Spicy Ribs

The pungent punch behind this dish comes from bird’s-eye chiles—a hot, fruity variety commonly used in Vietnamese, Thai, and other Southeast Asian cuisines. The powdered version is available online or at Asian grocery stores, but you can also make your own by grinding whole dried bird’s-eyes in a food processor, clean coffee grinder, or mortar and pestle. It takes about 14 chiles to yield the amount of powder needed in this recipe.