Place beef ribs in the bottom of slow cooker and sprinkle liberally with black pepper.
In a spouted cup, combine the barbecue sauce, vinaigrette salad dressing, and applesauce.
Stir well.
Pour wet mixture over meat.
Cover slow cooker and cook on LOW setting for 4-5 hours.
(If you need to cook it longer, you could probably leave the beef partially frozen to begin with to buy some extra cook time, or use a cheap roast instead of the ribs, which will need longer to cook.)