Roasted Greek-Style Beef Ribs (2024)

Published: Mar 31, 2016 · Last updated: Jan 7, 2018 by Marissa · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Jump to Recipe

Beef ribs, beef ribs! Beef ribs for you and beef ribs for me! Errbody be ribbin'. What? I don't know. Just go with it.

One of the last deliveries I got from Walden Local Meat before I put my account on hold (the downside of funemployment - gotta watch those expenses!) included athree and a half pound package of glorious, local, grass fed beef ribs. I kept them in the freezer until I was feeling a treat-yo-self day coming along and thus came the idea to write this blog post for roasted Greek-style beef ribs. Because I care to share awesome things with you.

For this recipe, I wanted to incorporate some of my favorite flavors in Greek and Mediterranean cuisines. We've got olive oil, lemons, Greek oregano (shocker), thyme, rosemary, and honey! And we've got tasty sweet onion and garlic to add to that too! To be honest, the rosemary was a last minute thought and I only added a little because it can be a pretty overpowering herb, so I'll leave that as an optional ingredient for you. Either way, it will taste good. Finger-lickin' good. Unless you're using a fork, then fork-lickin' good? Anyway.

To get maximum flavor, you'll be using both the juice and zest from one large lemon, you'll crush the garlic, and you'll grate or mince the onion. I prefer grating for this recipe because that onion will coat the beef real nicely and don't you dare forgetto include any water left behind from the onion too! Maximum. Flavor.

The next step is preparing the beef ribs! If you've never cooked with ribs before, it's easy peasy. Trim off any excess fat if necessary (your butcher may have done that for you) and be sure to remove the membrane. You can do that by taking a knife and inserting it between the bone and membrane in a corner to separate them a little, then use a paper towel to grasp onto the membrane and peel it all off. You may need to use the knife throughout the process, but usually it will peel back easily. This step is important because the membrane would prevent your tasty seasonings from coating the ribs! At this point, you can leave the rack whole or cut them into individual ribs. I thought I didn't have a baking pan large enough to hold the whole rack until I rememberedI got a set of these for my birthday! By that point, I had already cut them up.

Mix everything together in a large bowl, cover it, and let it sit on the counter for an hour to come to room temperature. This will also allow the meat to marinate for a little while. Score!

When you're ready to roast, set the oven to 275degrees Fahrenheit. Loosely line a sheet of foil large enough to hold the ribs thatcan be folded over slightly. Place the ribs in a single layer, meat-side down and fold in each side of the foil. Then top with another piece of foil to completely cover the ribs and create a pouch. Place the ribs on the center rack of the oven and let cook for three and a half hours. When they're about ready to come out, you'll make a tasty glaze of honey and lemon juice and brush it all over the ribs! The last optional, but encouraged, step is to then broil the ribs on high for three minutes.

After that? You dig in!

Kitchen Tools Used:

📖 Recipe

Roasted Greek-Style Beef Ribs

4.42 from 17 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Greek

Prep Time: 1 hour hour

Cook Time: 3 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 people

Author: Marissa

Ingredients

For The Ribs

3 ½ pounds beef back ribs
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
zest and juice from 1 large lemon
⅓ cup sweet onion, minced or grated
5-6 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
½ tablespoon dried Greek oregano
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped (optional)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon Hungarian hot paprika, optional

Honey Glaze

¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, honey, lemon zest, lemon juice, onion, cloves, thyme, oregano, rosemary, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
Trim off any excess fat from the ribs.
Take a pairing knife and insert it in the corner of the ribs, between the membrane and the bone. Use your fingers to separate the membrane slightly, then use a paper towel to grasp onto the membrane and peel it off.
Slice the rack into individual ribs and place in a large bowl. Cover with dressing and massage into the meat. Cover and let sit on the counter for one hour to come to room temperature.
When the hour is up, preheat oven to 275 degrees.
Place the ribs on a foil-lined baking sheet in a single layer. Fold the sides of the foil up.
Cover with another sheet of foil and fold over to create a pouch.
Place pan on the center rack of the oven for three and a half hours.
When the ribs are almost done, make the honey glaze by combining the honey and lemon juice in a small bowl and whisk together.
Remove ribs from oven.
Brush ribs with honey glaze.
Optional step: Broil the ribs on high for three minutes after glazing.

