Beef Ribs

On a steer, there are 13 ribs down each side of the animal. The ribs cover a lot of territory on a steer. About 3 linear feet from the breastbone to the backbone and another 3 to 4 feet from the shoulder to the last rib. Where your ribs are cut from matters a lot as far as the taste, texture, and best method of cooking.

Essentially there are two major types of beef ribs, short ribs and back ribs, and they are very different from each other but both can be tender, beefy, and delectable if cooked properly.

Short Ribs
More and more, short ribs are becoming the preferred rib choice for outdoor cooking because of the large amount of meat on top of the bones. This is because short ribs are cut from the front lower section of the steer from the 1st through 5th rib and the lower, ventral section from the 6th through 10th rib. Resulting in almost flat ribs, can reach 12” in length, and often have 1 to 2” of meat on top.

Back Ribs
Back ribs are cut from the top dorsal area of the steer, just behind the shoulder. Back ribs are what you get when the delicious rib roast (Prime Rib) is removed from the bones. The rib roast is one of the most expensive cuts of beef, so most of the meat will stay with the roast and very little meat is left on top of the rib bones.