Sticky Pork Spare Ribs in the Oven (Made with Sugar-Free Rub)

After regularly cooking these sugar-free pork spare ribs for the past six months, my husband convinced me to share this ribs recipe. This is one of his favorite meals; as he says, perfect for a weekend or a game day.

These pasture-raised pork spare ribs are tender, sticky, sweet, full of flavor, and finger-licking good.

They are cooked low and slow in the oven, with plenty of spices and a sugar-free glaze, and while you must be at home for a few hours when cooking them, the hands-on time is no longer than 30 minutes. The oven does the job.

It was quite intimidating for me to come out with a pork spare rib recipe. But when my husband insisted that these were the best baked sticky ribs he’s had, I was convinced.

Look for quality pasture-raised pork

We spend most part of the year (spring to fall) in Denmark, in our summer house, and luckily, there is a famous butcher nearby who delivers good meat.

We asked if they had pasture-raised pork ribs, and to our surprise, they did. While they still sell conventional meat, there is always a pasture-raised (‘friland’ as it’s called here in Denmark) version if you ask for it.

The spice rub blend for spare ribs

When it comes to pork spare ribs, it’s all about the spices (and the glaze). They will give so much flavor to this simple dish and add sweetness and depth of taste.

But there is more to spices than flavor. Spices are rich in polyphenols and are powerful antioxidants, making protein cooking safer. Below are the spices we use for this recipe:

• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon mustard powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon dry thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon dry rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon Ceylon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

The glaze for sugar-free sticky pork spare ribs

Sugar is used in cooking sticky ribs because of the sweetness and because it creates that caramelized sticky sauce that coats the ribs (and we all love it).

I was looking at a recipe in a cookbook a few days ago, and I was shocked to see that for the same quantity of ribs, 1 cup of sugar was used.

But there is a way to get the sweetness and the glaze without the sugar. I do use one teaspoon of local honey, but that’s about all the sugar you find in this recipe.

The below ingredients create a glaze that will caramelize well and, together with the spices, will make these oven baked ribs sweet, flavorful, and sticky.

It’s ok if you don’t have black garlic powder. But if you do, it will add extra depth of flavor.

• 3 tablespoons coconut aminos
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon honey
• Optional: 1/4 teaspoon of black garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon water

The pasture-raised pork spare ribs

This recipe is made for pasture-raised pork spare ribs. We usually cook about 1kg, which is about 3 racks of ribs of 32 cm / 12 inch each.

Pasture-raised pork ribs are not easy to find everywhere in the world. But we try only to eat animal protein coming from non-CAFO animals, humanly raised, preferably on pastures, fed a natural diet.

This is not only for ethical and environmental reasons but because nutritionally, animals raised on pastures and fed a species-appropriate diet are nutritionally superior.

If we don’t find these types of ribs, we just don’t eat any ribs at all. Luckily, while spending our summers in Denmark, we can find, at our local butcher, these pasture-raise ribs. However, we had to ask specifically for them. If you don’t ask, you get what the mainstream gets, the CAFO meat. It is cheaper and more readily available. Plus, people don’t even know they have the option of getting the pasture-raised alternative.

So my advice is, always ask the butcher, even in a supermarket. Chances are, they may be able to get you what you want.

The same goes for restaurants. When living in Dallas, we had a few restaurants that didn’t have grass-fed on the menu, but the chef always had this option available for those who asked for it. Go figure!

How to prepare the ribs for cooking

You actually don’t need to do much. I like to rinse them and pat dry them, but you don’t necessarily have to do that. Some people are really against rinsing meat.

I formed this habit when I followed a low histamine diet. Sometimes we get them frozen and thaw them either in the fridge overnight or at room temperature.

Now, the only thing you need to do is to remove the membrane on the back of the ribs. I took a picture so you can see how it looks if you haven’t done this before.

You need to insert a pairing knife under the membrane and slowly pull it out, with the knife or using your hands. Sometimes, using a paper towel to pull will make it easier. Removing this membrane makes the ribs more tender and easier to get the meat off the bone.

The ribs we get don’t have a lot of fat on them, so there is no need to remove anything else.

How to cook spare ribs in the oven

These ribs need a low and slow cooking process.

After rubbing them with the spice blend, without adding any oil, I put them in the oven preheated to 320F / 160C. I use a stainless still pan with tall edges, which is not too big, so there is not much extra space left (this will later help keep the glaze together and coat all the ribs).

A roaster pan will also work, but if it has handles, you will probably have to use aluminum foil to cover it.

First, the ribs get in the pan face down for an hour (the meaty side down).

I cover the pan with a stainless steel baking sheet that fits on top. I don’t like to use aluminum foil in cooking, but if you have no other option, use it as a cover. This way, the ribs will cook in their own steam and fat and won’t get dry.

After one hour, I flip the ribs face down, making sure I baste them with some of the liquid in the pan. They go back in the oven, covered, for another hour.

In the meantime, I prepare the glaze by mixing all the ingredients in a jar.

After the two initial hours at low temperature, I take out the ribs and increase the temperature to 400F / 200C.

I cover the ribs, both sides, with the glaze and put them back in the oven, first face down, uncovered. Set the timer to 15 minutes.

After minutes I take them out; if the glaze is getting dry, add one or two tablespoons of water to the pan.

I flip them and put them back in the oven for another 15 minutes.

After another 15 minutes, I take them out, cut them, and put them back in the pan, tossing them, and making sure they are all coated with the glaze. If the pan needs more liquid, add another tablespoon or so of water.

Put back in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.

Take out, toss well and serve.

A note about serving size

The serving size is just an estimate, this quantity can work for 2 or 4 people, depending on appetite, specific macro requirements, what else is eaten during the day, etc.

Serve the pork spare ribs with a simple coleslaw

We love these ribs with a simple, homemade coleslaw. There is so much richness and flavor in these sugar-free sticky spare ribs that we don’t want to complicate this meal too much.

Sometimes, we make a variation of this delicious, nutritionally dense, and colorful coleslaw:

• Nigella’s New Orleans Coleslaw Made Lectin-Free

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