Two nights ago, I made dinner for my fiancé, Alasdair, the self-described meat and potatoes guy. One of his all-time favorite foods is BBQ pork ribs. He’s something of a connoisseur so I was a little bit hesitant to cook the ribs, especially without a grill or a smoker. BUT I came across a few slow cooker rib recipes online that seemed too good to pass up. Supplemented with sweet potato and goat cheese tater tots and a summer squash salad to balance out the heavy meat, this was the perfect summertime meal.
The ribs could not be easier. You only need FOUR INGREDIENTS:
1 pound pork ribs
Your favorite BBQ sauce
Salt
Pepper
DIRECTIONS:
Heat your oven to 400 degrees. Sprinkle salt and pepper liberally over both sides of the pork. Put the ribs on a large baking sheet or in a shallow dish and bake for 15 minutes or until the ribs begin to brown.
Transfer the ribs to your slow cooker. Add three cups of your favorite BBQ sauce or sauces (I mixed a few plus made my own – see below) and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone.
Reheat the oven to 400 degrees. Finally, transfer the ribs back to the baking sheet or shallow dish and bake for another 15 minutes or until the sauce begins to caramelize on the ribs.
Top with more of your favorite BBQ sauce and enjoy!
MY BBQ SAUCE INGREDIENTS (Mix together and pour into crock pot with ribs):
1 cup Simply Heinz ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce (any brand works)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 cup raw agave syrup
1 tablespoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
I added about a cup of two other BBQ sauces in my fridge (one sizzling sweet and the other sweet) to compliment my homemade mix but I think most any BBQ sauce would work. The secret to the recipe is not the sauce but the oven/slow cooker combo. The skin crisps up on the outside and the meat is so tender and, literally, falling off the bone.
VERDICT ON THE RIBS? One happy fiancé! And as long as you’re careful about what goes into your BBQ sauce, these ribs are perfect for the gluten and lactose intolerant.
VERDICT ON THE SIDES? Well, that’s where I lost some. In my first blog, I mentioned that I’m still learning, and Tuesday night was a testament to my lack of skill using and slight fear of hot frying oil. I spent 45 minutes grating potatoes for the Sweet Potato Goat Cheese Tater Tots (recipe at Heather’s Dish and major props to Heather for the amazing idea). The grating was not quite as easy as I thought it would be but justified by the hardcore arm workout. Once the potatoes were grated, mixed with flour and goat cheese, and formed into tot shapes, I dropped them into the hot HOT oil. I must have overcompensated for my fear of hot oil by putting the burner on high heat. The tots browned immediately but the insides weren’t quite cooked all the way. I turned the heat down and the first small test batch, as you can see by the picture above, survived and was delicious. Before putting in the rest of the tots, I added more oil to ensure it was cooler. Well, this time around it was too cool and the tots turned into mush in a greasy oil bath. After 45 minutes of grating potatoes, I was devastated. But, as Alasdair said, every new dish is a learning experience, and maybe next time I’ll use that kitchen thermometer that I still haven’t opened…
Healthy Recipe Ecstasy 