We have a problem with our freezer.
It always seems full and because of that, it’s hard to find things, which often leads to tragic freezer burn.
But I was determined to not let that happen to my country pork ribs, four little gems of pig on the bone, from Skagit River Ranch of Sedro Woolley for Week 12 of the eat-local Dark Days Challenge. I had been wanting to do them in the slower cooker, but couldn’t find a recipe with an eat-local twist.
Then I stumbled upon one from About.com (a site owned by the New York Times) that combined ribs with apple cider and apples.
I also found a quasi-local barbecue sauce I could not resist — ancho-molasses Rub with Love sauce by Seattle chef Tom Douglas. (Thanks, Mill Creek Central Market.)
Though it’s unlikely many of the sauce ingredients are from Washington (my definition of local), it boasts “roasted malt and hop flavors” thanks to a splash of Black Butte Porter from Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Ore.
Onward I went with one large local Pinata apple and cider from Lattin’s Country Cider Mill, from a delightful little destination farm in Olympia.
I also had local onions and garlic from Anselmo Farms of Machias by way of the Ballard farmer’s market, plus amazingly fresh and flavorful greenhouse greens, also by Anselmo Farms.
I used the greens for a simple side salad with non-local Paul Newman dressing and served last week’s scalloped potatoes, too.
Country ribs, though not necessarily sought after by foodies, were one of my favorite childhood meals.
My mother would bake them in the oven in barbecue sauce and serve them with scalloped potatoes. I would request them for my birthday dinner, along with coconut-filled chocolate Bundt cake.
These ribs, which seemed a different cut than what I remember, did not quite measure up to those, but they were still delicious.
What I liked best was how the apples, barbecue sauce, cider and onions, caramelized in advance, broke down into an amazingly flavorful chutney in the slow cooker.
It was truly something to savor and save. Tom’s barbecue sauce blended in beautifully.
I had read a Real Simple recipe that recommended freezing the crockery juices after cooking to quickly separate out the fat for skimming.
I did and it worked great. Real Simple also suggested reducing the sauces in a pan, but mine were already concentrated.
Your mileage may vary, depending on the size of your slow cooker.
Look for more Dark Days ideas at urbanhennery.com.
Slow-cooker barbecued country-style pork ribs
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 large apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
3 cups apple cider or juice
1 cup barbecue sauce
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 pounds country-style pork ribs
Lightly grease the crockery insert of a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker.
Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat and cook onions until soft or, if desired, caramelized. Put cooked onions, raw garlic cloves, apple slices, cider, barbecue sauce, salt and pepper in the slower cooker. Stir.
Wash ribs, trim excess fat and pat dry with paper towels. Brown the ribs on all sides in 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil, using medium-high heat.
Nestle the ribs into the ingredients in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 or 9 hours or until the meat is extremely tender.
Using tongs, remove the ribs from the cooker and set aside.
Pour the juices from the cooker into a bowl and place in the freezer for 10 minutes to hasten the separation of the fat. Remove and discard the fat.
Pour the juices into a saucepan and simmer until they are reduced to a desirable thickness. Add ribs and turn them in the sauce to coat and heat thoroughly before serving.
Adapted from About.com and RealSimple.com
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