Here’s a recipe that would be great for your 4th of July festivities. A dry rub that you can make ahead and smother some ribs in and let them hang out in the fridge for a day or two before you slow cook them, then grill them off to perfection. The rub has just a few simple, savory spices, and there’s also a glaze of sweet, sticky, spicy sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup ancho chile powder
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
  • 1 rack baby back ribs
  • 1 jalapeño, seeded and thinly sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1 pound fresh pineapple rings, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup finely diced red onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Directions

  1. In a small bowl, combine the chili powder with 1/4 cup of cumin, 2 tablespoons of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper
  2. Set the ribs in a cooking dish, rub all over with spice mixture, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate
  3. When you’re ready to cook them: preheat the oven to 350
  4. Add a small bit of water to the bottom of the cooking dish and bake the ribs for 45 minutes, until just tender
  5. Cover with foil and bake another 30 minutes
  6. Meanwhile, puree 1/2 of the jalapeño with the garlic and 1/2 cup of lime juice, add in the honey and the remaining 1 tablespoon of cumin
  7. Pour the glaze mixture into a saucepan and simmer over low heat until thickened, about 15 minutes
  8. When the ribs have cooked to tender, raise the oven temperature to 450 or light your grill
  9. Brush the ribs with half of the glaze and bake or grill for about 20 minutes
  10. Brush with the remaining glaze for a sticky finish
  11. Grill the pineapple rings over high heat, turning once, about 5 minutes (or pan fry them in a cast iron skillet over a high heat for 2-3 minutes) and set aside to cool
  12. Dice the pineapple and transfer to a bowl and add the brown sugar, onion, cilantro, and remaining 1/2 jalapeño and 2 tablespoons of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper

We served this with a black and pinto bean salad.

This recipe was inspired by Food and Wine.

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