Ribs in a Bag

 

Ribs are another food that I have tried a number of ways. I’ve done them on the grill, in the smoker, boiled and then roasted, braised, and any other way you can name. If you want falling off the bone ribs with a ton of flavor, you will not find a recipe that beats this one. It is not traditional, but it works great.

Ingredients:
Meat
2 racks of pork loin ribs (or baby back) cut in half

Rub
1 cup light brown sugar
½ cup kosher salt
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp jalapeño flakes
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp rubbed thyme
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cracked black pepper
¼ tsp cayenne powder

Braising Liquid

1 cup Bourbon

1 cup water

2 cloves minced garlic

3 tbsp honey

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Directions:
1. Combine rub ingredients in a bowl. Rub all over ribs. Put ribs in a plastic bag and refrigerate overnight (at least 4 hours, but preferably 12 or more)
 

2. Cut a piece of heavy duty foil about 3 feet long with shiny side up.

3. Place a ½ rack on the foil

 

4. First fold the foil lengthwise, then close up the side by folding over. Be sure to seal tightly but be very careful not to puncture the foil. A hole will ruin the process. Be sure to leave the end open.
 

 

5. Repeat steps 2-4 for the remaining racks.

6. Preheat oven to 250F

7. Combine braising liquid ingredients. Microwave the ingredients for 1 minute.

8. Divide liquid between bags. Fold end over 2-3 times to seal the bags. Double check all the way around to make sure seams are tight.

 

9. Place bags on cookie sheets and place in the middle of the oven. Cook for 2.5 hours.

10. Remove ribs from oven and allow to cool to touch.

11. Pour liquid from each bag into a large sauce pot (be careful this can be hot).

 

 

12. Bring sauce to a boil and reduce by at least half.

13. Brush sauce all over ribs. Turn on broiler and broil until starting to crisp all over (about 1-2 minutes). Continue reducing sauce.

  

14. Remove ribs, cut into 2 rib portions. Toss in sauce and serve.

Buffalo Wings

 

Buffalo wings are a perfect party food. I’ve tried all kinds of things for the wings and nothing came out with that perfect “Buffalo sauce” taste. It turns out that in this case brand names matter. You just can’t make Buffalo wings without Frank’s Red Hot Sauce. The recipe for the wings is right on the bottle. I just twisted it a little here to do them on the grill and to add some kick. These are super easy. You can make a bunch at one time to really feed a crowd. You can fry these too, but it just too much work. Baking comes out even better and it is easier, you can’t beat that.

Ingredients:
16 wings (if you prefer, cut into halves for a total of 32 pieces) 
1/2 cup Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
cayenne powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Season wings with spices.

2. Pour hot sauce over wings, mix and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

3. Preheat grill (or oven) to 425F.

4. Place wings on grill and cook for 45 minutes, turning every 10-15 minutes.
 

5. Remove wings from grill. If desired toss in a little sauce. Enjoy.

Hot Bread and Butter Pickles

Lots of canning going on right now. We’re trying to use up all of the veggies before the season is over. I’ve tried a few recipes so far for various pickles, but so far these are my favorite bread and butter pickles. Not bad for a total experiment (trying to use up some cayennes).

If you don’t can, start. You’ll never go back to store bought pickles and veggies again.

Ingredients

1/2 lb of assorted hot peppers (7 oz. Hungarian wax and 2 oz. cayenne)
1/2 lb of carrots cut into 1/4 inch strips
1 medium onion thinky sliced
2 lb cucumbers cut into wedges
3 tbsp salt
7 cups sugar
7 cups vinegar
1 tsp celery seed
1 tbsp pickling spice
1 1/2 tsp turmeric

Yields 3 pints 

Directions
1. Combine vegetables in a bowl and mix with salt.
 

2. Let stand for at least 2 hours. Rinse and drain thoroughly.
 

3. Heat up sugar, vinegar, celery seed, pickling spice and turmeric in a large pot over medium heat.

4. Add vegetables and cook for 10 minutes.

5. Remove from heat, cool for 15 minutes. Spoon into sterilized jars.

6. Process for 11 minutes. Let stand for 2 weeks or more to allow flavors to blend.
 

Notes:
The cucumbers came out a little limp, I should have cut them into slices. Also we came up short of 3 pints. Next time we’ll add a little more veggies.