The Worst Store-Bought Ribs Are Ruined By One Major Flaw

No matter what barbecue region you find yourself in, ribs are one of the highest culinary art forms. But if you don't want to eat out, store-bought ribs are a convenient, pre-seasoned, and sauced product that'll make a grill master out of anyone. We sampled 5 store-bought ribs to find the best option for your next barbecue, ranking them according to meat flavor and texture as well as sauce flavor. While there was a clear winner, there was also a clear loser. And the worst store-bought ribs are Lloyd's baby back pork ribs, with a deceivingly pleasant look that soon turned to utter disappointment when we removed them from their packaging.

The biggest flaw with these baby back pork ribs lies in the sauce. First of all, they came covered in sauce, which gave us hope for some moist and flavorful ribs. But when we sampled them, they had absolutely no flavor. Not only could we not taste any smoky, salty, umami-richness from the pork itself, but the barbecue sauce was muted at best. We could barely discern some soy sauce and perhaps a tiny bit of sweetness. But a sweet soy sauce does not make a decent barbecue sauce. And considering just how much sauce these ribs were smothered in, you would at least expect one distinct tasting note to stand out. So, save yourself the disappointment and leave Lloyd's baby back ribs on the shelf.

We found an overwhelming number of negative reviews for Lloyd's baby back ribs on the company's website. Many customers bemoaned the sauce as "extremely bland and tasted like tomato sauce." Various customers recommended washing the ribs off to rid them of the disappointing sauce because the sauce is one of the most crucial factors to a plate of baby back ribs. And with a wealth of delicious barbecue sauce options out there, a tomato sauce posing as a barbecue sauce just won't cut it. Check out our list of store-bought bourbon barbecue sauces that are worth slathering over your next batch of baby back ribs.

Unfortunately, in the case of Lloyd's baby back ribs, not even a delicious barbecue sauce can cover up poor-quality meat. To that effect, one customer wrote, "I wonder if the people that produce these ribs actually take the time to taste them. The quality was awful. Fatty, not tender." In fact, most of the one-star reviews thought the ribs were "mostly fat" with very little meat, and what little meat there was described as "tough and tasteless." A final scathing review summed it all up by saying, "after a few minutes of eating them, the garbage can became more appealing." If you're looking for good store-bought ribs, Trader Joe's Korean-style beef short ribs came in at the top of our ranking.