Barbeque Glazed Ribs with Homemade, Ultra-sticky Apricot BBQ Sauce – Recipe

Several months ago I made a very large batch of Apricot jam. Unfortunately, I burned the entire batch. Not overly so, but enough to notice a slight smoky flavour when you spread it on your toast. This smoky taste is not so appealing in the on-your-toast context, but works really well in BBQ sauces, which have a natural affinity with smoky flavours. (Good thing, too, as I have about 10-15kg of this ‘smoked’ batch of apricot jam! It should keep me making BBQ sauces for a long time into the future!!). Below are the recipes not only for how you can make a BBQ sauce using apricot jam, but also for something you can do with it: barbeque ribs. We’re a bit hard up again at the moment and only had mutton breasts on hand, which are (older) sheep’s ribs. These were still delicious, but you could use pork or beef ribs, or even chicken wings, for a fantasticly sticky BBQ treat. Great with a homebrew! We chose a homebrewed Coopers Mexican Cerveza with a slice of almost-ripe orange stuffed in the neck (as pictured). Enjoy!

*Recipe One*

Homemade, Ultra-Sticky Apricot BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

2 cups of apricot jam (you could also use plum jam, or cranberry, quince or redcurrant jelly, or even a sweet orange marmalade) – the homemade and slightly burnt sort highly preferable!
1 cup of brown malt vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons curry powder
½ teaspoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon of dried onion flakes (optional)
½ teaspoon of tandoori spice powder (or 1 tablespoon of tandoori paste)
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup of light soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce

Method

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl and use some for ribs below.
2. To store this sauce for any length of time boil all ingredients together in a pot for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Store in sanitised jars or bottles for up to 6 months in the fridge.
4. Serve at BBQs or on grilled meats and sandwiches.

*Recipe Two*

Barbeque Glazed Ribs with
Homemade, Ultra-Sticky Apricot BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

2 kg of pork or beef ribs, or lamb/mutton breast left intact in foot long slabs, or use the same weight of chicken wings jointed.
Quantity of “Uncle Canaan’s Ultra-Sticky BBQ Sauce” from above.

Method

1. Toss your choice of ribs/meat through a generous portion of the BBQ sauce (up to 2 cups) and leave to marinate in the fridge for 1 to 3 days (I didn’t marinate mine for long so if you’re short on time just mix the slab of ribs through the sauce and proceed with recipe, it will still be good).
2. Take the slabs of ribs and a generous amount of sauce and place them on a really long piece of aluminium foil . Fold up the side of the foil to form a loose parcel, crimping all the edges together tightly to seal up the parcel, producing an ad hoc steamer for our ribs. Repeat for as many slabs as you have.
3. Place on an oven tray and cook at 180C for about 1 and a ½ hours, or until the ribs are very tender.
4. Open the parcels and carefully pour the juices into a saucepan. Boil and reduce this sauce until syrupy. Skim off as much fat as possible.
5. In the open parcels, paint the ribs with this thick sauce and put back into the oven to glaze and brown them.

When ready, cut the ribs into individual sections and serve with any remaining syrupy sauce. These go well with sides like rice pilaf, baked potatoes, creamed corn, minted peas and buttered blanched carrots. Alternatively, serve them by themselves while you’re watching a game and swigging on some good homebrew!!! Enjoy!