Ribs With Peach BBQ Sauce
Ribs with peach BBQ sauce are super tender and full of bold, sweet and savory flavors. They cook low and slow, but the hands-on part is minimal. These scrumptious ribs are baked first, then finished on the grill or under the broiler.
Don’t be afraid to use the shortcuts below if you’re feeling a bit lazy or short on time. The ribs will still be delicious.
The peaches add a subtle sweetness and texture to the sauce, but I have to admit they are somewhat masked by the BBQ sauce. The peach bbq sauce is yummy though. And the optional bourbon gives it a nice kick.
The BBQ peach sauce would also be fantastic with pork chops or chicken.
How to cook the ribs – 4 options
The recipe uses the low-fuss baking method which works so well to infuse the flavor of the rub and results in perfectly tender ribs every time. I finish the rack of ribs on the grill or under the broiler, adding the sauce and a bit of char for presentation. The ribs will take about 2 – 2 1/2 hours with the baking method for the entire recipe.
If you are looking to cook your ribs more quickly – with excellent results – try boiling them or cooking them in the instant pot. Both these methods are covered in our famous Montreal back ribs recipe which boasts a wickedly good glaze. The boiling method will take about 1 1/2 hours for the entire recipe, The instant pot, just 1 hour.
I also love to cook ribs sous vide. They come out insanely tender and can be made days ahead (or frozen) for a quick mouthwatering meal later on. Here’s our recipe for sous vide baby back ribs. This method takes much longer – about 15 hours, but so good!.
Step by step instructions
What kind of ribs to buy
I stick to two types of ribs.
- Baby back ribs – these are tender and less fatty that other types. I buy these most often. Each rack is 1.5-2 lbs (680-900g) and will serve 2 people.
- St Louis-style ribs (or spare ribs) – these are meatier, very flavorful (due to more fat) and tender. Each rack is closer to 3-3.5 lbs (1.36-1.59kg) and will serve 3-4 people.
Tailor To Your Taste
- Use any dry spice rub you prefer instead of the one in the recipe
- Omit the bourbon if you prefer
- Try chicken instead of ribs, adding the sauce in the last 10 minutes on the grill
- Looking for spicy peach BBQ sauce? Add a pinch or two of red chili flakes while it’s cooking.
- Prefer a smooth or chunky peach BBQ sauce? I like it with pieces of peach, but if you prefer it smooth, blend the sauce with an immersion blender.
What to serve with ribs
So many options! Here are a few of my faves:
- Grilled summer peaches,
- Herb potato salad
- Panzanella salad recipe with peaches
- Corn and tomato salad
- Hasselback sweet potatoes (15 min)
- Party salad with grilled vegetables and quinoa
- Grilled cabbage (slaw)
- Citrus salad
Or check out our summer Sunday dinner ideas for other options.
Shortcuts
- Buy a spice dry rub for ribs/chicken
- For the peach barbecue sauce,
- use a cup of your favorite store-bought or homemade sauce, then add the bourbon and peaches as per the recipe, or
- use 1/2 cup of peach jam/preserves (instead of fresh peaches) and cut the brown sugar in half. This way you can eliminate peeling and chopping peaches
- Instead of pre-baking the ribs for 2 hours, use the boil or instant pot method found in our pork loin back ribs recipe.
Make Ahead
- Prep ahead
- The rub can be made ahead then sprinkled on the ribs a day before to enhance flavor. Refrigerate, covered.
- The peach BBQ sauce can also be made several days ahead. Store it separately in the fridge. Feel free to make a double batch of the sauce and keep the leftovers for chicken another time.
- Cook ribs ahead
- Cook ribs, cool them after baking, then refrigerate in a sealed bag or container.
- To finish the ribs, bring them to room temperature if you have time, then grill or broil them as per the recipe.
LOVE PEACHES? Then be sure to check out these amazing peach recipes.
If you like this recipe, please leave a 5 star rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟with a comment in the recipe card below. Thanks so much!
Ribs With Peach BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 rack baby back pork ribs (about 2 pounds/900g)
Dry Rub
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 tablespoon EACH: chili powder, garlic powder, brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Bourbon Peach BBQ Sauce
- 1/3 cup (79ml) Bourbon can be omitted if you prefer
- 3/4 cup (200g) Ketchup
- 2 tablespoon dark brown sugar (light ok too – or maple syrup)
- 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 3/4 tablespoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon garlic powder (or 1 minced garlic clove)
- 3/4 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 cup diced fresh peaches (about 4 small peaches)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F/149C.
