Oven Braised Country Style Pork Ribs With Apple Cider Food

BRAISED COUNTRY-STYLE PORK RIBS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Pat the ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat 2
• tablespoons of the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown the ribs
• on all sides, working in batches if needed. Remove the ribs and set aside. Add
• the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the Dutch oven and reduce the heat to medium.
• Add the carrots, celery, onions and some salt and pepper and cook until soft,
• about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add
• the tomato paste and cook, stirring, to remove the raw flavor, about 3 minutes.
• Deglaze the pan with the vinegar, and then add the red pepper flakes and bay
• leaves.
• Add the ribs back to the pan and add enough stock to reach
• halfway up the sides of the ribs. Bring the pan to a simmer, cover and place in
• the oven. Braise until the meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. During the last
• half hour, uncover to allow the liquid to reduce and the pork to brown.
• Serve the ribs with Creamy Polenta, spooning the sauce on
• top, and garnishing with parsley.
• Spray the insert of a slow cooker with cooking spray (for easier clean up) and preheat on high.
• In a medium saucepan, add 1 cup of the half-and-half, the milk, 1 tablespoon of the butter and the polenta. Season with salt and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly to keep the mixture lump-free. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker and cook on high for 2 hours, stirring once or twice per hour.
• Once you are ready to serve, open the slow cooker and whisk in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, the remaining 1/3 cup half-and-half and the Parmesan. Salt and pepper conservatively since the polenta will be served with a robustly salted dish.

OVEN-BRAISED COUNTRY-STYLE PORK RIBS

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Preheat oven to 250 F. Combine garlic powder, brown sugar, salt, pepper, cayenne, onion powder, cumin, paprika, and chili in a bowl and stir until completely blended.
• Place ribs on a large baking sheet. Dry well and sprinkle dry rub on them, turning ribs around to get them evenly coated. Rub mixture into meat.
• Line a large baking dish with heavy-duty foil.
• Peel and roughly chop onion and add chunks to foil-lined dish.
• Arrange seasoned ribs on top of chopped onion in baking dish. Cover tightly with another piece of foil and transfer to oven. Let ribs cook for two hours without opening oven.
• After two hours, remove dish and drain off any liquid that has collected in the dish. You'll want to keep this liquid, so pour it into a large heatproof bowl.
• Pour 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce over ribs and use a barbecue brush to spread sauce evenly on all sides of the ribs. Recover dish tightly with foil and return it to oven for another 2 hours.
• Remove dish from oven and increase oven temperature to 350 F.
• Remove foil covering and drain off any more liquid into same bowl as before. Brush remaining barbecue sauce onto ribs so that they're evenly coated.
• Don't cover the dish this time. Transfer ribs to oven for 10 minutes, just enough time for sauce to caramelize slightly without drying out ribs.
• Meanwhile, pour liquid you set aside through a strainer lined with cheesecloth to filter out particles of spice rub and any other little bits. Cover and refrigerate liquid overnight.

OVEN-BRAISED COUNTRY STYLE PORK RIBS WITH APPLE CIDER

Steps:

• Gather all ingredients.
• Heat the oven to 300 F (150 C/Gas 2).
• Sprinkle the pork ribs with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the ribs, in batches if necessary, and sear on all sides. Remove to a plate and set aside.
• Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the onion, carrot, and celery. Cook, stirring until onion is translucent and lightly browned. Add the minced garlic and continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes longer.
• Add the ribs back to the pan. In a bowl, combine the cider, vinegar, chicken broth, and tomato paste; blend well. Add the bay leaves and thyme; pour over the ribs. Cover the Dutch oven and bake for 3 hours, or until very tender.
• Skim the fat from the juices and remove bay leaves. Taste and add salt and pepper, if needed. If desired, thicken the juices (see note below).
• Serve the ribs with the vegetables and juices, along with boiled or mashed potatoes. Note: To thicken the juices, combine 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour with 2 tablespoons of cold water, stirring until smooth. Bring the skimmed juices to a simmer on the stovetop; stir in the flour mixture and cook, stirring, until thickened.

BEER-BRAISED COUNTRY-STYLE PORK RIBS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Pat the ribs dry, season with salt and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon paprika. Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the ribs in batches and cook until browned, about 8 minutes per side. Remove to a plate. Add the onions and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon paprika and season with salt.
• Add the beer; bring to a boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half, about 8 minutes, scraping up the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Add the chicken broth, bay leaves and thyme; when the liquid begins to simmer, return the ribs to the pot and transfer to the oven. Cook, uncovered, turning the ribs once or twice, until the meat is almost tender, about 1 hour.
• Mix the vinegar and honey in a measuring cup. Remove the pot from the oven and place on the stovetop; bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the vinegar mixture and bring to a boil, then return the pot to the oven. Continue to braise, uncovered, until the ribs are tender, 15 to 20 more minutes. Return the pot to the stovetop and transfer the ribs to a plate. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium heat; skim off the fat and cook until thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Return the ribs to the pot and heat through. Discard the bay leaves and thyme. Photograph by Con Poulos

APPLE CIDER RIBS

Steps:

• Place a 2 lb. rack of baby back ribs in a foil lined shallow pan.
• Add 1 1/2 cups apple cider and cover lightly with foil.
• Bake at 250° for 3 hours basting every 1/2 hour or so with the cider.
• After 3 hours remove from oven and add rub or sauce to ribs.
• Drain off some liquid if needed.
• Return to oven and bake uncovered for 1 hour at 325°.

OVEN BRAISED BARBECUE PORK RIBS

Steps:

• Fold each sheet of foil in half lengthwise.
• You now have two double thick sheets measuring 18x18 inches.
• Stack them on top of each other, folded sides on top, and triple fold the three cut edge sides together, crimping firmly, leaving the folded edge side open.
• You now have a double thickness foil bag.
• Put the foil bag on a large baking sheet with sides (in case of leaks) and fill with the ribs, being careful not to puncture the bag if the ribs are 'bone-in'.
• Mix together the ketchup, beer, syrup, onion, garlic, Worcestershire, and hot sauce.
• Pour into the bag with the ribs.
• Triple fold and firmly crimp the top folded edges of the foil.
• Put the bag, still on the baking sheet, into a 300 degree oven for 3 hours.
• Remove from the oven, cut a corner of the foil bag, and drain the liquid contents into a sauce pan.
• Crimp the cut edge and set the ribs aside, still sealed in the foil.
• Bring the liquids to a boil and reduce to a glaze-like consistency (like b-b-que sauce).
• While the sauce is reducing, preheat your oven broiler.
• Place the ribs on a oil-sprayed broiler pan, being careful to keep as whole as possible, as they will be very tender.
• Taste the sauce and add more hot sauce if you want more spiciness.
• Brush the ribs generously with the sauce and broil close to the heat until the sauce starts to bubble and caramelize (about 1-2 mins.).
• Turn the ribs, and repeat.
• If you want a thicker coating, do this brush-and-broil process one more time per side.
• (I usually do.) Serve with any extra sauce to pour over.
• NOTE: If you don't have or can't find the dark maple syrup, dark corn syrup is a good substitute.