Oven Baked Blueberry Chipotle Ribs
Growing up in Mississippi, when you think of grilling or BBQ'ing you usually think about ribs. Whether they are smoked low and slow in the backyard or found at your favorite BBQ shack, there's nothing like 'em. Well, the inspiration for this recipe comes from the latter. When I was in college at Mississippi State University (Hail State!), my favorite restaurant to visit was The Veranda. While I really enjoyed the bar (probably too much) and their daily blue plate special, I always seemed to get one dish more than any other--their Chipotle BBQ ribs. These ribs were so meaty, tender, sticky, sweet, spicy, and smoky. Wait, that sounds like a bad 1980s song.😛 Anyway, this rib recipe is my homage to the Chipotle BBQ ribs with one major addition...blueberries! I know that probably sounds a bit far fetched, but trust me...it works! Also, I made these ribs in the oven because I don't have access to a grill. You can definitely smoke some ribs on your favorite grill. In either preparation, I hope that you and your family enjoys the recipe!
Preheat the oven to 375͑ degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine all of the spices for the rib recipe (except the ribs and liquid smoke). Set aside.
Take the ribs out of the cryovac bag and rinse in sink. Next, remove the thin membrane covering the back of the rack of ribs. See how in the cook's notes below.
Season both sides of the ribs with a generous amount of the spice rub made earlier. Next, place the ribs meat side up on the foil-lined baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 2 hours.
To begin making the BBQ sauce, place blueberries in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Next, add chipotle peppers and continue pulsing until well mixed. Run the blueberry mixture through a wire mesh strainer to catch blueberry and chipotle skins. Set the mixture aside.
In a small saucepan, add olive oil and warm over medium heat. Next, add onions to saucepan and saute for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add the minced garlic to the saucepan and cook for an additional minute.
Next, add the blueberry mixture, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup, mustard, liquid smoke and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well and allow to cook over medium-low heat for about 25 minutes. After the time is elapsed, stir in the vinegar and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Check the seasonings and adjust if needed. Keep the saucepan on low heat until ribs are ready to be sauced.
Remove the ribs from the oven, discard the top foil and brush both rib sides with the BBQ sauce. Place baking sheet back in the oven and cook for five minutes. Remove the ribs from the oven, flip the ribs and place baking sheet back in the oven for an additional five minutes. Finally, remove the ribs from the oven and let rest for at least 5-10 minutes. Once the resting time has elapsed, cut ribs and enjoy!
Cook's Notes:
BLUEBERRY CHIPOTLE RIBS
Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Difficulty: Intermediate Yield: 3-4 servings
Ingredients:
Rib Recipe:
Rib Recipe:
- 1 rack baby back pork ribs
- Liquid smoke (3-4 dashes per rib side)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
Blueberry Chipotle BBQ Sauce Recipe:
- 1 pint fresh blueberries, stems picked through and washed
- 2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobe sauce
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 3/4 cup ketchup
- 1/4 cup yellow mustard
- 2 or 3 dashes liquid smoke
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 375͑ degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine all of the spices for the rib recipe (except the ribs and liquid smoke). Set aside.
Take the ribs out of the cryovac bag and rinse in sink. Next, remove the thin membrane covering the back of the rack of ribs. See how in the cook's notes below.
Season both sides of the ribs with a generous amount of the spice rub made earlier. Next, place the ribs meat side up on the foil-lined baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 2 hours.
To begin making the BBQ sauce, place blueberries in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Next, add chipotle peppers and continue pulsing until well mixed. Run the blueberry mixture through a wire mesh strainer to catch blueberry and chipotle skins. Set the mixture aside.
In a small saucepan, add olive oil and warm over medium heat. Next, add onions to saucepan and saute for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add the minced garlic to the saucepan and cook for an additional minute.
Next, add the blueberry mixture, brown sugar, molasses, ketchup, mustard, liquid smoke and salt and pepper to taste. Stir well and allow to cook over medium-low heat for about 25 minutes. After the time is elapsed, stir in the vinegar and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Check the seasonings and adjust if needed. Keep the saucepan on low heat until ribs are ready to be sauced.
Remove the ribs from the oven, discard the top foil and brush both rib sides with the BBQ sauce. Place baking sheet back in the oven and cook for five minutes. Remove the ribs from the oven, flip the ribs and place baking sheet back in the oven for an additional five minutes. Finally, remove the ribs from the oven and let rest for at least 5-10 minutes. Once the resting time has elapsed, cut ribs and enjoy!
Cook's Notes:
- Our friends at Weber have a great tutorial on how to remove the membrane off the back of the rib rack. For more information, please visit them at shorturl.at/hpMQ5.
- If you can't find liquid smoke, you may use Worcestershire sauce as a substitute.
- If you don't want to make the rib rub recipe above, please feel free to use your favorite rib rub.
- Please do NOT forget to line the baking sheet with foil. This helps so much in cleanup.
- The Blueberry Chipotle BBQ sauce makes enough for about 2 slabs of ribs.
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