# Al Pastor Ribs and Arroz Verde Mexicana



## chilerelleno (Aug 24, 2019)

There are days here and there where I step out of my comfort zone and try something new, today is one of those days.

I did something completely new to me, and I sure am happy I did.
*Al Pastor Ribs with a Pineapple Lime Glaze*

I'm a St. Louis snob, and they get cooked with dry rub, no wrap, no spritz/mop, no wrap and no glaze.
I started out last night marinading three racks in my Al Pastor marinade.
Link >>> Chile's Al Pastor Marinade/Sauce
I was thinking how best to marinade 3 racks of ribs and it hit me, place them in a vac bag and just seal/no vacuum.








Pulled them out of the marinade, and dusted them with Guajillo chile powder and my basic pork rub.
_Note: Measure out one cup of basic rub and add 1/8C Guajillo chile powder._
Link >>> Chile's Basic Pork and Chicken Rubs







Fired up the smoker to 225°-250° with Cherry for smoke and slapped the ribs down.

Then I made the *Pineapple Lime Glaze*.
In a small sauce pan combine the following and bring to slow boil.
And then set aside to cool.
1 18oz Pineapple Preserves (Publix generic)
1/2C Brown sugar
Juice of 1 Lime and Zest of 2 Limes
1/2t Cloves, ground

Then I cooked up a batch of Arroz Verde / Green Rice.
Link >>> Confetti Rice / Green Rice / Garden Rice







So like I said before, no this, no that... These were marinaded beforehand, mopped with pineapple juice and glazed.
I mopped 3x in the first 3 hours, them let them ride till they were just passing the Pop, Bend and Crack Test.
Then I glazed them and gave it 30 minutes to set up.



















*The Finale*


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## fivetricks (Aug 24, 2019)

And? What did YOU think of them? All these glazes tend to fall flat flavor wise for me. Tell me why I'm wrong :-D


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## chilerelleno (Aug 24, 2019)

chilerelleno said:


> I did something completely new to me, and I sure am happy I did.


No complaints from the family or I.
They had a nice Pineapple Lime sweetness with just a hint of Al pastor flavor, quite nice actually.

The glaze is pretty good, but could use more lime zest and perhaps clove.
The Al pastor marinade needs to be thicker, omit the pineapple juice from the can.
And perhaps add half again as much Guajillo powder.
Or my basic pork rub could be modified with added Annatto and Guajillo to increase the flavor profile of Al Pastor.


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## drdon (Aug 24, 2019)

chilerelleno said:


> ...let them ride till they were just passing the Pop, Bend and Crack Test and glazed them and gave it 30 minutes to set up


Nope, nope, nope...I couldn't wait that long unless there were physical restraints. Looks too good sir! Nice money shot too.
Don


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## chilerelleno (Aug 24, 2019)

drdon said:


> Nope, nope, nope...I couldn't wait that long unless there were physical restraints. Looks too good sir! Nice money shot too.
> Don


Thanks Don.
Man it was hot/humid enough to not to want to go out to the smoker unless absolutely necessary... Waiting for the perfect time was easy.


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## chilerelleno (Aug 24, 2019)

fivetricks said:


> And? What did YOU think of them? All these glazes tend to fall flat flavor wise for me. Tell me why I'm wrong :-D


Are you buying glazes or making your own?
Make your own and you can taste test as you go, lets you make changes on the fly.
But, continued changes in time, temp and interactions with other  substances changes the chemistry and taste, and leaves me thinking more Lime/Clove.

*EDIT: Updated glaze recipe with more lime zest and clove.*


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## fivetricks (Aug 24, 2019)

I'm a huge Clove/allspice guy. just enough gives things that's secret bite that no one can quite pick out :-)

I always make my own, but perhaps am a bit hamstrung by the fact that no one in my house actually enjoys real flavor. So I always try to keep it safe for them but fall flat in my own view. But I also don't have the natural culinary talent that you do. Everyone says I do, but after all they don't like flavor. What do they know?!