- MAKE RUB: Combine all rub ingredients in a small bowl. Shortcut: use a store-bought rub.
- PREPARE RIBS: Rinse ribs, Pat dry. Remove the silver skin on the back of the ribs (Note 1). Cut rack in half. Line a pan with tin foil. Generously sprinkle rub on both sides of ribs. Wrap each half separately in foil then place on pan. Cover entire pan with another piece of foil. To enhance flavor, season ribs, wrap them and leave them in the fridge over night.
- BAKE RIBS: Place pan in oven and bake for 2 hours or until tip of knife slides easily into meat. If your ribs are meatier, you might need 2.5 hrs. (Ribs can be cooled, then refrigerated for up to 2 days at this point in sealed bags or container.)
- MAKE SAUCE: (while ribs are baking) Bring bourbon to boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in rest of ingredients with a wooden spoon. Bring to boil, then lower to medium heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes until thickened. If not thick enough, uncover and simmer another 5 minutes. If you don't like any chunks in the sauce, you can blend the peach mixture until smooth with an immersion blender. Taste and adjust seasonings.
- GLAZE AND FINISH ON GRILL: Spray oil on clean gas grill (or charcoal) and heat to medium-high heat. If ribs were cooked earlier and are now cold, bring them to room temperature first or add more grill time. Brush sauce onto ribs. Place ribs on grill and grill for 4-6 minutes until char marks form, flipping once. Brush on additional sauce, cut into serving pieces and serve. Note 2 – to Broil.
Recipe Notes
- To remove silver skin on back of ribs: On the back of rib rack (bone side), slide tip of knife under skin at small end of rack. Loosen skin from bone, then grab it with a paper towel and peel the skin off entire rib. It should peel away in one large sheet. If it doesn’t, try again. Here’s a video on how to remove the skin membrane.
- To Broil (instead of grill): Place warm or room temperature ribs meat side down in a single layer on foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Sauce the side facing up and broil about 6 inches from heat for 3 minutes . Flip over. Sauce the meaty side and broil another 3-4 minutes or until heated through and beginning to brown.
- Substitutes
- Ribs: use St Louis-style ribs instead of back ribs. They may need to bake longer.
- Dry rub – use any rub you like for chicken or ribs.
- Brown sugar – use honey or maple syrup instead.
- Apple cider vinegar – use white vinegar or lemon juice instead.
- Fresh peaches – use 1/2 cup of peach jam/preserves and cut the brown sugar in half.
- Make Ahead:
- Prep ahead:
- The rub can be made ahead then sprinkled on the ribs a day before to enhance flavor. Refrigerate, covered.
- The peach BBQ sauce can also be made several days ahead. Store it separately in the fridge. Feel free to make a double batch of the sauce and keep the leftovers for chicken another time.
- Cook ribs ahead:
- Cook ribs, cool them after baking, then refrigerate in a sealed bag or container.
- To finish the ribs, bring them to room temperature if you have time, then grill or broil them as per the recipe.
- Prep ahead:
Nutrition
This ribs with peach BBQ sauce recipe was inspired by The Neelys on Food Network and Lemon Blossoms food blog. It has been updated with new information and edits since 2018.
Wonderful sauce! We used it for smoked ribs. I did add a few drops of green Tabasco. 😉
Great to hear Denise. Thanks very much for taking the time to leave a comment – always appreciated.
Amazing ! My family loved it!
Thrilled to hear that! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment 🙂
I’ve been using this recipe with beef ribs for years. A crowd pleaser. I pour the juices from the rib packets, cool them, remove the fat. I add a few tablespoons of the remaining gel to the sauce for extra flavour.
Thanks for sharing your tricks Barbara!
Can you use canned peaches instead of fresh?
Yes you can. The texture might be slightly different, but since they are in a sauce, you probably won’t notice. I would drain and rinse them first. Let us know how it turns out!
Liked this one. We like spicier bbq sauce, but this had a good base for us to build on. Definitely gonna use this one again
Glad you liked the recipe Matt. And for sure spice it up if that’s what you like. Almost every recipe needs to be adapted to your taste in my opinion.
2nd time I used this recipe as my inspiration. Used beef back ribs instead of spare ribs. Don’t have bourbon, but scotch did the trick.
Got rave reviews both time and requests for yr recipe.
Another terrific recipe from the Two Kooks!!
Thx
BB from Toronto
Thank you so much Barbara! I will definitely have to try the recipe with beef back ribs. Sounds delicious.