Greek Spiced Spareribs Slow Cooker Recipe

(that's my friend Claudia's plate she left during the super bowl. she might not be getting it back...)

Who's ready for some ribs? Although it's the middle of May, which usually is the beginning of outdoor grilling time, our weather has been so chilly, that I'm perfectly happy staying inside to slow cook my ribs.

Actually, if it was super hot outside, I'd still want to be inside slow cooking my ribs. Ribs just taste better when slow cooked.
anyhow.

I LOVE THESE RIBS! The meat falls right off the bone, and while there are a lot of listed ingredients--it comes together very quickly. This spice combination is fantastic; it'd make an old leather shoe taste good.

The Ingredients.
serves 4-6 or 2 hungry moms

4 pounds pork spareribs (you can use beef, too)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon anise
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns (leave intact)
4 whole cloves (leave intact)
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 cup orange juice


The Directions.

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Place ribs into cooker. In a mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar with all of the ground spices. Rub this mixture the best you can on all sides of the ribs. Throw in the whole peppercorns and cloves. Drizzle on the honey, and add orange juice.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until meat is super tender and separates from the bone.

The Verdict.

Wonderful. I shared these ribs with my friend Georgia( who happens to be Greek), and we stood in my kitchen the day after I made them and ate the leftovers cold with the refrigerator door wide open. I was planning to reheat them, but she wanted just a nibble, and before we realized what happened we scarfed down 3 ribs each while waiting for the coffee to percolate.

I'm glad the kids were busy watching The Backyardigans so we didn't have to share!

Hawaiian Ribs Slow Cooker Recipe

I've been on a real rib kick lately. Our family has been taking mini roadtrip vacations during the weekends, and have been tasting ribs. I try really hard to order non kid-menu food for my kids when we travel, and also try to steer clear of chain restaurants (sometimes easier said than done). The two favorites of the summer are (both on the CA coast, I'm sorry!) Aptos Street Barbecue and McClintock's (we went to the one in Pismo Beach).

or you can make ribs at home. in the crockpot. because the barbecue is scary, and my friend Georgia just needed to get a hair cut because she CAUGHT HER HAIR ON FIRE while testing the grill.
ugh.
When she told me what happened, I asked: did you stop, drop and roll? she replied: No. I patted and screamed.

bwhahahaha!!!

but not really.

The Ingredients.
serves 4

2 pounds boneless beef short ribs, or about 4 pounds babyback ribs
1/3 cup gluten free soy sauce (LaChoy or Tamari Wheat Free)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon Chinese 5-Spice powder (I'll put a recipe to make your own down below)
6 cloves minced garlic

Chinese 5 Spice Powder recipe:
(mix spices well, and store in an air-tight container for up to 6 months)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon crushed anise seed
1/4 teaspoon ground fennel
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

The Directions.

If you're using boneless ribs, they will probably fit nicely in a 4 quart slow cooker. If you've got bones, you'll most likely need a 6-quart.
Put the ribs into the cooker, and top with the sauce mixture. If you really want to, you can combine all the sauce stuff in a little bowl and then paint it onto the ribs, but that seems like a lot of work. They'll be fine if you just dump everything on top. They'll be fine if the meat is frozen solid, too. Mine was!
Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or on high for about 4 to 5. Flip the ribs over a few times before serving to cover evenly in the sauce. The longer and slower you cook the ribs, the more tender the meat.

The Verdict.

These ribs are fantastic. I served them in the backyard (far away from the bbq!) with corn on the cob (you can do corn in the crock, too!) and a big salad. They were sticky and sweet, and the normally tough meat fell apart nicely. The kids ate their ribs in the wading pool, making clean up super easy. :-)

more slow cooker rib recipes:
barbecue ribs
korean ribs
greek ribs
lemon pepper ribs
orange chipotle ribs
red ribs
use your slow cooker as a smoker!

Father's Day Favorites

Good Morning!
We're spending Father's day weekend at the local water park at a Girl Scout event. I expect there to be a LOT of screaming. 

Before we head out the door I wanted to share 5 fantastic meals packed with flavor yet still pretty darn easy to prepare.

Bacon and Cheese chicken. Horrible picture, but big on taste. This is a well-reviewed recipe and makes the rounds on the internet pretty regularly. If you make this and get a better picture, send it on in--obviously I could use some help in this department.

