Spicy Mexican Short Ribs or Mexican Adobo Ribs are Side Spare Ribs chopped into Short Ribs and seasoned with Homemade Goya Adobo Seasoning and marinated in a Homemade Adobo Sauce, before being slow cooked in the oven. The results are tender succulent short ribs, coated in a savory spicy sauce, and incredibly delicious. Serve with a side of Rice to eat with the sauce. Optionally some Sour Cream with Cilantro or Parsley for garnishing. Another good side is Corn on the Cob, making the entire dish a finger food.You can control the heat level with the amount of Chilies de Arbol added. These are supposed to be spicy though, like make your mouth sweat spicy. It's such a marvelous way to enjoy Ribs!The best part of this recipe is that the Adobo Sauce pulp that is sieved out, is saved and dehydrated to make Taco Seasoning, Chili Powder, or an Adobo Chili Dry mix with added Adobo Seasoning. Any leftover sauce is used to make an exceptional Beefy Adobo Soup that can be served with Tacos on the side too! It's a dish that just keeps on giving!
Servings: 4
Equipment
- 1 Casserole with Lid or use Tinfoil to cover
- 1 Sauce Pot
- 1 Blender
- 1 Fine Sieve
- 1 Butchers Knife
- 1 Digital Scale
Ingredients
- 4+ lbs Pork Side Ribs - 1 good size rack, or 2 racks about 2 lbs each
- 2 tsp Homemade Goya Adobo Seasoning - Use 1/2 tsp per 1 lb (ca. 454 g) of Side Ribs
Adobo Sauce
- 5 C Water - See notes
- 28 oz Canned Tomatoes - or 5-8 Roma Tomatoes
- 8 Dried Guajillo Chilies - seeds removed
- 5 Dried Morita Chilies - seeds removed
- 5 Cloves Garlic - roughly chopped
- 2-5 Dried Chilies de Arbol - See notes
- 1 Large White Onion - about 227g, use more if you want to reduce the tomato taste, roughly chopped
- 1/4 C Lime Juice & Tomato Paste - each
- 2 Tbl Lard
Adobo Seasoning
- 1 Cube Pork Bouillon - or Beef Bouillon
- 1 Tbl Sugar - White, Brown or Piloncillo
- 1 tsp Black Pepper, Coriander, Cumin, Oregano
- 1/2 tsp Allspice
- 1/4 tsp Ginger, Cinnamon, Clove
Instructions
- Preparation: Remove the seeds and membrane from the Chilies. Coarsely chop the Onion & Garlic. Combine the seasoning into a small bowl.
- Adobo Sauce: Heat a sauce pot over medium heat with lard. Add the Onions & Garlic to cook until lightly browned, while mixing often. Add the Tomato Paste and mix well to cook for 1–2 minutes. Follow with the Chilies and mix, cook for another minute. Add the Adobo Seasoning to mix, then the Water, Bouillon Cube & Tomatoes. Turn the heat to max and bring to a boil. When it starts to boil, remove from heat, mix in Lime Juice and let cool. Empty into a blender and blend for 5 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve back into the sauce pot. Use a rubber spatula to press and mix until only a paste is left, empty the paste out and repeat. Let the Adobo sauce completely cool. The paste can be dehydrated and ran through a grinder for a homemade Adobo chili powder.
- Side Ribs: Slice away the Sternum & Flap and chop into bite size pieces. Chop to separate the ribs into individual ribs and then with a butcher knife, and some force, chop each rib in half right through the bone. You should have about 40 pieces, give or take. Place them into the pan and add 1/2 tsp Adobo Seasoning for every 1 lb (ca. 454 g). Toss well to evenly distribute.
- Marinade: Empty the strained and cooled down adobo sauce over the ribs and mix well, cover with lid or tin foil. Refrigerate overnight.
- Cooking: Take the ribs out from the fridge to rest on the counter while you preheat the oven to 300F with the rack in middle position. Place the Ribs in while still covered and cook for 3 hours. Uncover and place back into the oven for 30 minutes or longer to brown the ribs and reduce the sauce. Serve about 10 pieces a serving and garnish with Cilantro or Parsley.
Notes
Sauce Consistency: Anywhere from 4-5 C for consistency. Less water, thicker sauce. More water, thinner sauce. You can also cook the ribs a bit longer uncovered to reduce the sauce, or plate the ribs and empty the Adobo sauce into a pot to reduce until the desired thickness. If the Sauce is too thick, add more water.
Heat Level: The Adobo Sauce by itself without any Chilies de Arbol is relatively mild, some may say no real heat. This however is supposed to be a spicy dish, so add in anywhere from 2 to 5 Chilies de Arbol with the seeds as this is the main heat source. You can always omit the Chilies de Arbol and add them in when blending to gauge the heat.
Leftover Adobo Sauce can be used to make Adobo Broth Soup or added to Chilies! Save the pulp and dehydrate it. Then grind it to a powder to make Taco Seasoning with added ingredients, Chili Seasoning with added ingredients, or by itself as an Adobo Chili Blend with Adobo Seasoning added to boost the flavors.