Easy Air Fryer BBQ Ribs

These Easy Air Fryer Ribs are juicy, tender, and easy to whip up! You can use baby back, spare, or any of your favorite cuts of pork. Be sure to drizzle these in your favorite BBQ sauce.

Do you live in a part of the country that has harsh winters? I do! I’m a Midwest gal. I live in Kansas City. Not only do we have harsh winters, but we are KNOWN for our BBQ here. No other city or state can compare to ours! The air fryer makes it easy to enjoy ribs year round.

What Type of Ribs to Use

You can use any ribs you like in this recipe, the prep and cook times will remain about the same. I used spare pork ribs.

Spare ribs are cut from the belly and behind the shoulder. They are closer to the belly and tend to have more fat. These ribs are also really flat. Because they have more fat, there’s lots of flavor so some people tend to favor these.

A slab or rack of baby back often includes 10-13 ribs and weighs 1- 3 pounds. One rack is usually enough to serve 2 people, maybe 3 or 4 if 2 pounds. This slab was a little over 3 pounds.

St. Louis Style ribs are spare ribs that have been trimmed down by cutting away the hard breastbone and chewy cartilage, otherwise known as connective tissue.

Beef back ribs are from the upper part of the cow and are the same cut found in bone-in ribeyes. These are usually mostly bone and fat, with a small amount of meat, but have lots of flavor.

Beef short ribs come from the lower part of the animal. These are typically really meaty and often served braised.

How to Season the Ribs

You can use a dry rub or a liquid marinade for the ribs. A dry rub is a combination of spices and seasoning added to the meat to enhance flavor. It’s different from a marinade which has liquid ingredients (often to tenderize the meat) like apple cider vinegar or citrus.

The purpose of a dry rub is to create a crust around the meat. A dry rub will enhance the flavor of the ribs without using moisture or a liquid marinade. Rubs are usually a little more coarse than simply adding seasoning.

 I love to use my Homemade BBQ Rub and Seasoning for these. It’s a combination of the following:

• Brown Sugar or Sweetener
• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Smoked Paprika
• Salt
• Pepper

Feel free to use your favorite rub.

How to Make Easy Air Fryer Ribs

1. Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs.
2. Drizzle the liquid smoke over both sides of the ribs.
3. Season both sides with the pork rub, salt and pepper.
4. Air fry.

Air Fryer Temperature

I use 360 degrees.

Cook Time/How Long to Cook

The ribs will need 30 minutes to marinate and another 30 minutes of cook time. You can complete the recipe in about an hour.

How to Store Leftovers

Leftovers can be stored tightly covered and sealed for 3-4 days.

How to Reheat

Reheat leftovers at 350 degrees in the air fryer until warm.

Freezer Tips

You can freeze ribs tightly covered and sealed for up to 3 months.

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