If you love fall-off-the-bone delicious gluten free ribs, this recipe is a family-pleasing dinner recipe to try! I am talking flavor-popping ribs with a finger-licking homemade sweet and spicy barbecue sauce your family is going to LOVE!

The top view of a big plate of gluten free ribs.

Raise your hands if you love barbecue ribs!!

Our family loves to make ribs. BBQ pork ribs are the perfect meal to make on the grill. I feel like my teens are always hungry and I often have to buy more than one rack of ribs to satisfy their appetite!

Grab a few simple ingredients and fire up your grill! You are sure to love this recipe for BBQ spare ribs on the grill. If you love to grill, try this Grilled Pork Chops recipe too!

Made these for the 4th and Memorial Day……fabulous!!”

Cathy R., Facebook comment
Two hands holding a partially eaten bbq rib.

Ways To Cook Ribs:

  1. Start the ribs in the oven and finish on the grill. This is the quickest cooking method.
  2. Cook them the whole time on the grill the whole time. You will love the flavor you get cooking these ribs on the grill, but it will take longer.
  3. Cook them in a smoker. We love our barrel smoker, but it takes many hours.
  4. Bake the gluten free barbecue ribs in the oven.
A hand dipping a grilled rib into BBQ sauce.

Ingredient Notes For Gluten Free Pork Ribs:

  • Ribs – I used bone-in pork ribs for this recipe.
  • Strawberry Jam – Any brand is fine.
  • Ketchup – You can use any brand of ketchup; check to ensure your ketchup is gluten free.
  • Green Chiles – Use mild or medium spice.
  • Maple Syrup – This adds a bit of sweetness that really works well in this recipe.
  • Molasses – I used blackstrap molasses.
  • Garlic – Use minced garlic.
  • Spice Rub – The spice rub is below. I like to use either McCormick or Penzeys, as these are gluten free.

Substitutions:

There are a few easy substitutions you can use in this sweet and spicy ribs recipe:

  • You can use honey in place of maple syrup.
  • If you don’t have ketchup, you can use pizza sauce. Pizza sauce is sweet, similar to ketchup.
  • If you do not want these spicy, omit the green chiles.

Are you ready to grill some barbecue gluten free ribs?

Top Pick
Cuisinart CGS-5020 BBQ Tool Aluminum Carrying Case, Deluxe Grill Set, 20-Piece

If you love to grill, this tool kit has everything you need! I love the tongs, marinade brushes, and easy grips for vegetables! It also cleans really well.

Buy Now
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

Step-By-Step-Directions:

A small glass bowl filled with spice rub for barbecue pork ribs.

Step 1: Let’s make the barbecue spice rub! The rub is not only to add a little flavor into the ribs while they cook, but it primes the meat for the barbecue sauce. The most important flavors in this rub are salt and paprika.

Spice Rub:

These spices blend in with the barbecue sauce’s strawberry and green chile flavors, which you will read about shortly! In a small bowl, combine:

  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon of cumin
Spice rub on a raw rack of ribs. The ribs are on a baking sheet.

Step 2: Dash outside and preheat the grill to 200º F (or preheat your oven to 300º F if you plan to precook the pork ribs a bit in your oven first.)

Step 3: Spread the rub onto the uncooked ribs. Make sure to coat both sides! Allow the meat to sit for 15 minutes.

Step 4: Wrap the pork ribs in tin foil and allow them to cook for 1 hour on the grill. I will turn the ribs over every 20-25 minutes so they cook evenly. Keep the heat low at 200º F.

A rack of ribs cooking on a grill.

Step 5: Unwrap the pork ribs and brush both sides with the homemade barbecue sauce. (See the recipe below!)

Step 6: Cook without the foil, basting with barbecue sauce every 20 minutes. Turn the ribs each time you add sauce. Continue to slow grill the ribs.

Another shot of the ribs coated in barbecue sauce cooking on the grill.

Step 7: These BBQ gluten free ribs are done when they have an internal temperature of 160-170º F. Use a knife to slice between each rib to cut up the rack of ribs.

A close up of the plate of ribs.

Recipe FAQ:

What are the three kinds of pork ribs?

You can get pork ribs from three areas of a pig. There are country-style, back ribs, and spare ribs.

Which type of pork rib is best?

I love back ribs because they tend to be leaner and more tender when cooked.

How do you store gluten free pork ribs?

Store these ribs in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can also freeze them in a zip-style freezer bag.

You may also love this Crockpot BBQ Chicken recipe.

More Gluten Free Pork Recipes:

The top view of a big plate of gluten free ribs.

Sweet and Spicy Barbecue Grilled Pork Ribs

Sandi Gaertner
A delicious homemade sweet and spicy barbecue grilled pork rib recipe.
4.92 from 24 votes
dairy free allergen icon
an egg free allergen icon
gluten free allergy icon
nut free allergen icon
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Additional Time 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Course Gluten Free Dinner Recipes, Meal Recipes
Cuisine American
Servings 6
Calories 596 kcal

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.

Ingredients
  

  • 2 pounds ribs bone in pork ribs
  • cup strawberry jam
  • cup ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon green chiles finely chopped
  • 3 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon molasses regular or blackstrap
  • teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 cloves garlic minced

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the grill to 200 degrees F.
  • Place the pork ribs on foil and cover with the spice rub. Allow to sit 5 minutes.
  • Wrap the pork ribs in foil and slow cook on the grill for 20 minutes.
  • Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan, cover, and simmer on low for 15 minutes. Coat the pork ribs with the sauce when they are almost done cooking!
  • Remove the pork ribs from the foil and coat the pork ribs in the homemade barbecue sauce.
  • Cook for an additional 15 minutes, turning the ribs over so both sides are cooked with the sauce. Check for an internal temperature of 160-170F degrees.

SPECIAL NOTE

Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 596kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 25gFat: 43gSaturated Fat: 19gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 21gTrans Fat: 3gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 266mgPotassium: 463mgFiber: 1gSugar: 21gVitamin A: 98IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 41mgIron: 3mg
Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @FearlessDining or tag #FearlessDining!

Nutrition Disclaimer

Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




14 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Yum! These ribs look amazing! I love starting mine in the oven and finishing them up on the grill.

  2. 5 stars
    I love that you have strawberry jam and maple syrup in your recipe! These ribs look fabulous. I usually cook mine in the Crock Pot for a lazy method, but would love to try them on the grill.

  3. 5 stars
    That was one lucky man who got to eat those ribs. They sure are finger lickin great! WOW

  4. 5 stars
    Yum! These ribs look amazing! I love starting mine in the oven and finishing them up on the grill. That way you get some smokiness without too much hassle.

    1. Exactly…the smokiness is fabulous and that flavor carries through if you end up making tacos with the extra rib meat too.

  5. 5 stars
    You had me at “fall off the bone.” I usually do start them in the oven and finish on the grill. I am intrigued by the flavors you have going on here and am always looking for new flavors and ways to eat ribs because we eat them all summer long. TIme to get my grill fired up:)

    1. LOL, it is definitely time to fire up the grill. These ribs are perfect for summer grilling.