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Tikka Masala Pork Ribs

two tikka masala pork ribs crossed over each other with plate of pork ribs in the back
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These juicy Tikka Masala Pork Ribs are made with baby back ribs in a spicy, tangy, lip-smacking tasty tikka masala sauce! They’re easy to make, a great appetizer for game day, and perfect for summer entertaining! They’re also naturally gluten-free and super deeee-lish!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 900-1000g Baby Back Ribs/ 1 rack (about 10 – 13 pieces) – cleaned and pat dried with paper towels (Pro tip: get your butcher to remove the white membrane under the ribs and cut the rack up into individual rib pieces for easier serving.)
  • 7 Garlic gloves – peeled, roughly chopped
  • 1.5 inch knob of Ginger – peeled, roughly chopped
  • 5-8 Red Chilies, to taste – destemmed, roughly chopped
    1-3 Green Chilies, to taste – destemmed, roughly chopped
  • 10 TBLS (a little less than 2/3 cup) Greek Yogurt (or use Greek style yogurt)
  • 1/4 TSP coarse ground Black Pepper, to taste
  • 1.5 TSP Kosher Salt, to taste 
  • 2 TSP Garam Masala (store-bought is fine, but homemade tastes so much better! Check out my easy homemade garam masala recipe.)
  • ½ – 1.5 TSP ground Cayenne or Kashmiri Red Chili Powder, to taste
  • 2 TBLS freshly squeezed Lemon juice
  • ½ TSP Red-Orange Food Coloring Powder (or 1-2 drops of red/orange liquid food coloring)
  • 6 TBLS Water
  • 1 TBLS Canola Oil (or any other cooking oil)

For Garnish:

  • 1-2 TBLS chopped fresh Coriander (Cilantro)
  • 1-2 TSP chopped fresh Mint Leaves

To Serve:

Instructions

  1. Clean and prepare the ribs: Clean the ribs and trim off any excess fat if needed. Pat-dry with paper towels. Then cut tiny slits in the meat part of the ribs and place them in a large dish (you may need to use two dishes if you don’t have one that is large enough to hold all the rib pieces).
  2. Make the marinade: Combine the garlic, ginger, red & green chilies, Greek yogurt, black pepper, kosher salt, garam masala, ground cayenne (or Kashmiri red chili powder), lemon juice, red-orange food coloring powder and water in a blender jug. Blend until smooth. Reserve about 1 cup of the marinade in a small container for the Tikka Masala Dip (to be made when serving) and cover and refrigerate.
  3. Marinate the ribs: Pour the rest of the marinade in the blender jug over the ribs and turn to coat. Make sure the ribs are coated well on all sides. Cover with cling wrap (or the dish cover) and refrigerate for 5-6 hours, or overnight for maximum flavor and best results.
  4. Preheat the oven: Remove the ribs from the fridge at least 40 minutes before you plan to cook and preheat the oven to 200°C/400°. Place a wire rack on top of a baking sheet, then break a large sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil and place it on top of the wire rack.
  5. Wrap ribs in a foil package: Lift the ribs from the marinade and line them up flesh side up on the center of the foil. Spoon some of the remaining marinade in the dish over the ribs and spread with a spoon to evenly coat. Fold all four sides of the foil to cover the ribs and form a “package” (refer to photo in post).
  6. Bake: Place the tray in the oven and cook for 60-70 minutes.
  7. Baste and broil: Remove the tray from the oven and carefully open the package using tongs. Use the tongs to transfer the ribs to the wire rack, flesh side facing front. Baste the ribs on the front, top, and back with some of the remaining marinade in the dish. Place the tray back in the oven to cook under the broiler for 5-7 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven and use tongs to turn over the ribs. Baste again with the remaining marinade in the dish before placing back into the oven. Cook under the broiler for 5-7 minutes or until the ribs have charred slightly (or have charred to your liking). Transfer to a cooling rack. Discard any remaining marinade in the dish.
  8. Make the tikka masala dip. Heat the canola oil in a small pan and sauté the reserved 1 cup of marinade for 3-5 minutes to make the Tikka Masala Dip. Once thickened and dark orange in color, transfer to a small serving bowl.
  9. To Serve: Plate the ribs and garnish with chopped fresh coriander and mint leaves. Serve immediately with the Tikka Masala Dip, lemon wedges and Cooling Cucumber & Mint Yogurt Dip if desired.

Equipment

Notes

  1. Are these gluten-free? Yes, no adaption is required.
  2. Can I cook the ribs on an outdoor grill: While I’m pretty sure you can grill these on a conventional outdoor grill, I haven’t tried this yet. Do share your findings on cook time if you do try cooking them on a grill in the comments section below!
  3. Can I substitute with chicken if I don’t like pork? Yes! Check out my Oven Grilled Chicken Tikka Drumettes recipe. They’re extremely popular for summertime gatherings and are a major crowd-pleaser.
  4. Spice level. Feel free to make this milder or hotter according to your preference by reducing or increasing the amount of fresh red and green chilies and the ground cayenne.
  5. Dips: For a cooling side dip, serve with Cooling Cucumber & Mint Yogurt Dip.
  6. Cook time. Oven cook time may vary due to variations in heating abilities in different ovens. Just keep an eye on the ribs while they are under the broiler to ensure that they don’t burn.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://thatspicychick.com/tikka-masala-pork-ribs/