There are a couple of ways you can play this…
ONE: you buy yourself whichever bottled barbecue sauce you like, along with a jar of pepper jelly.
or, TWO: make your own barbecue sauce and your own pepper jelly; that way, you know exactly what’s in ’em, and they’re better, too.
They’re also both pretty simple to make…
Which is a very good thing, because this batch of ribs used up my last two jars of both.
Still, if you’re in a rib kinda mood, don’t let the lack of your own jelly and sauce stop you from making this tasty take on barbecue; store bought will yield a fine batch of pepper jelly ribs.
Just, ermmm, not as good as mine.
INGREDIENTS
•1 rack pork ribs
•1/2 pint jalapeño jelly
•1 cup barbecue sauce
•Seasoned salt
•Black pepper
•Celery
•Carrots
•Onion
Heat your oven to 350º and line a baking pan with foil (I used my huge anodized roasting pan, which cleans up in a jiff, so skipped the foil).
Coarsely chop the celery, carrots, and onion and scatter across the bottom of the pan (if you’re missing one or more of the veggies, use whatever you have getting old in the crisper; a bit of parsley is nice, or garlic).
Season both sides of the ribs with the seasoned salt and pepper, then arrange, meaty side up, on top of the veggies.
Brush the ribs with a couple of tablespoons of the pepper jelly, cover the roasting pan tightly with foil, and bake for 90 minutes. Combine the remaining pepper jelly with the barbecue sauce and set aside.
Remove the ribs from the oven, discard the foil cover, and brush with half of the pepper jelly/sauce mixture.
Return to the oven, uncovered, for 30 minutes, then brush with the remaining pepper jelly mixture and return to the oven for 30 more minutes.
Let rest for ten minutes before serving.
Tasty, tender ribs, with just a bit of a kick from the jelly (and my last batch of sauce, which was rather nicely spiced, if I do say so myself).
If you prefer your ribs on the grill, simply follow all the steps through that first 90 minute bake, then finish ’em off over your flame of choice, basting often with the sauce.
It really is all good.