Beef Short Ribs

Beef Short Ribs

I have not had a lot of luck cooking beef short ribs. I love the ones I get when eating out – beefy, rich, and fork-tender. I’ve managed to get mine smoky and tasty, but they were also usually tough and dry. Since our last quarter of beef included two packs of short ribs, once more unto the breach, dear friends…

1 pound bone-in beef short ribs
Kosher salt & fresh-ground black pepper
1/4 cup red wine

Set your smoker up for at least a 6 hour indirect cook at 250°F. On the Big Green Egg this means filling the firebox with lump charcoal and using an inverted plate setter to diffuse the heat and a drip pan with a little water in it to catch the fat.

Once the smoker is up to temp, toss in your smoking wood (I used pecan), Season the ribs lightly with salt and pepper, then arrange them bone side down on the grate. Close the lid and let the smoker do its magic for 4 to 5 hours, or until the ribs reach 160°F internal.

Beef Short Ribs

When the ribs are ready, arrange them on a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil, meat side down. Pull up the edges of the foil to make a little bowl and then pour the wine over the ribs. Wrap the ribs tightly in the foil, making sure to seal the edges.

Put the bundle of ribs back on the smoker, meat side down, and cook until the ribs reach 190°F internal (about an hour).

Remove the ribs from the foil and return them to the smoker bone side down. Cook for 30 minutes or so, until the meat has tightened up and pulled well away from the bones.

Beef Short Ribs

Remove ribs from the smoker and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

The Verdict: ★★★★★
Finally! No knives were needed to take apart these little blocks of beefy wonder. They practically melted. I was also glad I stuck with a real simple preparation and let the meat and the smoke come though.

The Nutrition:
3 ounces of rib meat is a whopping 11 points and 165 calories, so these are a rare treat.

One year ago – Fish Tagine with Chermoula and Moroccan Rice Pilaf
Two years ago – Foodie Technology

Honey Hog Barbecue Sauce v3.0

Honey Hog Chicken

I’m getting ready to cook up a big pile-o-pork for a graduation party. I’d like to make all my own rubs and sauces for it, so I thought I’d start with a quart-sized batch of Honey Hog sauce.

1/2 cup honey
1 cup raw or turbinado sugar
1 cup cider vinegar
1 (12-ounce) can tomato paste
1/2 cup gluten-free Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup tamarind concentrate
1/4 cup pomegranate molasses
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Hungarian sweet paprika
1 tablespoon smoked sweet paprika
1 tablespoon half-sharp paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon allspice

Combine the tomato paste and sugar in a medium sauce pan and cook over low heat, stirring often, until the sugar melts into the paste.

Honey Hog Barbecue Sauce

Add the remaining ingredients, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stirring constantly, raise the heat a little until the sauce is bubbling away nicely. Keep stirring and cook until all the sugar has dissolved and the sauce starts to thicken a little bit (about five minutes).

Honey Hog Barbecue Sauce

Reduce the heat to low and let sauce cook for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Bottle and store in the fridge. Makes about 1 quart.

Honey Hog Chicken

Since you can only tell so much about a sauce while tasting it off of a spoon, I tried it on some grilled chicken thighs to get an idea of how it would work and play with others.

About 2 hours before cooking, I dusted some bone-in, skin-on thighs with a bit of salt, pepper, and paprika. I put them in a single layer on a sheet pan and let them sit uncovered in the fridge to let the seasoning work its way into the thighs and dry out the skin a bit to make it crispy.

I set the grill up for a raised indirect cook over medium (350°F) heat. I used the plate setter under the cooking grid on the Big Green Egg to diffuse the heat.

I put the thighs on the grill skin side up, closed the lid, and let them cook for 20 minutes. I flipped them and let them go another 20 minutes. I flipped them back skin side up and checked for doneness. While chicken is technically done when the juices run clear and the internal temperature hits 160°F, that leaves the thighs kind of rubbery. I like mine cooked a little longer to at least 180°F so the meat is tender and the skin is crisp.

This batch of thighs needed about 20 more minutes to hit 180°F. At this point I sauced them on both sides with the Honey Hog, put them back on for 10 more minutes, sauced them one last time and moved them to a warm plate and let sit 10 minutes before serving.

The Verdict: ★★★★★
Sometimes less is more. I basically doubled the main ingredients in the v2.0 recipe, but decided to leave out some of the herbs and spices that I didn’t think were key players. The result is a sauce that has a nice sweet and tangy tomato flavor with enough heat and spice to make it interesting. It’s not as complex as the previous version, but I like the clean, straight forward taste.

The sauce was lovely on the chicken thighs – adding a nice spicy sweetness. The thighs themselves were so crispy that biting into one was like biting into a slice of bacon. Mmmmmmmmmmmm… chicken bacon… mmmmmmmmmm…

The Nutrition:
3 ounces of chicken meat is only about 100 calories and 4 Weight Watchers points. The sauce maybe adds another 1/2 point per thigh.

One year ago – Spring Slow-Roasted Steaks
Two years ago – What Eggs are Supposed to Look Like

Pan-Fried Fish

Pan Fried Tilapia

It’s Lent, and the former altar boy in me is craving fish. Specifically – fried fish. More exactly – Filet-O-Fish. Since there aren’t really any gluten-free options at the golden arches, I adapted this Sandra Lee recipe to try and scratch my itch.

