SLOW COOKER HATCH CHILE BBQ RIBS

The best part of this slow cooker recipe is that it does all the work! All you have to do is come home to a prepared dinner of sticky, fall apart, melt-in-your-mouth incredible ribs!

2 cups barbecue sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup diced FRESH roasted Hatch chiles
4 pounds baby back pork ribs
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste

• Spray inside of a 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.
• Remove and discard the inner membrane from the ribs and cut into slabs that will fit into your slow cooker.
• Generously season the ribs with a good amount of salt and pepper.
• Combine BBQ sauce, brown sugar, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and chiles in a small bowl, mixing well to combine.
• Completely cover the ribs with half of the sauce. 

• Cover with lid and cook on low setting for 7-9 hours or high setting for 3-5 hours (see notes).
• Refrigerate remaining sauce to use later.

• When ribs are tender and falling apart, transfer onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (Lift them carefully as the meat will be very tender and falling off the bone). 

• Pour half of the juices from the slow cooker bowl into the remaining sauce.
• Baste ribs with half of the sauce and broil in preheated oven at 400° for 5-10 minutes or until beginning to char and crisp on the edges. 

• Serve ribs with remaining sauce.


NOTES:

• Cook times seriously depend on the desired results you are looking for:
• Ribs that are soft but stay on the bone = LOW: 5-6 HOURS / HIGH: 3 HOURS.
• Tender, fall apart ribs that melt in your mouth like butter = LOW: 7-8 HOURS / HIGH: 4-5 HOURS.

HATCH CHILES are my favorite green chile. They are similar to their cousin the Anaheim green chile, but is specific to the Hatch Valley in southern New Mexico. Hatch chiles only come from Hatch, New Mexico. The HATCH green chile is especially popular throughout all of New Mexico, as well as Texas and Southern California.

They have a balanced, smoky heat that enhances both savory and sweet dishes. You can buy a canned version of roasted Hatch chiles, but nothing beats a FRESH roasted one. August and September are the BEST times to find them.

True Parmesan cheese only comes from the Reggio Emilia and Parma region, champagne only comes from the champagne wine region of France and similarily Hatch chiles from the Hatch Valley are like grapes coming from the Napa Valley.

Hatch chiles are extremely versatile. I add them to stews, sauces, dips, dressings, salsa and even desserts. Some of my favorite sandwich cookies in the world (Sweet Lime chile) come from the HEB grocery chain in Texas. Try adding some FRESH roasted chopped chiles to your apple pie or on top of a burger or your slice of pizza.

Green and red Hatch chiles are the same pepper just picked at different times. They do each offer distinct flavors though. I LOVE them best in August when they offer a smoky flavor. But, in September when the turn red they offer a sweeter flavor better suited for the sweeter recipes.

Right now there is a local food truck specializing in Roasted Hatch Chiles in our little town and I have been taking full advantage of buying them FRESH roasted and preparing them for the freezer so I’ll have them all year long.