The Way Texas Roadhouse Makes Fall Off The Bone BBQ Ribs

Whenever you order ribs at a place like Texas Roadhouse, you find the meat is always tender and that it slides right off the bone as you eagerly tear into it. But the truth is, even according to the chain itself, there's no real secret to it. The meat is cooked low and slow, meaning it's baked at a low temperature for a long period of time, usually hours. That's a common cooking technique for cuts of meat with a lot of connective tissue in it, such as ribs.

When you cook meat at a low temperature for a long enough time, collagen (tough connective tissue) melts down into gelatin. Once it's broken down, you're left with tender fibers of meat and a pleasant eating experience. However, there is a sweet spot involved; if you overcook the meat, you can cook it to the point of mushiness. It takes some experience to know when to halt the cooking process. Chains such as Texas Roadhouse have this down to a science, but these are the same principles many people use when it comes down to cooking barbecue.

If you want to replicate tender ribs at home, it's actually an easy process — you just need to have some time on your hands. Fortunately, it's generally hands-off, and you don't even need specialized equipment (though people use backyard smokers, a standard oven works just fine). It's called the 3-2-1 rule, where you smoke or slow-roast your dry-rubbed ribs at 225 degrees Fahrenheit for three hours, then wrap them tightly in foil and continue cooking them for two more hours. After that, you remove the foil and let them continue cooking for one more hour. It's up to you whether or not you glaze them with sauce at the end, and maybe crank up the heat for some caramelized color (or just grill them quickly).

You know they're finished cooking to a level of Texas Roadhouse-style tenderness when a test bone wiggles right out. If that's a tad too long for your liking, simply lift the ribs up from the middle using some tongs, and the ribs should sag easily, with small cracks starting to form in the meat. Next, get your favorite sides together; maybe grilled shrimp, if you want to recreate the Texas Roadhouse experience, some store-bought cinnamon butter, and you can even buy Texas Roadhouse frozen rolls at retailers such as Walmart. No matter how you enjoy them, the ribs should be the star of the show thanks to that low-and-slow treatment.