1/3 cup gluten-free flour
1 tablespoon Chesapeake Bay seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds firm white fish fillets
2-3 tablespoons peanut oil

Pan Fried Tilapia

In a shallow baking dish (a 9×13 pan works great for this) combine flour, seasoning, salt and pepper. Pat the fish dry, add to the pan, and coat each side with the seasoned flour.

Pan Fried Tilapia

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in small batches, shake any excess flour off of the filets and arrange them in the skillet. Brown the filets on both sides, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Add more oil if needed in between batches.

Pan Fried Tilapia

Serve with this killer tarter sauce from Kitchen Konfidence and some creamy coleslaw.

The Verdict: ★★★★☆
Definitely not McFishparts and it took care of my craving. I used tilapia and thought it was a little muddy tasting. I’d use cod next time.

The Nutrition:
A 4-ounce serving is 5 Weight Watchers points and 125 calories. Take it easy on the tarter sauce and it’s pretty healthy.

One year ago – Sweet Chili Barbecued Pork
Two years ago – Reuben Dip

Corned Beef Hash

Corned Beef Hash

Did things get a little too Irish over the weekend? This’ll fix you up me boyo.

4 medium red potatoes, shredded
6 ounces diced corned beef (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 medium onion, shredded
2 tablespoons peanut oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine the potatoes, corned beef, onion, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of the oil in a bowl. Stir to combine.

Heat the remaining oil in a 12-inch fry pan over medium heat. Fill the pan with the hash mixture, then use a spatula to press it into a flat, even layer.

Corned Beef Hash

Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until the bottom begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Flip and flatten again. Continue to cook, flipping every 10 minutes, until hash is well browned, about 40 minutes total.

Season with salt and pepper and serve topped with a couple of fried eggs.

The Verdict: ★★★★★
Crispy taters mixed with sweet onion and tender corned beef – perfect!

The Nutrition:
This is medicine, not food. There aren’t any calories in medicine.

One year ago – Longaniza Sausage
Two years ago – Oven-Baked Oatmeal

Standard Issue Creamy Coleslaw

Coleslaw

This is an ever-so-slightly updated version of the creamy cabbage salad that you’ll find at almost any barbecue or picnic.

1 small head of green cabbage, shredded
1/2 small head red cabbage, shredded
2 medium carrots, grated
1 small onion, grated
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice or buttermilk
1-2 teaspoons Louisiana-style hot sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/2 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise (I used Kraft’s Olive Oil Mayo)
1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Grate cabbage, carrots, and onion into a large bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss to coat thoroughly. Cover and stash in the fridge for at least an hour so the flavors get to know each other. Toss again, taste and adjust seasonings, then serve immediately.

The Verdict: ★★★★★
This may well be my favorite coleslaw recipe. It’s creamy and flavorful without crossing over into being gloppy and heavy. It’ll stand up to barbecue or burgers, but won’t overwhelm them. Making it with lemon juice gives it a brighter taste, while using buttermilk makes it creamier.

The Nutrition:
Switching to light mayo and sour cream keeps the creaminess, but really cuts the fat. 1/2 cup is about 100 calories and only 1 Weight Watchers point.

One year ago – Sweet Chili Barbecued Pork
Two years ago – Spring!

Double-Smoked Ham

doublesmokedham-1010078

When we ordered our last pig, we got something I hadn’t seen before – ham roasts. Not a full ham, but more like a really thick cured and smoked ham steak. Normally I’d pan fry one of these for ham and eggs, or chop if up for ham and bean soup. Instead I decided to treat it like a regular ham and  gave it the double-smoke and glaze treatment.

1 ham roast (2-3 pound thick ham steak)
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Combine the honey, vinegars, Worcestershire sauce, and spices in a small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Let simmer until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon – about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Set your grill up for an indirect cook over medium heat (350°F). On the Big Green Egg this means using an inverted plate setter to diffuse the heat, and a trivet to set the pan on. I added a good-sized chunk of pecan wood for smoke.

On fully cooked hams, all you need to do is warm the ham to 140°F internal. At 15 minutes per pound, this 3 pound roast should take less than an hour. Place the roast in a small roasting pan (I used a 9×13 cake pan). Close the lid and cook the roast for 20 minutes.

Flip the roast over and baste the ham with the glaze. Close the lid and cook for another 20 minutes. Glaze again, and continue cooking until the ham reaches 140°F internal. Glaze one last time and remove to a cutting board.

doublesmokedham-1010063

Let the ham rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Skim the fat off the pan juices serve it as an au jus.

The Verdict: ★★★★☆
Cooking ham is easy, and double smoking and glazing the roast like this is a great way to really bump the flavor up without adding much more effort to it.

This cut got a little dry, but that was the only problem. Next time I would probably glaze it right before putting it on the grill and then eery 15 minutes or so until just done.

The Nutrition:
Ham is 130 calories and 4 Weight Watchers points per 3 ounce serving.

One year ago – Longaniza Sausage
Two years ago – Tamale Pie