This Father’s Day 2026, treat your dad to a backyard barbecue with this tamarind-glazed pork ribs recipe. You don’t need a fancy barbecue grill for this recipe; instead, you can use one of those foldable or portable charcoal grills (perfect for slow cooking). Some of them come with skewers, some come without; either is okay. All you need to do is prepare the grill and barbecue some pork ribs with a tamarind glaze on them. Involve your dad in it or treat him to your creation with sides of fries, mashed potatoes and a cold salad.
Father’s Day 2026 should be an occasion to celebrate the first man in your life, your dad, who might have been one of the few people behind your food preferences. It’s time you got back to him with this pork recipe that is simply too delicious to pass up. These pork ribs are sweet, savoury, and tangy because of the tamarind, pineapple juice, honey, brown sugar and spice powders. The pork produced by this recipe literally falls off the bone when you tug away the bones from the meat.
If you can’t find pork ribs, ask your local butcher for pork ribs cut into 2 or 3 rib pieces (small sections of about 10-15 cm each) with some meat attached. While barbecuing the ribs, maintaining moderate heat is more important than having specialised barbecue equipment. So this recipe is not quite difficult, even for first-time grillers, who might be daunted by fancy barbecue grills. Try this recipe and surprise your dad this Father’s Day 2026.
Ingredients
UNITSIngredients
1 kgPork spare ribs
6 tbspTamarind paste (divided)
1 tbspPaprika
1 tbspBrown sugar
1 tspSalt
1 tspBlack pepper
1 tspGarlic powder
1 tspOnion powder
1/2 cupPineapple juice
1/4 cupHoney
Follow
Directions
Description - Step 1
Step 1: Preparing the grill for the meat
Light the charcoal and push it to one side of the grill, leaving the other side free of coals. Cover the grill and allow it to reach about 135°C. You will need to put the ribs on the side without coals so they cook through indirect heat.
Description - Step 2
Step 2: Applying the seasonings
Take 4 tablespoons of the tamarind paste and rub it into the pork ribs. Mix the paprika powder, brown sugar, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder as a spice rub and sprinkle it over the tamarind-rubbed pork ribs.
Description - Step 3
Step 3: Slow-cooking the ribs
Transfer the ribs to the grill and cook with the lid closed until the ribs develop a dark brown crust and take on a rich reddish-brown colour, about 2½ to 3 hours.
Description - Step 4
Step 4: Fixing the foil and adding more flavour
Transfer the ribs from the grill to the two large sheets of foil. Mix the remaining tamarind paste with pineapple juice and pour it over the pork ribs. Wrap them tightly in the foil.
Description - Step 5
Step 5: Cooking the ribs to tenderness
Return the foil-wrapped ribs to the cooler side of the grill, away from the charcoal. Cover and cook for another 1½ to 2 hours. The ribs should feel mobile in the foil and they should be ready when the meat feels tender and pulls away from the bone easily.
Description - Step 6
Step 6: Finish and serve
Take out the ribs from the grill and drizzle with honey for that sticky glaze. Rest for 20 minutes before slicing and serving the pork.
Slow cooking, on low heat, is the best method for cooking pork ribs. You can use an oven, smoker or a grill and cook for around 3-4 hours for tender meat.
This is an American recipe that uses St. Louis-style ribs, which are sought-after because they cook evenly. The other two types are baby back ribs, which are lean and spare ribs, which are larger and fattier.
The most tender pork rib cut is the baby back rib, which is sourced from the pig’s upper part of the spine. They are also lean and give you tender, fall-off-the-bone results.
To glaze pork ribs, brush or drizzle the glaze over the ribs during the last leg of cooking or immediately after cooking, allowing the heat to create a sticky, flavourful coating.