Sorry guys I haven't posted recently. Been cooking some on the weekends but sadly have my dishes turn out terrible while the others have been spectacular. Made an awesome oven roasted chicken three weeks ago but the following week screwed up smoked squash ravioli from scratch. Ehhh...
Well yesterday I noticed a new Southwestern restaurant in town, a favorite cuisine of me, which got me thinking what would I serve in a restaurant of mine in ten or fifteen years (a goal)
First thing that came to mind was St. Louis style pork ribs, as I've placed very well with them in my most recent competition, a non KCBS event down in Camden.
Now, I'd usually hit them with my original chili-espresso rub (another post, but it's excellent) and then baste with my citrus-hickory sauce midway through, which people really like a lot. But I wanted to try something different, so I slathered them in mustard and cayenne and marinated them for two hours before hitting them with a sugarless version of my original rub.
Because they were pretty thin, I cooked them for 3 1/4 hours (an hour less then usual, which really alarmed me). I usually foil 'em to get them more tender but again I was experimenting. Two chunks of maple smoke gave some light smoky flavor in the finished product. When the ribs were looking like crap I hit them with a brine of sorts, vinegar + plenty o' brown sugar + teaspoon of salt. Gave them a little carmalized texture. Oh well for the dry ribs.
Made up a sauce, with 1/2 cup of white vinegar, 1/2 tsp of cumin, 1/2 tsp of chili powder, a couple tablespoons of ketchup, and a teaspoon and a half of dried mustard. Strong but delicious. Doesn't outpace my citrus sauce but it'll be a second option when our club is selling BBQ in January at school.
Cut them up, and served them with some of my strong, finely ground red cabbage slaw (why it looks so odd) and some classic homefries, salted and peppered. Decided this'd be my first menu option but with the citrus sauce. They weren't falling off the bone like usual, which I liked for a change. Tender but with a little chew.
Here's some pics! I think they're better then usual.
Thanks for looking~ Hopefully weekly posts coming again!
