Country-Style Pork Ribs Braised with Mango, Lime, & Coconut

This bright dish would be perfect for a winter day when you need a reminder that somewhere it's still summer. The original calls for an oven-braise, but let's be honest, ribs in the slow cooker are so much easier and usually ridiculously more tender.

The sauce on this is outstanding, but chopping the mango is a bit of work. I'm tempted to suggest that an easier alternative would be using canned mango puree. It would also have the benefit of thickening the sauce nicely, providing flavor, but not giving you odd mango chunks. I haven't tried it yet, but it might be worth a gamble.

One year ago: Potato Mix with Cracked Peppercorn Sauce
Two years ago: Peking Pork with Scotch and Scallions
Three years ago: Cranberry Vanilla Coffeecake
Four years ago: Stuffed Zucchini

Country-Style Pork Ribs Braised with Mango, Lime, & Coconut (adapted from All About Braising)

Ingredients
2 1/2 lbs country-style pork ribs
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or peanut oil
2 cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground to powder
1 ripe mango (about 1lb; see header notes), chopped into 1/2" dice
1 medium yellow onion (6 ounces), thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 serrano chile, minced
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp grated lime zest
2 tbsp golden or amber rum
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup lime juice

1. Pat pork dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add pork ribs in batches and cook, turning with tongs, until lightly browned, 4 minutes per side. Transfer ribs to slow cooker.
2. Add onion to skillet and saute until soft, 4 minutes.
3. Add garlic, ginger, serrano, cardamom, cinnamon, and lime zest and saute until fragrant, 1 minute.
4. Add coconut milk, lime juice, and mango and stir.
5. Pour mixture over pork ribs. Cook on low for 8 hours.

Herb-Braised Short Ribs of Beef

While this dinner is more suited to a chilly winter's evening, it's still satisfying in June. The sauce came out beautifully rich. My only quibble is that I prefer my beef ribs just a bit more tender. Next time, I think it might be worth popping it in the slow cooker after the onions have softened.

One year ago: Pasta with Garlic Scape Pesto

Herb-Braised Short Ribs of Beef (from The Herbfarm Cookbook)

Ingredients
5 lbs beef short ribs
salt and pepper
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 slices bacon (2 ounces), cut into 1/4" dice
2 medium onions (1 lb), thinly sliced
12 cloves garlic, cut into 3 slices
2 cups full-bodied red wine
1 28 ounce can whole plum tomatoes
12 3" sprigs fresh winter savory
12 3" springs fresh thyme
2 4" sprigs fresh sage
4 fresh bay leaves or 2 dried
1/4 cup coarsely chopped savory
1/4 cup coarsely chopped sage
1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley

1. Season short ribs with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Using tongs, brown ribs on all sides in batches, 8 - 12 minutes each rib batch. Set aside.
2. Pour off most of the fat, reduce heat to medium, and add bacon. Cook until almost crisp.
3. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened, 4 minutes.
4. Stir in wine, tomatoes, 3/4 tsp salt, and grinding of pepper.
5. Return ribs to pot and bring to simmer.
6. Divide savory, thyme, bay leaves, and sage into two piles. Tie with twine and tuck between ribs in pan.
7. Cover pan and reduce heat to very low. Simmer until tender, 2.5 - 3 hours.
8. Transfer ribs to warmed platter. Remove and discard herb bundles. Skim off fat if needed.
9. Stir in chopped savory and sage and increase heat to medium-high. Boil until thickened, 10 - 15 minutes.
10. Stir in parsley and spoon sauce over ribs.

Braised Pork Ribs with Green Tomato, Orange, and Thyme

This recipe was a nice change of pace from the usual ribs covered in barbecue sauce. If you don't have green tomatoes, you can increase the citrus. This recipe lets the flavour of the pork shine. I marinated the ribs overnight and then cooked them in the slow-cooker on low for 8 hours. The original instructions are included below.

Braised Pork Ribs with Green Tomato, Orange, and Thyme (from Cook This Now)

Ingredients
8 country-style pork ribs (1.8kg or baby back)
3 tbsp olive oil
3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced
juice and zest of 1 orange
2 large green tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup dry vermouth or white wine
6 lemon or regular thyme sprigs
2 rosemary sprigs

1. Smear ribs with 1 tbsp olive oil, garlic, orange zest, salt, and pepper.
2. Place tomatoes, orange juice, vermouth, 2 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper in baking dish. Toss well.
3. Place ribs in tomato mixture and top with herbs. Cover with foil and marinate in refrigerator up to overnight.
4. Preheat oven to 300F.
5. Bake, covered, turning halfway through until tender, 3 hours.

