These Ninja Foodi Ribs are perfectly cooked, tender, juicy, and expertly seasoned with both a dry rub and your favorite BBQ sauce.
“Mouth melting delicious and the best of sauces and spices. Need to surely give this a try.”
Choosing your ribs
I’m using pork spare ribs here. You can also use baby back ribs or St. Louis-style ribs. They will all cook the same. Just make sure that you’re slicing them into manageable pieces before cooking.
I’ve not yet tested making beef ribs in the Ninja Foodi. When I do, you’ll be the first to know!
3 ingredients you’ll need
- Ribs: Get a rack of ribs that is about 3 1/2 pounds. Cut it into thirds, so that you have pieces that fit comfortably into your Ninja Foodi basket.
- Seasoning: I suggest using a Montreal Steak seasoning, it’s delicious on all sorts of meats. But you can use any dry seasoning mix that you like. Just salt and pepper works fine too.
- BBQ Sauce: Again, you can use whatever you really like! The BBQ sauce you choose really makes your Ninja Foodi Ribs tasty, so it should be a sauce that you enjoy.
Steps-To-Make
- Prepare your ribs by cutting them into pieces that fit into your Foodi air fryer basket, and preheat the air fryer to 375°F on the Bake/Roast setting for 5 minutes.
- While the air fryer is pre-heating, rub down each slice of ribs with a third of your seasoning or dry rub, ensuring that the seasoning covers the whole surface.
- Place one slice of ribs in the air fryer, and cook as directed in the recipe card, using the Bake/Roast setting.
- Flip the ribs over, and continue cooking as directed on the Bake/Roast setting.
- Flip the ribs back over so that they are right-side up. Using a spoon, lather the top of the ribs with BBQ sauce.
- Cook for 5 minutes on the Air Fry setting to set the BBQ sauce. Allow the ribs to rest for at least five minutes before slicing and serving. Continue the process with the other two rib pieces.
Serving Ideas
Ribs go well with all types of delicious side dishes!
From the air fryer, make Ninja Foodi Baked Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, Cornbread, or French Fries.
Add a veggie like Air Fryer Broccoli or Broccoli Casserole.
All of your favorite BBQ sides and salads are welcome alongside these Ninja Foodi Ribs! Try Mac and Cheese, Macaroni Salad, or these amazing Air Fryer Hush Puppies.
Don’t forget to serve extra BBQ sauce on the side for dipping.
Need more Ninja Foodi Air Fryer Recipes? We have them here!
Ribs seem dry?
If your ribs seem too dry, try cooking them for slightly less time next time around.
Keep in mind that this method is different than a low and slow-cooked Rib recipe. The meat on these Ninja Foodi Ribs will be tender, but firm, rather than soft like you might be used to.
FAQs
It doesn’t really matter how you start your ribs, so long as you flip them over halfway through cooking so that you do both sides.
It’s not necessary. However, it’s super easy to do and will make the ribs easier to eat.
You will need to do a few different rounds of cooking to finish an entire rack of ribs in the Ninja Foodi. I suggest cutting the rack into 3 pieces and cooking them one at a time.
Ninja Foodi Ribs
Equipment
- Ninja Foodi
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 lbs Pork Ribs cut into thirds
- 1/3 cup BBQ Sauce
- 2 Tbsp Montreal Seasoning or other dry rub
Instructions
- Preheat your Ninja Foodi air fryer to 375 on the Bake/ Roast setting for five minutes.
- While your air fryer is preheating, rub down each slice of ribs with a third or your Montreal seasoning or dry rub, ensuring that the seasoning covers the entire slice of ribs.
- Place one slice of ribs in the air fryer and cook for 15 minutes at 375°F/ 190°C on the bake/ roast setting.
- Flip your ribs over and cook for an additional 15 minutes at 375 degrees on the bake/ roast setting.
- Once your ribs have finished cooking, flip them back over so they are facing right side up and leave them in the air fryer. Using a spoon, lather the top of the ribs with BBQ sauce and cook for an additional 5 minutes at 400 degrees on the air fry setting.
- Allow your ribs to rest for 5 minutes to finish cooking. Repeat the above steps with the other rib pieces, cooking one at a time.
- Slice the Ribs apart before serving.
Notes
- It’s important to cut your ribs into thirds so the air fryer basket is not too full. If the basket is too full, the ribs will not cook all the way through in 30 minutes. Also, it is important to cook only one cut of ribs at a time. Do not try to stack ribs on top of each other.
- Make your own Montreal Seasoning rub by mixing together Garlic powder, salt, pepper, and paprika.
- It is important to let the ribs rest for five minutes. Even though they may look done, those five minutes allow the ribs to finish cooking fully and will help give you that “fall of the bone” meat that you love.
- You can use any cut of ribs you would like for this recipe as long as you cut your rack into chunks that will fit in the air fryer basket.
- Pro Tip: This recipe can be made in the air fryer unit with a basket or the air fryer oven. If you are using the air fryer oven, use the middle rack and select the “Air Fry” function.
- Pro Tip: Check your food as it cooks. Each air fryer runs a bit differently. Sometimes airfrying is a trial and error process. Check your food as it cooks to learn your air fryer better! When cooking a new recipe or food items be sure to check your food often to help avoid over/under cooking.
Nutrition
Oh yum! These ribs look beyond delicious. Love that seasoning and added sauce. I’m making this recipe for sure. Thanks!
Those ribs look amazing! I am going to try them in the coming weekend! I love that you need very few ingredients!
Wow! Ribs are so easy to make in the air fryer. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Mouth melting delicious and the best of sauces and spices. Need to surely give this a try.
This is the first time I tried this recipe and my whole family was impressed!! I will definitely make it again!