Pineapple-Jalapeño Healthier BBQ Sauce with Smoked Baby Back Ribs

I’m super excited to share this recipe today for both the baby back ribs and the bbq sauce that I made on my IG (@sweatspace) stories yesterday! They’re sweet, smoky with a hint of spice that are so tender that they melt off the bone.

Baby back ribs have a very special place in my heart because my grandpa would cook these on special occasions for our family and was hands down my favorite thing he’d make. Anytime I now have ribs, it reminds me of him and brings so much joy as he was not only my mentor, but an amazing human all around.

The recipe for the homemade bbq sauce is not only refined sugar-free, but also paleo and whole30 friendly. The sauce once cooked down, transfer over to a Vitamix - they can handle hot foods really well, especially the stainless steel container as its also stain resistant. It can be served immediately and anything leftover can either be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen in an airtight container to use at a later time. Feel free to add more or less maple syrup or swap in another form of sugar like honey, coconut palm sugar, etc based on how sweet you’d like it.

As for the ribs. if you don’t have a smoker, they can also be cooked in the oven or in a pressure cooker. In that case, I’d recommend adding a little more liquid smoke on top of the ribs to get the smoky taste like you get when cooked low and slow on a smoker.

Ingredients:

Pineapple-Jalapeño BBQ Sauce
- 28 oz whole peeled tomatoes
- 4 oz tomato paste
- 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup pure maple syrup
- 1.5 cups chopped pineapples
- 1/2 tbsp - 1 tbsp diced jalapeños
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons coconut aminos
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked hickory salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Baby Back Ribs:
- 1 lb/person of baby back ribs
- 1 tbsp of each ingredient below for the dry rub/pound
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp smoked hickory salt
- 1 tbsp black pepper

Sauce Instructions:
1. Add all ingredients to a saucepan over medium-low heat. Let simmer until whole peeled tomatoes soften and sauce thickens up - about 30 minutes or longer to make it thicker.
2. Transfer all ingredients into a Vitamix Stainless Steel Container blend until smooth about 2 minutes.
3. Serve immediately with ribs, store any extra in the fridge once cooled for up to 7 days or freeze.

Ribs Instructions:
1. Bring ribs to room temperature and pat dry. If the butcher has not removed the membrane, remove prior to grilling.
2. Pre-heat smoker to 225 degrees for 15 minutes or until temperature reaches 225 degrees - if you have super smoke option, turn on.
3. Liberally add the dry rub into the ribs shortly before adding to the smoker.
4. Place ribs bone side down for 2 hours then flip to meat side down for an hour.
5. Remove the ribs from the smoker, add bbq sauce and turn up the heat to 500 degrees.
6. Sear for 3-4 minutes per side, remove from heat and add more sauce prior to serving.

I hope you get to enjoy this recipe soon! If you end up making it or have any questions don’t hesitate to DM me or tag me @sweatspace on Instagram so I can reshare! Wishing you the best day ahead!

All the Best,

Mike