This will keep picky kids and dads happy. (probably because of the bacon. :-) )

Orange Chipotle Ribs. A bit of orange bite mixed with some chipotle heat and a touch of sweetness makes these ribs quite tasty. They are sticky but not soggy--I don't brown my riibs at all. I used beef in the picture but have used babyback when entertaining.

Hirino Psito, slow-roasted pork. If you are up to a bit of a challenge, this is my new favorite pulled pork type dish for entertaining. There are more ingredients than some might prefer but it truly comes together quickly and then slow roasts all day. To PERFECTION. If you serve the meat in hoagie rolls, you can easily feed 10 with this recipe.

Peperoncini Beef Sandwiches. This is the easiest recipe I've got, and readers love it. I keep seeing it linked all over twitter, which is kind of neat. Chances are you've already got everything in the house--- any kind of frozen hunk of meat is A-Okay.

Cedar-Planked Salmon. This is such a neat idea--- put a cedar board directly into your slow cooker and cover it with a bit of foil and then steam your fish on top. Fish always does such a great job cooking in the crock in foil packets--and this is a way to infuse a bit of cedary flavor.

Adam's training for a marathon, which means he's pretty much constantly eating. Thankfully the freezer is stocked and I have all the ingredients in the house for 4/5 of these recipes. (no orange marmalade---yet 3 jars of peperoncinis?) Dinner will simmer away unattended while we're at the waterpark.

Have a wonderful weekend! Any big plans happening in your house to celebrate?

Smoky Country-Style BBQ Ribs in the Slow Cooker

A few years ago I was in a Buffalo Wing phase--- my tongue itched for the spicy tang of Buffalo Wing sauce pretty much always.

It was a fun time.

This year, though, I seem to be on a rib kick. I love testing out new BBQ restaurants and trying to recreate the "oh-this-is-the-best-sauce-ever" flavor at home.

and in the crockpot.

I think we've hit the jackpot with this particular combination. The sauce has the perfect blend of twang, sweet, smoke, and heat without needing to brown the ribs beforehand, leave the house, or get dressed.

I used 3.5 pounds of pork baby back ribs, but you can certainly use beef if you'd like, or use this sauce on chicken thighs. I did NOT brown the meat at all--- the color shown up above was achieved solely in the slow cooker.

The Ingredients.

serves 4, unless you're really hungry.

3-4 pounds ribs

1 large yellow onion, sliced in rings

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

 1 (12-ounce) bottle chili sauce (in the ketchup aisle)

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (read labels for gluten. Lea & Perrins, made in the USA is GF)

4 chopped garlic cloves

1/2 to 1 teaspoon Tabasco Sauce

1/4 teaspoon Liquid Smoke

The Directions.

Use a 6-quart or larger slow cooker. Cut the rack of ribs in half with a large knife or poultry scissors and make sure they fit all the way in the cooker, with the lid on. Now take them out.

Place the sliced onion in your pot, then put the ribs back in. Combine the dried ingredients: brown sugar, chili powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub this mixture all over the ribs.

Wash your hands well.

Now combine the wet ingredients: chili sauce, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, Tabasco, and Liquid Smoke. Pour this mixture evenly over the top of your ribs.

Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours, or until the meat is tender, and has begun to pull away from the bone. The longer you cook the meat, the more tender it will become. Before serving, flip the ribs over a few times to get all sides nice and saucy.

The Verdict.

These are lick your fingers (and your forearms) good. Yum.

I could put this sauce on an old tire.

more ribs? no problem!

Easy Beef BBQ Ribs

Greek-Spiced Ribs

Lemon Pepper Ribs

Orange Chipotle Ribs

Korean Ribs

Hawaiian Ribs
Red Ribs

8 Perfect Rib Recipes for the Slow Cooker

Happy almost Memorial Day!

Happy almost The Last Day of School!

Happy almost "It's the Beginning of Summer"

Happy "I'm So Glad I Didn't Burn My Retinas Out Staring At The Eclipse!

let's celebrate with some ribs --- slow cooked to perfection in the very best appliance known to man. (and three side dishes, just in case!)

 

 Smoky Home-Style Ribs

Hawaiian Ribs

 

Orange Chipotle Ribs

 Greek-Spiced Ribs

 

Original Barbecue Beef Ribs

Red Ribs

 

Lemon Pepper Ribs

  

Korean Ribs

 

Garlic Baked Potatoes

 

Corn on the Cob

 

Baked Sweet Potatoes with Chili, Cumin, and Lime

ENJOY!

P.S: there is still time to enter the $100 Visa gift card giveaway from Simply Cranberry!