Making smoked beef riblets at home is very straightforward if you follow these 7 easy steps. This smoking beef riblets recipe is so good, you can be sure you’ll impress even the most discerning guests.

Smoking beef riblets isn’t difficult but like all good things it requires a little time and attention to detail.

They’re also inexpensive to buy and a quick smoker recipe to prepare compared to a full rack of ribs.

What Are Beef Riblets?

Beef riblets are smaller pieces of meat which have been cut from a larger rack of beef short ribs. They are cheap, don’t take too long on the smoker and make a great starter or side dish for any BBQ.

What’s the Difference Between Riblets and Ribs?

Ribs are much bigger and cooked as a whole rack, whereas riblets are smaller pieces of ribs usually cut into single units between the bones. You could think of them as the beef version of chicken wings – small pieces of individual cuts with the bone in.

Are Riblets Pork or Beef?

Actually you can get both pork and beef riblets, just as you have beef and pork ribs.

What Temperature Do You Smoke Riblets?

Smoke the riblets at 250°F for around 3 and a half hours. If we were smoking a full rack of ribs we would use the low and slow 3-2-1 method for ribs which would take 6 hours, but the riblets are much smaller cuts of meat so cook more quickly.

How Long Does it Take to Cook Smoked Beef Riblets?

Smoke the beef riblets for around 3.5 hours at 250°F until you have reached an internal temperature of 200-205°F.

How to Make Smoked Beef Riblets in 7 Easy Steps

Beef Chuck Riblets Recipe

• Put Your Pellet Grill on Smoke Setting and get the Temperature to 250°F – Let it Smoke With Lid Open for 10-15 Min
• Remove the Membrane From the Back of the Riblets With a Sharp Paring Knife (Or Get Your Butcher to Do This)
• Mix Dry Rub Ingredients Together Thoroughly in a Bowl
• Rub the Riblets all Over with a Binder (Butter/Oil/Mustard) then Coat Evenly in Dry Rub
• Place Directly on the Smoker Grills Over Indirect Heat and Smoke for 2 Hours
• Slather in Your Favourite BBQ Sauce or Spritz with Apple Cider Vinegar and Smoke For a Further Hour
• Check the Internal Temperature & Add More Sauce or Spritz If Necessary. Your Riblets are Done When they Reach an Internal Temp of 200-205°F, the Meat has Shrunk Back from the Bone & the Probe Slides in Without Resistance

Smoking Beef Riblets – Dry Rub Recipe

• 1 tablespoon Smoked Paprika
• 1 tablespoon of Ground Cumin
• 1 tablespoon Celery Salt
• 1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
• 1/2 tablespoon Smoked Chipotle Chilli Powder (or Other Chilli Powder)
• 1/2 tablespoon Black Pepper
• 2 tablespoons Coarse Flaky Salt

Try Our Smoked Salt Recipe for Even More Flavour in the Dry Rub.

Mix together thoroughly in a bowl to combine.

What is the Internal Temp For Beef Riblets?

The internal target temperature for riblets is the same as the full rack of ribs – 200-205°F.

Beef Chuck Riblets in the Oven

If you want to cook your beef chuck riblets in the oven it will take around 1 hour 45 to 2 hours at 350F (177C). Obviously you won’t get that lovely smoky taste you get from the smoker, but you can get round this to some extent by adding a little hickory liquid smoke.

Baked Riblets Recipe (BBQ Beef Riblet in Oven)

Traeger Smoked Beef Riblets

For a really informative article on Smoked Beef Riblets on the Traeger try here:

https://www.pelletsmoker.net/recipes/smoked-bbq-beef-ribs/

Beef Ribs in the Air Fryer

You can also cook your beef riblets in the air fryer much more quickly than the oven. Set your air fryer to 400F (204C) and cook for 10 minutes.

Lower the temperature to 325F (163C) and then cook for another 20 minutes to an internal temperature of 195-203F.

This is a good recipe for beef ribs in the air fryer:

https://airfrying.net/air-fryer-beef-ribs-quick-and-delicious/

If you enjoyed this article on smoked beef riblets try this one on smoking beef short ribs.

For another concise guide on smoked beef riblets try here:

https://www.extraordinarybbq.com/smoked-beef-chuck-riblets/

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