Pork Ribs with a Sweet-Sour Glaze

While trying to make room in the freezer and reorganize it so things could be found, I discovered a package of pork ribs. Although this recipe calls for them to be grilled, I thought putting them in the slow-cooker would be much easier for a weeknight meal (baking also works according to the book). Be sure to start the night before with making the paste, marinating, and making the glaze.

I was a bit skeptical of the sauce when I walked in the door to a sauce simmering and was overwhelmed by the smell of garlic, but the end result had sweetness and a hint of heat. I served it with a salad with cilantro jalapeno dressing and some stewed beets with a few Indian spices. Not only did the plate look beautiful, but the earthiness of the beets complemented the ribs wonderfully.

One year ago: Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes
Two years ago: Arugula and Cheese Pseudo-Frittata

Pork Ribs with a Sweet-Sour Glaze (from 660 Curries)

Ingredients
ribs
2 tbsp ginger paste
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1.8kg pork ribs
glaze
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar, dissolved in 1/4 cup boiling water
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tbsp canola oil
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
2 tsp Balti masala (I used a premade garam masala)
1 tsp coarse kosher salt
sauce
4 medium garlic cloves
2 - 3 fresh green Thai, cayenne, or serrano chiles, stems removed
2 tbsp canola oil
1 cup finely chopped red onion
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp coarse kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro

1. To prepare ribs, mix ginger and garlic pastes, salt, and turmeric together in a small bowl. Smear paste over ribs. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Combine all glaze ingredients in a small bowl and stir thoroughly.
3. Place ribs in slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or until tender.
4. Combine garlic and chiles in a mortar. Pound together with the pestle, scraping the sides.
5. Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and stir-fry until dark brown around edges, 5 - 8 minutes.
6. Add pounded garlic-chile blend and stir to lightly brown garlic, about 1 minute.
7. Stir in tomato paste, vinegar, sugar, salt, and turmeric. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally until vinegar evaporates and there is an oily sheen, 3 - 5 minutes.
8. Pour in 1 cup water and scrape pan to deglaze. Once the sauce comes to a boil, lower heat to medium and simmer until it thickens, 5 - 8 minutes. Remove from heat.
9. Paint glaze on ribs and continue to cook until glaze has a slightly opaque look to it (You might also consider using the broiler.). Remove ribs from slow cooker and let rest for 5 - 10 minutes before serving.
10. Rewarm sauce and stir in cilantro.
11. Slice ribs and transfer to a platter. Brush with sauce.

Honey-Glazed Five-Spice Baby Back Ribs

I think I've gotten a bit spoiled by the joys of slow cooker ribs because I found these a bit drier and tougher than what I'm used to even though I had no trouble getting the meat to come off the bone. Even if the cooking method isn't my favourite way of making ribs though, the flavours were excellent, so I'm still going to post it. Please note if you're planning on making this that you need to start with the marinade the day before you want to cook it!

Two Years Ago: Basic Risotto Recipe

Honey-Glazed Five-Spice Baby Back Ribs (from All About Braising)

Ingredients
Spice Rub
2 tbsp five-spice powder
1 1/2 tsp coarse salt
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 slab baby back ribs (~1 kg)
The Braise
1 cup lager beer
1 tbsp molasses
The Glaze
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp ketchup
1/2 tsp fish sauce

1. Combine five-spice powder, salt, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Rub over the entire surface of the ribs until it adheres. Place ribs on a tray or baking dish, cover loosely, and refrigerate 12 to 14 hours.
2. In large glass measuring cup, measure beer and stir in molasses.
3. Heat oven to 325F. Place ribs bone side down in a roasting pan or baking dish. Pour beer mixture around, not over, the pork. Cover tightly with foil and braise, basting every 30 minutes or so until ribs are tender, about 1 1/2 hours. [I think this step would be perfectly fine to do in the slow cooker for a longer amount of time without bothering to braise, but I have not tested this theory.]
4. Heat broiler to high.
5. Whisk together honey, ketchup, and fish sauce.
6. Place ribs on a broiling pan or baking sheet (without the braising sauce) and paint them on all sides with the glaze.
7. Broil ribs about 4 inches from heating element, turning once, until glazed and blackened in spots, about 7 minutes total.