The Absolute Best Way To Reheat Those Ribs You Saved For Later

So, you made some delicious ribs with a maple syrup marinade, or you ordered a rack at Texas Roadhouse, America's top casual restaurant ... and you have leftovers. While it seems ludicrous to think that you might ever end up with too many ribs to eat — and that, if you somehow do, that you don't have a loved one willing to gnaw them off the bone as soon as you get home! — extra ribs do happen. Consequently, you gotta know how to treat 'em right.

Whatever you do, do not put your leftover ribs in the microwave. Nuking that delectable meat is a crime that should land someone in the Hague for egregious sins against good food. All Chef Mike is going to do is make your ribs rubbery and tough. No, for the best reheating, you want your oven. Yes, you can reconstitute ribs on the grill or in the air-fryer, both of which are generally popular avenues to heating meats, but a low-temperature oven is the way to go in this case. It strikes the perfect balance between warming the ribs and preserving their original texture.

Just like when cooking ribs (remember the six-hour three-two-one method?), low and slow is the way to do things. You don't want to let your oven get any hotter than around 275 degrees Fahrenheit, which might mean that it takes as long as half an hour — or even longer for extra-meaty St. Louis-style ribs — to heat up your meal. You want to make sure that your ribs are covered in foil so that the meat doesn't have a chance to dry out, and you might consider adding some liquid to the pan to create moisturizing steam. Every step of effectively reheating ribs centers around avoiding toughness and zapping moisture.

Just tossing wrapped ribs in the oven on a baking sheet will give you solid results, to be sure, but if you have a few extra minutes of attention to lavish on your leftovers, you can really make them shine. Ideally, you have some of the BBQ sauce that you used to cook the ribs — or, if you got yours from a restaurant, you had the forethought to ask for a side of sauce with your takeout container. If you have spare sauce, you can brush it onto your ribs before serving for an extra hit of both flavor and moisture. Don't have the exact same sauce? This is one excuse for you to use the bottled kind, with or without doctoring up some ingredients yourself. Complementary flavors will be appreciated, of course, but you are really aiming to reinvigorate your ribs to their sticky, saucy original form. To that end, a couple of minutes under the broiler after thoroughly reheating will help towards restoring some of the chew to the bark on your ribs.

If you truly don't have the patience to spend the better part of an hour reheating your ribs in the oven, we won't judge you for preferring speed to perfection. We can, however, suggest that you adhere to many of the same principals. If you want to reheat your ribs in a pan, in your air-fryer, or on the grill, go ahead and cover them, plus make sure to add liquid and/or sauce back whenever you can. If you absolutely must turn to the microwave, at least swaddle your ribs in a damp paper towel and then plastic wrap, as some social media users have suggested.