Fall Apart Oven Baked Ribs with Chipotle BBQ Sauce
Pork ribs slow cooked in the oven until tender and falling off the bone, coated with a homemade Barbecue Sauce with a great balance of sweet, tang and heat. A one pan recipe! This is one of those recipes that is very forgiving with both cook time and substituting ingredients.
Prep Time15 minutesmins
Cook Time2 minutesmins
Total Time17 minutesmins
Course: Oven, Slow Cooked
Cuisine: American, Tex-Mex
Servings: 10
Calories: 723cal
Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Ingredients
Rub
1 1/2tbspsweet paprika
1tbspsalt
1 1/2tbspgarlic powder
1/2tbspblack pepper
1tbsponion powder
1/2tbspcayenne pepper
1/2tbspdried thyme
1/2tbspdried oregano
Ribs
5 lb / 2.5 kg American style pork ribs, cut into individual ribs (to fit into one baking dish)
1bottle dark beer(About 12 oz / 375 ml. Stout, porter or a dark ale)
Chipotle BBQ Sauce ("Sauce")
14 oz / 400g can crushed tomato
3.5 oz / 100g can Chipotle in Adobo Sauce, chipotle and sauce (1/2 a standard can) (Note 1)
1large onion(brown, white or yellow), diced
2garlic cloves, minced
1tbsptomato paste
2tbspbrown sugar
1/4cupwhite wine vinegar(or 2 tbsp normal white vinegar + 1 tsp sugar)
1/3cupWorcestershire sauce
2tbspTabasco sauce, or other hot sauce. Adjust to taste.
1/2tbspsalt
Black pepper
To Serve
Fresh coriander/cilantro leaves
Lime wedges
Instructions
Combine the Rub ingredients in a bowl.
Pat the ribs dry, then rub with the Rub. If time permits, refrigerate, covered, for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Take ribs out of the fridge, place in a large baking dish in a single layer (squished is ok, they will shrink slightly).
Preheat oven to 160C/325F.
Pour beer into the baking dish and cover with a lid (use foil if you don't have a lid). Place in the oven and cook for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, make the Sauce.
Take out of the oven and remove lid. Pour the sauce over the ribs, then return to the oven (uncovered).
Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, turning once or twice, until the ribs are cooked to your liking. The meat should be very tender and comes off the bone easily, and the sauce should be thick and "jam-like". If the pan starts looking dry, add a splash of water.
To finish the ribs off, grill/broil for 5 to 10 minutes to get a nice browned finish on top (this is an optional step).
Serve, garnished with fresh coriander/cilantro leaves and wedges of lime.
Sauce
Blend or process the canned tomato in a food processor, Chipotle in Adobo Sauce, onion and garlic.
Stir through remaining ingredients. Set aside until required.
Notes
1. Chipotle in Adobo sauce is dried chipotles in a spicy, dark red flavoured sauce. It comes in a can and leftovers can be stored in the fridge for around a month (or frozen). It is quite spicy but the slow cooking takes the edge off the heat which is why I like to use 1/2 a can. You can reduce the amount if you want. In Australia, you can find it at Harris Farms and Thomas Dux (around $3), or order it online from http://www.fireworksfoods.com.au (Mexican online grocery store $2.95 + postage). In the US you can find it in the Mexican aisle of most grocery stores and it costs around $2.2. Making Ahead: Using this slow roasting method with the Sauce baked with the ribs, I find that the Sauce loses its intensity over time. Even the next day it is slightly milder in flavour and spiciness. My theory is that whatever chemical reaction causes stews and ragus to improve over time, the opposite occurs with things with tang and spice. If you want to retain maximum flavour but want to make ahead, here are some suggestions: a) Stop at step 5 (ie. after roasting in beer for 1 hour). Then when ready to serve, pour the Sauce over and roast (you can make the Sauce in advance and leave it in the fridge, it won't lose its intensity if kept raw); or b) Cook the ribs for 1 1/2 hours, covered, just with the beer. Simmer the Sauce in a saucepan for 15 minutes until thickened (you may need to increase salt doing it this way so make sure you taste test). Then dip the ribs in the Sauce and grill on the outdoor BBQ. Because the Sauce is not roasted for a long period of time, the intensity of the Sauce does not seem to fade as much.3. Nutrition per serving.