recipe I am using a two rib piece approx. 6×6 inches/15x15cm – see image below:
I will be serving the pulled beef ribs in a brioche bun with extra BBQ sauce, homemade carrot and cabbage coleslaw and pickled red onion to add a little zing to every bite!
The secret is to first marinate the beef ribs in the BBQ dry rub/seasoning for as long as possible, ideally 24 to 48 hours if you have the time as this will let the seasoning really flavour the meat throughout. Otherwise a few hours will still be good, but the longer the better!
You can then cook the beef ribs in a slow cooker on the lowest setting or in the oven between 120°C to 150°C, depending on your oven, for 5-6 hours.
This beef ribs recipe serves 2-4 people. Preparation time 30 mins for the BBQ dry rub/seasoning, BBQ sauce, coleslaw and pickled red onion. Up to 48 hours to marinate the beef ribs. Cooking time 5-6 hours ideally.
Pulled Beef Ribs Recipe with BBQ Sauce, Homemade Slaw and Pickled Red Onion – what you need:
Approx 1x beef rib per person or max 1x beef rib per two people, cut into approx. 6 inch/15cm length or equivalent to 1lb/500g per person.
Cling film.
Tin foil.
Ovenproof/baking dish.
For the BBQ Dry Rub/Seasoning recipe:
1.5x tablespoons soft dark brown sugar.
1/2x tablespoon fine sea salt.
1/2x tablespoon smoked paprika.
1/4x tablespoon ground allspice.
1/2 tablespoon garlic powder/ground dried garlic.
1/2 tablespoon onion powder/ground dried onion.
1/2x teaspoon ground black pepper.
Small mixing bowl.
For the BBQ Sauce recipe:
1/2x tablespoon soft dark brown sugar.
1x tablespoon olive oil.
1x tablespoon Worcester sauce.
1x tablespoon dark soy sauce or 1x teaspoon fine sea salt.
1x tablespoon runny honey.
2x tablespoons tomato ketchup.
1x clove garlic, crushed/very finely chopped or 1x teaspoon garlic powder/dried garlic.
1/2 onion blended/very finely chopped or 1x teaspoon onion powder/dried onion.
1 x teaspoon smoked paprika.
1/2x teaspoon ground allspice.
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper.
Mixing bowl.
Small saucepan.
For the homemade coleslaw recipe:
1/2 a white or green cabbage – very finely sliced.
2x medium sized carrots – finely shredded using a grater or into thin strips using a potato peeler.
1x tablespoon mayonaise.
2x tablespoons plain yoghurt.
1/4 lemon (juice of).
Sea salt and black pepper to taste.
Mixing bowl.
For the pickled red onion recipe:
1x red onion, very finely sliced.
1/2x tablespoon white wine vinegar or cider vinegar.
Small bowl.
Pulled Beef Ribs Recipe with BBQ Sauce, Homemade Slaw and Pickled Red Onion – what you need to do:
1. Firstly mix all the BBQ dry rub/seasoning ingredients into a bowl. Coat the beef ribs thoroughly in the dry rub making sure all the meat is covered evenly. Wrap the beef ribs in a double layer of cling film and refrigerate for up to 48 hours to let the seasoning flavour the meat.
2. Once the beef ribs are marinated to your liking, remove from the fridge for 30 minutes before wrapping in a double layer of foil (to seal all the juices in during cooking) then put into the oven in a baking dish on low for 5-6 hours. Recommended temperature 130°C/110°C fan, to not exceed 150°C in regular oven or 120°C in fan oven. If using a slow cooker, use the lowest heat setting and no need to wrap in foil – just keep the lid tightly closed and cook for 5-6 hours until meat is falling off the bone. Add a little water if the steam escapes during cooking.
3. Once the meat is cooked, remove from the oven/slow cooker and leave to one side to rest – cover loosely in foil and leave in a baking dish if removing from slow cooker. Be careful of any juice that may spill out as you need to keep this!
4. Whilst the meat is resting you can prepare your other elements: mix all the BBQ sauce ingredients in a bowl, stir thoroughly, then pour into small saucepan on low heat to warm gently – this process melts the sugar and infuses the spices with other ingredients (ensure not to boil the mixture as it will burn). Whilst the BBQ sauce is warming, mix the pickled red onion ingredients into a bowl, cover and leave to one side until ready to serve. Then mix all the coleslaw ingredients into a bowl, cover and leave to one side.
5. Now you’re ready for the fun part! Carefully remove the meat from the foil and place into the baking dish with all the juices. Using tongs, remove the beef rib bones and any remaining sinew/fat that hasn’t broken down. Use the tongs or two forks to pull the beef ribs apart into shreds. Cover with foil to keep warm.
6. Now you’re ready to assemble! Lightly toast the brioche buns in the oven then add a generous amount of pulled beef ribs followed by some BBQ sauce, coleslaw then finally the pickled red onion. Why not add a cheeky pile of slaw and pulled beef ribs on the side with some extra BBQ sauce! Ive served this with a baked sweet potato to complete this extremely tasty, succulent and absolutely divine meal!
Serve and savour every mouthful!
I hope you like this pulled beef ribs recipe. As always, your feedback is most welcome so please comment below or get in touch at thefoodbeaver.com or through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Food Beaver.