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## chilerelleno (Aug 24, 2019)

fivetricks said:


> I'm a huge Clove/allspice guy. just enough gives things that's secret bite that no one can quite pick out :-)
> 
> I always make my own, but perhaps am a bit hamstrung by the fact that no one in my house actually enjoys real flavor. So I always try to keep it safe for them but fall flat in my own view. But I also don't have the natural culinary talent that you do. Everyone says I do, but after all they don't like flavor. What do they know?!


So screw'em and cook for yourself.


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## Hawging It (Aug 24, 2019)

Perfection! Going to try the glaze.


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## chilerelleno (Aug 25, 2019)

Hawging It said:


> Perfection! Going to try the glaze.


Appreciate it Hawg, thanks.


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## Smokin' in AZ (Aug 25, 2019)

Chile,
Great looking cook 
*Like!*


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## chilerelleno (Aug 25, 2019)

To all the folks Looking, Liking and Leaving...  Thanks for the Likes!
@jaxgatorz 
@tallbm 
@zwiller 
@Derek717


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## chilerelleno (Aug 25, 2019)

Smokin' in AZ said:


> Chile,
> Great looking cook
> *Like!*


Thanks John, for both the compliment and Like.


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## chilerelleno (Aug 25, 2019)

Leftovers, I love my leftovers for snacks and lunches.
A lot of the time it seems that leftover's flavors meld together and improve with age.
Not this time... Just killed the leftovers and they seem to have mellowed out to the point of bland, just weird.

My youngest son thought they were still great.
Maybe I was a bit nose/taste blind from cooking the pork belly?

Either way, I'll just make the marinade and glaze more flavorful.


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## drdon (Aug 26, 2019)

chilerelleno said:


> Just killed the leftovers and they seem to have mellowed out to the point of bland


As BB King sang....the thrill is gone baby.... Sorry to hear that. We know you'll just whip something else up in a hurry.
Don


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## gmc2003 (Aug 26, 2019)

John you should step out of your comfort zone more often. Those ribs look scrumpdillyicious!!!

Point for sure
Chris


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## chilerelleno (Aug 26, 2019)

drdon said:


> As BB King sang....the thrill is gone baby.... Sorry to hear that. We know you'll just whip something else up in a hurry.
> Don


Yep, it was already on the plate, see my pork belly from yesterday.
Link >>>  Hickory Smoked/BBQ Braised Belly

This just means I have to kick it up a few notches.


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## xray (Aug 26, 2019)

Looks awesome Chile!! Haven’t gotten around to getting ribs on the smoker this summer, my where does the time go?

Killer plate and the rice looks delish too!


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## dannylang (Aug 26, 2019)

Chili looks great as always, something new.. looks great.
dannylang


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## chilerelleno (Aug 26, 2019)

gmc2003 said:


> John you should step out of your comfort zone more often. Those ribs look scrumpdillyicious!!!
> 
> Point for sure
> Chris


Thank you Chris, appreciate that.
I'm a creature of habit, but I do occasionally break a bad habit.
But it's always replaced by 2-3 new ones.
This recipe is going to be a habit once I get it nicely tweaked.


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## SmokinVOLfan (Aug 26, 2019)

Man those look great! Reminds me of the buffalo sauce ribs that smokinAl did. Thinking outside the box gets you great food! Added it to my list of stuff to try!

John


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## chilerelleno (Aug 26, 2019)

dannylang said:


> Chili looks great as always, something new.. looks great.
> dannylang


Thanks Danny.
With a little work I might get these half edible.


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## 6GRILLZNTN (Aug 26, 2019)

I'm not usually a fan of wet ribs, but those really look tasty!  Big Like!


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## chilerelleno (Aug 26, 2019)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> Man those look great! Reminds me of the buffalo sauce ribs that smokinAl did. Thinking outside the box gets you great food! Added it to my list of stuff to try!
> 
> John


 Appreciate it John.
Yes'sir, getting crazy with it can be rewarding.
I remember those Buffalo Ribs, they're on my list.


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## chilerelleno (Aug 26, 2019)

5GRILLZNTN said:


> I'm not usually a fan of wet ribs, but those really look tasty!  Big Like!


That makes two of us,  but exceptions do get made.
Thanks man.


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## texomakid (Aug 26, 2019)

That looks really nice. I can only imagine what the flavor was like. So how long was your total cook time on those ribs start to finish?


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