honey mustard glazed ribs

Honey Mustard Glazed Spareribs

Sometimes you have a meal because you carefully chose a recipe, bought the ingredients, and planned it as dinner for that day or that week. And then, every once in a rare while, your dinner is a complete surprise.  The first time I made these ribs, they were a “bonus” in my grocery delivery.  I hadn’t ordered them! They looked so good I decided to cook them right away. But what to do with them? I settled on honey mustard glaze spareribs. A raving success!

The mixture of dry and prepared mustard, honey, a dash of soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, and brown sugar creates a glaze that’s not too sweet, and glides right over the ribs. They end up tender and juicy.  And they don’t take long to cook either. I suppose maybe I should call them “surprise honey mustard glazed spareribs.”

Boneless ribs are done in 40 minutes, bone-in takes an hour.

I’ve included instructions for both boneless and bone-in ribs in the recipe.

The recipe was in the first edition of the Silver Palate cookbook. I’m on my third copy now, but when went to look at the recipe I found it had changed considerably. It was all wrong.  It had orange marmalade, ginger, orange juice, and nutmeg?! Wait. What?  No idea where that came from. Sounded waaay too sweet to me.

Luckily, the original version still lived on the internet.  No marmalade! Instead you mix dry and prepared mustard, honey, a dash of soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, and brown sugar. It’s not too sweet,  and makes a delectable honey-brown glaze that glides over the ribs. They end up tender and juicy.  Just right for a holiday weekend.

Since the ribs I had were boneless, I adjusted the cooking time downward to about 40 minutes. I have also made these with the bones (somehow that’s more satisfying, I don’t know why).

If you get the kind with bones, cook them for an hour at 400 degrees, following the same turning and basting procedure.  

I’ve included instructions for both boneless and bone-in ribs in the recipe.

The first time I made it, I had intended for the ribs to be two meals.  But it was sooo good I pigged out (sorry) and ate the whole thing at once.  Come to think of it, I made these for my brother once (with the bones), and he ate inhaled all of it too. Which just means I need to buy ribs on purpose next time!




Honey Mustard Glazed Spareribs Substitutions and Variations

  • Add some ground ginger to the glaze (this was part of the revised recipe that actually sounded appealing)
  • Try a splash of orange juice (also the revised version, but I’d cut down on the honey or the brown sugar)
  • Use bone-in ribs (they’re easier to pick up and nibble). If you do, cook them at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, then 10 and 10 (following the same procedure of turning and glazing).

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