Tender, juicy and full of flavor these smoked pork ribs use the 3-2-1 method to simplify the process and provide you with delicious, fall-off-the-bone ribs every single time.

Pork ribs are one of our favorite foods. While there is often a bit of a disagreement between people on whether or not ribs should be fall off the bone tender, we think they should be... those are the best kind. In fact, for years I've made slow cooker pork ribs to get that delicious, tender meat, but this is my absolute favorite way to make ribs.

This smoker recipe takes a bit of time, though most of it is hands off, but simplifies the process so you know exactly what to do to get the same great ribs every time. Trust me when I say it is well worth your time.

What are 3-2-1 Ribs?

The 3-2-1 method is a cooking method that involves smoking the ribs in a dry rub for 3 hours directly on the grill, then wrapping them in foil and cooking them in liquid on the smoker for 2 hours, and then slathered and bbq sauce and back on the grill for the last hour.

This makes this recipe perfect for beginners who are just starting out with smoking meats because it's pretty much foolproof. It's super easy, and is the best smoked pork ribs recipe you'll ever taste.

Pair these up with some oven-baked seasoned fries, a Traeger baked potato, or some southern-style green beans and you'll have yourself an awesome restaurant meal at home for a fraction of the price. Added bonus? It tastes so much better than anything you'll have at a restaurant.

How to Smoke Ribs

This is by far the easiest, and best way to make ribs. The cooking process is straight forward, smoke for three hours, bath for two hours, baste for one hour and all done at the same low temperature. Cooking ribs low, and slow results in the most tender, fall off the bone ribs you'll ever have.

It's straightforward and will result in amazing baby backs every time, even if it's your first time smoking ribs.

Best Dry Rub for Ribs

I love the simplicity of this recipe, but you will need a few things.

Brown Sugar - this will help enhance the smoky flavor without being too sweet.

Salt - salt really helps improve not only the flavor of the pork, but the texture of it.

White Pepper - white pepper is slightly less pungent than black pepper, but still provides an excellent spice to help break through that smoky flavor and bring out all the depth in the pork.

Paprika - you can use sweet or hot paprika, the choice is really your own to make, both have their strengths in this dish and both will bring out the flavor of the meat.

Garlic Powder - no recipe is complete without garlic. The powder is a little less pungent than freshly minced garlic and will still bring out the meat's awesome, fatty flavors.

Onion Powder - another must-have for bringing out the amazing flavors of the pork.

Dry Mustard - A classic for preparing meat for the smoker, mustard helps give the meat some amazing flavor.

3-2-1 Ribs Bath Ingredients

After the ribs smoke directly on the pellet smoker for 3 hours, you'll wrap them in foil and soak them in a liquid bath while they cook for another two hours.

Brown Sugar - again, to add the perfect sweet, and put a little bark on the ribs when they finish cooking

Apple Juice - adds a bit more sweetness without being overpowering.

Butter - Gives a little something for everything to stick to and provides some extra crisping on the outside.

Choosing the Best Pork Ribs

There are three different types of pork ribs to choose from. You can use either baby back ribs, spare ribs, or St. Louis Style ribs and your favorite barbecue sauce. My personal preference is baby back ribs.

Baby Back Ribs - these provide a lot of meat, are the leanest of the three cuts, and are the most tender. Baby backs take the longest to cook, but are well worthwhile.

Spare Ribs - These types of ribs aren't particularly meaty as they come from near the belly, which is usually saved for bacon, leaving little meat. These will cook more quickly because they contain less meat.

St. Louis Style Ribs - these are spare ribs that are cut to a uniform, rectangular shape which helps them cook more evenly than regular spare ribs. St. Louis style ribs cook the quickest out of all of the rib types.

How to Smoke Ribs on the Pellet Grill

Remove the silver skin - Before you even begin, you'll want to remove the silverskin from the ribs. While not entirely necessary, it's worth the time it takes to remove this connective tissue from them as it will result in a more tender rack of ribs.

To do so, simply take a butter knife and slide it under the thin membrane surrounding the rack of ribs. If you can't get it to slide under the membrane, just pick a different spot.

Begin peeling the membrane off, it should come off in a single sheet, however, if it doesn't just slide the knife back under and start again until you get it all removed.

Prep ribs and preheat smoker. After the silverskin is removed, go out and preheat your smoker to 225°F making sure the wood basket is full.

Mix together the ingredients for the dry rub in a bowl and slather it all over the rack of ribs, top and bottom.

After you have the dry rub worked into the meat and the smoker preheated, place the rack bone side down, directly on the grill grates and smoke for three hours.

Place ribs in a bath - After smoking ribs for three hours, you'll mix together the apple juice and remaining brown sugar. Place the ribs in heavy duty aluminum foil, pour the apple juice and sugar mixture over the top, and top them with butter. Close up the foil tightly and place the ribs back in the smoker, tightly wrapped in the foil for another two hours.

Baste the ribs - The final hour of cooking involves removing the rib rack from the bath and placing them back on the grate, bone side down. If you want to put barbecue sauce on them, now is the time to start brushing it all over the meat.

You'll want to baste bbq on every 15 to 20 minutes until you have a nice, crispy bark on the outside and the meat has begun to pull away from the bones and the internal temperature reaches 180°F. This will take approximately 30 minutes to an hour.

Rest the ribs. After they've finished smoking, remove them from the smoker and allow them to sit for 10 minutes before enjoying.

Best Wood for Smoked Pork Ribs

You'll want to pick the right wood for your smoked ribs or they'll wind up overpowered with smoky flavor and you won't get to enjoy the meat... no one wants that.

For the best, mild smoky flavor I recommend using fruit woods like apple or cherry. Pecan is another good choice. If you want a stronger smoke flavor go with hickory, mesquite, or oak.

I really like to use apple or cherry when we smoke ribs, or a combination of hickory and cherry. Personally, I don't prefer mesquite, but if you want a heavy flavor it will do the trick without being too overpowering.