More Main Dishes

Fasolakia Yiahni (Greek Braised Green Beans)
Tomato and Feta Galette with Puff Pastry
Grilled Turkish Shrimp Kebabs with Urfa Biber Garlic Butter
Lamb Tagine

Reader Interactions

Comments

brita says
April 01, 2016 at 11:34 am
OMG this looks amazing!! I've never tried to make anything like this at home before but I really want to try. Definitely pinning this recipe for later! Thanks
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 02, 2016 at 11:02 am
  Thanks, lady! I hope you love it. <3
  Reply
sue|theviewfromgreatisland says
April 03, 2016 at 1:36 pm
OMG is right --- I don't think I've ever seen sexier meat!
See Also
Cranberry white chocolate granola - Family Food on the Table
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 03, 2016 at 4:41 pm
  Thanks Sue! I agree, beef ribs are pretty sexy. 😀
  Reply
Georgina Ingham | Culinary Travela says
April 03, 2016 at 1:37 pm
This looks stunning! Such fabulous flavours. One to try & luckily my local farm shop has started selling beef ribs too.
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 03, 2016 at 4:42 pm
  Thanks Georgina! Yesssss, local is the best!
  Reply
Beth says
April 03, 2016 at 3:56 pm
Wow! this looks fantastic! Wonderful photographs too!
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 03, 2016 at 4:42 pm
  Thank you so much, Beth! <3
  Reply
Sherri @ Watch Learn Eat says
April 03, 2016 at 4:06 pm

Wow! These look amazing! My husband would absolutely love this dish! These flavors are incredible! Love it! 🙂
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 03, 2016 at 4:42 pm
  Thanks Sherri!
  Reply
Mica @ Let's Taco Bout It Blog says
April 03, 2016 at 5:30 pm

This looks delishhh. I love the combination of honey and lemon on ribs. I am pinning this for later!
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 03, 2016 at 11:35 pm
  Thanks, Mica! It's one of my favorite combinations too. 😀
  Reply
Dorothy Dunton says
April 06, 2016 at 4:54 pm
Hi Marissa! I happen to have a nice package of beef ribs in the freezer. Cooking them in foil is how I do pork ribs - after they are tender I either broil or grill them for a few minutes. I would make smashed potatoes with cabbage (colcannon) to go with these! And I would not be using a fork (except on the potatoes)! 🙂
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  April 07, 2016 at 8:24 pm
  Smashed potatoes with cabbage!? I've never had colcannon, but after doing some googling, I am very intrigued. I can't believe I've never heard of that before. Potatoes and cabbage are two of my favorites!
  And yeah, forks do not belong with ribs. 😀
  Reply
brenda thomson says
June 12, 2018 at 10:03 am

These were amazing! I made them for the first time for guests I have never met before and so glad I risked it. Everyone loved them. When making a new recipe I also follow the recipe exactly and then I may tweak it to my taste the second time. This one needs no adjustments, it is full of flavour. I doubled the marinade and reserved about 2/3c for roasted baby potatoes (I added a little more lemon juice for the potatoes). I cut the little potatoes in half and tossed them with the marinade.. I baked them in the same oven with the ribs on a baking sheet for 2 hours and just before serving I turned up the heat to 375 for about 15 min.
This recipe is also fabulous with baby back pork ribs. I just adjusted the time, about 2 1/2 hrs cooking time, then broiled for 3 minutes.
Great recipe for ribs if you are on a low carb lifestyle.
Reply
Victoria Hijazi says
February 02, 2022 at 7:21 pm
Hi Marissa it is 2/2/2022 and i just found you!!just loved "reading" your recipes. you are a woman/writer after my own heart! simple exciting efharisto!! (can't cook can't spell in Greek but i am on my way thanks to you) please say you are still out there!!
love, Victoria in Naperville, IL
Reply
- Marissa @ OMGfood says
  May 23, 2022 at 2:54 pm
  Hi Victoria! Thank you for the kind words. I'm still out here, I swear! I just took an extended break due to moving and having a baby. Hoping to get back to sharing recipes more consistently soon <3
  Reply