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–+ servings
Sous vide ribs ready to eat!
4.89 from 9 votes

24 Hour Sous Vide Ribs

These bbq ribs are rubbed with a smokey dry rub, cooked in a sous vide bath for 24 hours, slathered with BBQ sauce, and then grilled to perfection.
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 1 day
Total 1 day 20 minutes
Fat 17
Carbs 31
Protein 51
Yield 4

Ingredients

  • 1 rack of baby back pork ribs St. Louis-style works too
  • 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 3/4 cup pork dry rub* divided
  • 1/2 cup BBQ sauce or more, to taste

Instructions

  • First, fill a large pot or container with water (something large enough to submerge your ribs). We've actually found that a cooler works best because we typically cook multiple racks of ribs at once. Preheat your sous vide water bath to 152ºF by attaching your sous vide to the side of the pot.
  • Next, prepare the pork dry rub by combining all of the spices together in a medium bowl and set aside.
  • Then, remove rack of ribs from the package and place it onto a large baking sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut the rack in half. Then, flip the ribs over and remove the white membrane by peeling it back. Discard membrane.
  • Generously season ribs with your dry rub. Use about 1/2 cup of dry rub at this point and save the rest for later. Use your hands to massage the rub into the front and back of the ribs.
    Two seasoned sous vide ribs on a baking sheet before cooking.
  • Transfer each half rack of ribs into 2 separate food saver bags and remove as much air as possible and seal. Submerge bags into the sous vide water bath and use 2 clips to attach them to the side of the pot. Cover pot with a piece of tin foil, leaving a hole for the sous vide to stick out. The reason we do this is to prevent evaporation overnight.
    Sous-vide ribs cooking in progress with a digital immersion circulator displaying the water temperature.
  • Set timer for 24-hours. Make sure to check water level every so often to make sure that the water does not evaporate. If it does, just add more.
  • Once the 24-hours is up, remove bags from water bath and then cut them open with a pair of scissors. Discard the juices and remove the ribs. Place ribs on top of paper towel and use an additional paper towel to blot any moisture out of them.
  • Use around 1/4 cup more of dry rub to season the front and back of the ribs. Then, use a brush to apply a layer of your favorite BBQ sauce. You can use as much or as little BBQ sauce as you'd like.
  • Preheat grill to 450ºF. Then, rub grill grates with olive oil or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Grill both sides of the ribs for 5-6 minutes or until you get a charred edge.
    Brushing barbecue sauce onto sous vide ribs on a barbecue grill.
  • Let ribs rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Tips & Notes

  • If your ribs are cool when you start the grilling process, we suggest turning your grill to about 350ºF and heating your rack for 10 mintues before adding the sauce and turning the heat up to 450ºF.
  • We've made this recipe with both baby back pork ribs and St. Louis-style pork ribs. 
  • Tin Foil --> Cover your pot with tin foil to prevent the water from evaporating. Trust me, it works!
    Clips --> Bag clips or clothespins make for an amazing tool for helping your bag of meat stay submerged. Clip them right to the side of the pot.
  • Check Water --> Check on your ribs every 6-12 hours to be sure that water hasn't evaporated. If it has, just pour enough hot water back into the pot to make sure the ribs stay underwater for the whole 24 hours.

Watch it

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 360kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 51g | Fat: 17g | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 14g