It was time to update the Oven Sticky Rib recipe that was crafted easily ten years ago with new House of Q sauces, new flavours and using a gas grill instead of the oven. This updated recipe, Grilled Sticky Ribs, will go over the steps to creating a simple, easy to cook rib recipe that can be completed in under two and half hours.

What Went Wrong With the Oven Sticky Rib Recipe?

If you want to remake a recipe or update it, it might be valuable to identify what is working, what needs to improve and then how can you make it better?

For the old recipe version, there wasn’t anything wrong with it. It worked! And there was indeed tasty ribs to be had with the technique and flavours that BBQ Brian crafted. However, the ribs were cooked in an oven and not on a grill. That might be a starting point for the update – that is, to make the recipe for grilled ribs.

The second update was that there are so many more options for sauces and spices from House of Q. The old recipe used Sugar & Spice BBQ Sauce which is delicious but what about another flavour? Would the recipe and technique still work?

Lastly, the original recipe basically cut up the ribs and placed everything into a roasting pan. No seasoning, no searing and although the results can be delicious, there is room to improve the looks for these ribs.

Choosing a Pan to Use on Your Grill

Many grillers think of their grill as well, exactly that… a device to grill or sear things. That’s about it. But there’s so much more to using that wonderful device! This includes using your grill as an oven where cooking pans and hardware comes into play.

For us at House of Q, we love using cast iron skillets and pots with lids on our grills and smokers. These heavy pans are excellent to sear, make sauces, saute, braise and even fit the bill to be appropriate when serving to your guests. With a bit of educaton on how to use, clean, and maintain your cast iron pans and cookware, these items can be around for a very long time. Proudly, BBQ Brian has his Grandmother’s skillet which is from the 1940’s and it is used daily in the house. What a gem to have in your kitchen!

Besides cast iron, there are options. Best bets are to look for pots and pans that are marked as “oven safe” and can handle temperatures of 500 F or more. This temperature is not out of the ordinary for gas grills! The second feature to look for is a surface coating that is easily washable and can remove the grease or baked on coatings that come from being used in a grill. Using your show piece pots and pans in your grill can leave a blemished or coated-on-the-outside appearance that is hard to remove. Think this through and choose wisely with dark coloured or enamel coated pans.

Which Sauce to Use?

With this recipe update we wanted to explore different House of Q sauces for Sticky Ribs. The initial inspiration for this ribs recipe was thinking about eating ribs as a kid at a Chinese restaurant. The ribs were saucy and sticky but perfect as an appetizer. Fast forward to using the BBQ sauces and spices from House of Q to recreate this inpsired recipe.

The original Oven Sticky Rib recipe used Sugar & Spice BBQ Sauce which is the spiciest sauce from House of Q. It is complex in flavour and adds plenty of extra flavours to the recipe. However it can be too much spice for some eaters. Would another sauce work?

For this updated recipe, we used Five Star BBQ Sauce in addition to the Sugar & Spice version. Five Star is more mild from a spice perspective yet still has the sugar element for the sticky requirement.

Whichever you prefer, the spicier version using Sugar & Spice BBQ Sauce or the more mild Five Star BBQ Sauce version, both use the same steps and technique outlined below. We haven’t made this recipe with Apple Butter but it likely would be really good too. The key here is using a sweet, sugar-forward BBQ sauce and those two sauces certainly hit that mark!

Updated Sticky Grilled Ribs

Print Recipe

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine Grill, Smoker

HoQ Product Competition Beef Rub, Five Star Competition BBQ Sauce, House Rub, Sugar & Spice BBQ Sauce

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Servings 3

Author House of Q

Ingredients

• 1 rack Pork ribs
• 1/4 Cup House of Q Competition Beef Rub or House Rub
• 3/4 Cup Water
• 1/4 Cup Brown sugar
• 1/4 Cup Soy sauce
• 1/3 Cup House of Q Sugar and Spice Or Five Star BBQ Sauce
• 6 cloves Garlic – minced

Instructions

• Start by removing the membrane off the back of the ribs and cutting them into individual bone portions.
  
• Place the ribs into a bowl and add the Competition Beef Rub (or House Rub). Stir to thoroughly coat the ribs. We found using your hands worked best. Make sure you use up all of the seasoning!
  
• In a large mixing bowl, mix all the sauce ingredients together. Using Five Star BBQ Sauce will provide a sweet and tasty sauce for this recipe while Sugar & Spice will make the ribs spicier and super delicious. We like both versions so it really depends on what you are wanting for your cook today. If you are up for it, do both with 2 racks of ribs – each with a different sauce! Take a little time at this step to make sure the sugar has dissolved. Set aside once ready.
  
• Prepare your gas grill for direct heat, low temperature grilling. Place the ribs on the grill and sear the bones until a nice char or crust has been established. Turn the ribs over and grill the other side. At this point for this recipe, just make the ribs look great. The next steps will make them delicious!
  
• Place a cast iron skillet or oven safe pan onto your grill and pour the sauce into the pan. When the ribs have been grilled, move them into the sauce. Cover the pan with foil or a lid and let them roast in your grill for about 30 minutes. Open the lid and stir the ribs. Cover and continue cooking.
  
• After another 30 minutes or so, remove the lid and stir once again. Some of the ribs might be getting soft at this point. Continue cooking uncovered for another 30-60 minutes. Turn the ribs over in the sauce to coat. The sauce will thicken with the lid off and once the sauce has reduced and become sticky, remove from the grill, let the ribs rest.
  

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