Crock.Pot Ribs

Three ingredients. Five minutes of hands-on work. Ten hours later, you’ve got pork ribs so tender the meat slides off the bone when you look at it sideways. This is the ultimate set-it-and-forget-it recipe.

The ribs go into the Crock-Pot with a bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce and enough water to keep everything submerged. The low, slow heat breaks down the tough connective tissue in the ribs over those 9 to 10 hours, turning collagen into gelatin and leaving you with melt-in-your-mouth meat.

No searing, no pre-seasoning, no babysitting. Just load it up before bed or before work and come home to dinner.

Kitchen Tips

• Choose a barbecue sauce you actually love since it’s the only seasoning here. The quality of the sauce is the quality of the ribs.
• Cut the rack into sections that fit your slow cooker. They don’t need to lay flat, but they should be submerged in liquid.
• If you want a caramelized finish, pull the ribs out, brush with extra sauce, and broil for 3 to 5 minutes right before serving.
• The cooking liquid makes a rich, smoky broth. Strain it and reduce it on the stove for an extra-concentrated dipping sauce.

Variations

• Use baby back ribs for a leaner, slightly quicker-cooking option.
• Add a splash of apple cider vinegar and a spoonful of brown sugar to the sauce for a Carolina-style tang.
• Toss in sliced onions at the bottom of the pot for a sweet, caramelized bed under the ribs.