All Fired Up S2BBQ & Grill

Sticky Pork Ribs with Banana Ketchup

Name: Sticky Pork Ribs with Banana Ketchup
Total time: 240 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 1 kg baby back ribs; 2 tbsps American mustard; For the dry rub; 100g brown sugar; 2 tbsps sea salt; 2 tbsps garlic powder; For the spritz; 100 ml apple juice; 100 ml apple cider vinegar; For the banana ketchup; 2 bananas; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 1 small onion, finely diced; 1 tsp fresh ginger, finely chopped; 4 tbsp light brown sugar; 3 tbsp tomato paste; 1/3 tsp cayenne powder; 50 ml white wine vinegar; 100 ml water; 2 tbsp neutral oil (eg sunflower or vegetable); For the slaw; 3 tbsp mayonnaise; 1 tbsp of wholegrain mustard; 1 tbsp of runny honey; 1 tbsp olive oil; Juice of 1 lemon; ½ white cabbage, grated; 4 spring onions, finely sliced; 2 carrots grated; 2 apples, grated

Nico ReynoldsFrom the series · All Fired Up S2

240 min totalServes 4Medium

Time240 min

Serves4

SkillMedium

ShowAll Fired Up

Method

For the pork ribs: remove the membrane from the underside of the ribs by pulling it off with a piece of kitchen paper.

Mix all the ingredients for the dry rub together and set aside.

Brush the meat with the American mustard and then cover completely with the dry rub.

Place the ribs onto a tray and place into the fridge for 2 hours.

For the banana ketchup: peel the bananas and rub with a little neutral oil. Place over indirect heat and cook for 30 minutes with the lid on until caramelised and soft.

Meanwhile, place 1 tbsp oil into a pot set over a medium heat and add the finely chopped onion and garlic. Cook for 10 minutes, until the onion is translucent and soft, but not coloured, then stir in the ginger and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Remove the banana from the BBQ and roughly mash then add to the onions, along with the brown sugar, tomato puree and cayenne pepper. Cook out for a few minutes then add the white wine vinegar and water and allow to reduce by half.

Simmer the sauce for about 10 minutes then season with salt and black pepper and blend until smooth with a hand blender.

To cook the ribs: place a half water bath under the grill - to do this, fill a foil tray about half full with water and place on one side of your charcoal BBQ.

Light your fire on the other side of the BBQ.

Place the ribs (bone side down) over the water bath and leave for about an hour.

After an hour, start to spritz with the apple spritz every 15 minutes

Continue cooking, spritzing regularly, for a further hour then begin to brush the ribs with the banana ketchup every 15 minutes for the final hour of cooking.

For the slaw: mix the mayonnaise, mustard, honey, oil and lemon juice in a large bowl until well combined.

Add the cabbage, spring onion, carrot and apple and stir to mix into the dressing. Season with salt and black pepper and set aside until needed.

Cook's notes

Don't fill your barbecue with charcoal — that's the most common mistake I see, and you end up with a flaming inferno and food that's charred outside and raw in the middle. Light coals on one side only and wait until they're covered in grey ash: the loaded side is for searing, the empty side is where the ribs cook low and slow.
Pull the membrane off the bone side with a piece of kitchen paper for grip — once it's gone, the mustard and rub get right into the meat. The dry rub locks in the moisture you'd normally lose during the cook, which is your guarantee of juicy ribs.
The water bath on the indirect side keeps the air humid and stops the ribs drying out over the long cook — top it up if it runs low.
Leave the ribs alone for the first hour so the bark can set, then spritz with the apple juice and cider vinegar mix every 15 minutes — it keeps the meat moist and builds that lovely bark on the outside.
In the final hour, brush with the banana ketchup every 15 minutes and finish with the spritz for a sticky, lacquered glaze. On gas they'll take longer than three hours, because you need a less intense heat to stop them drying out.

Serve with The apple-and-cabbage slaw — rainbow in a bowl — is built to cut through all that richness, so pile it high alongside. A cold lager or a dry cider is the natural partner, and some soft white rolls never go amiss for mopping up the ketchup.

Make ahead & storage The ribs keep in the fridge for up to three days — reheat wrapped in foil in a low oven so they don't dry out. The banana ketchup holds in a sealed jar in the fridge for a week and is worth doubling: it goes with sausages, burgers, eggs, fish and chicken too.

BBQ & GrillAsian

Recipe by Nico Reynolds · From the series All Fired Up S2 · Photography © Appetite Media
Published 15 July 2026

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

950kcal

60gprotein

95gcarbs

38gfat

Approximate — calculated from the ingredient list using USDA food data. A guide, not a medical figure.