Loading up your smoker helps to drive cost efficiency, which inevitably leads to leftovers. This is why it helps to learn how to reheat ribs, pulled pork, brisket and so many other foods.
Since our agenda for this post is ribs, as a pitmaster, your ultimate goal is to learn how to keep your ribs moist – as if they were freshly cooked. If you were unlucky enough to have had dry ribs, you’ll know how they aren’t even fit for a dog. If you weren’t, it just feels like tearing flavorless and stringy meat off of a bone and chewing tirelessly.
What you need to do is cook your leftover long enough at a safe temperature without making them lose the moisture left inside them. Master this little trick and you’ll never have to throw away your leftover ribs after every cookout!
Is There a Safe Temperature for Reheated Ribs?
If you know what you’re doing, you’ll also know that different types of meat need to be cooked at different minimum temperatures to make them safe to eat. Still, you may be wondering whether reheated meat has to be cooked at high temperatures because it was already cooked, right?
To answer your question, the USDA advises people to cook their pork and beef to at least 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Of course, you can also go hotter than that, to about 160 degrees. However, either temperature kills the bacteria and will bring you closer to the original experience.
Don’t Forget to Add Moisture
It is perfectly alright to give ribs a little moisture assistance, and all you need to do is add water into your broiling pan or the foil you used. It would also help if you brush-on a new layer of barbecue. Alternatively, some people also prefer to save the drippings and the juice from the original cooking to throw them back into the meat during reheating.
If you’re up for a little creativity, you can also try adding other liquids such as apple cider or apple juice. On the other hand, you can try using cola, beer, and beef broth for beef ribs to add in a new burst of flavor. You can also try pouring the liquids of your choice right over your ribs or let them pool up at the bottom of each foil wrap.
How to Reheat Beef Ribs
Even if it is raining outside and you don’t have access to a grill, there’s absolutely no reason to be worried. You can easily reheat ribs in an oven and prepare a scrumptious platter in no time. Here’s how:
Step 1
First things first, preheat your oven and let it get up to a temperature of 250F. If you’re wondering why we can’t get the work done faster at a higher temperature, it is because the ribs will lose all of their moisture.
Step 2
Next, tear off a portion of aluminum foil that is large enough to wrap your meat and still doesn’t fit too tightly. Ideally, you should leave some space for the moisture to work its magic. Also, don’t start wrapping the meat just yet.
Step 3
Now is the time to add moisture. Pour about ¼ cup of water into the foil and then enclose the meat by forming an oversized envelope. You could also choose beef broth or other flavored fluids to make the rib look like an entirely new meal.
Step 4
Place your neatly packaged ribs on a baking sheet and place them into your preheated oven once it has reached 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Step 5
Once placed inside, allow your ribs as much time as it would take to get up to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, use a meat thermometer to make sure your temperature is exactly where you need it to be to qualify as a safe to eat.
Voila! Your ribs are ready to serve.
How to Reheat Ribs on a BBQ Grill
Of course, if you prefer to warm up your leftover ribs on a grill, we’ve got you covered. Here’s what you should do:
Step 1
First, preheat your grill to approximately 250F.
Step 2
Next, wrap your meat tightly into a sheet of aluminum foil, and then wrap a second layer around the first to really lock the moisture in.
Step 3
Place the ribs on a grill and on an indirect heat zone, and then warm the ribs to an internal temperature of about 165F. You should try and use a cooking thermometer here to add accuracy.
Step 4
Finally, sauce-up your ribs and serve. Wasn’t that easy?
Is It Healthy to Nuke Your Ribs in a Microwave?
Most people prefer to reheat their leftover meals in microwaves and you’re probably wondering if the same can be said for ribs. To answer this question, you need to understand that microwave cooking involves firing radio waves into food, which in-turn agitates their water molecules to generate heat.
Even though all of this sounds efficient, a microwave won’t do anything to improve your ribs’ flavor. Instead of forming luscious crusts of your meat, it will just cause most of your sauce to slide off or pool up around the plate.
Our verdict: if you’re looking for a quick and effortless way to prepare a snack, by all means, blast your ribs in a microwave. However, if you were planning on learning how to reheat ribs to actually sit down and enjoy the experience, we’d highly recommend heading over to the grill or the oven.
In other words, pick quality over speed!
Our Final Thoughts
Well, now that you know how to reheat ribs, you can finally make the best of your charcoal and stop disappointing yourself and your critics with warm and tasteless ribs. If you have any secrets of your own, let us in on them and we’ll spread the word in the grilling community.
Happy grilling!
