Revisiting “Oven Barbecued Ribs”

This is a tweak on “Oven Barbecued Ribs” using the pressure-cooker for the initialize tenderizing of the pork.

Oven Barbecued Ribs
Servings: 6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 2.5 hours

Pork ingredients:

• 4 lbs. country-style pork ribs
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 lg. onion
• 15 whole peppercorns

Sauce ingredients:

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 lg. onions, 1/2″ dice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups ketchup
• 1/2 cup cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. hot sauce

Directions:

1. At somepoint in the next ~30 minutes, preheat the oven to 350°F (325°F convection if you have it).
2. Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in the pressure cooker over medium heat until shimmering. Working in batches sear the pork ribs on both sides. Return all ribs to the cooker. Add the onion, broth, vinegar, and peppercorns. Cover and pressurize to high pressure. Cook for 20 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes then remove the remaining pressure. The pork should be fork-tender but not falling off the ribs (yet).
3. While ribs cook melt butter in a saucepan or skillet and cook onions until tender over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add remaining ingredients and stir to incorporate. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 5-10 minutes. Taste the sauce for flavor, adjust as desired, and set aside.
4. When the pork is par-cooked, place about a cup of sauce in the bottom of a glass baking dish. Add the pork from the pressure cooker, leaving the onion and bits behind. Cover with the remaining sauce. Toss the ribs gently to fully coat. Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Transfer to the preheated oven for 1 hour.
5. Remove the aluminum foil and cook for another 15-20 minutes.
6. Remove roasting pan to a rack and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Transfer ribs to a platter and serve with extra sauce on the side.

Notes:
This is a great make-ahead meal. It tastes even better after cooling, sitting in the fridge overnight, and reheating.

If you don’t have an oven bag then you can line the roasting pan with aluminum foil and spray the foil with cooking spray. This will aid in clean-up. Add the ribs to the pan and toss them in a cup of sauce. Cover the pan with foil and bake as in step 5 above. Feel free to turn the ribs occasionally to get all sides covered in a flavorful sauce.

Slow-cooker Pulled Pork with Barbecue Sauce

Summer cooking is often about trying to not heat up the kitchen any more than necessary. A slow-cooker adds some heat but certainly not as much as the oven. You could even set the slow-cooker up in the basement or garage if you really wanted to keep the heat out of the kitchen.

Slow-cooker Pulled Pork with Barbecue Sauce
Servings: 8
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 10 1/2 hours

Ingredients:

• 10 lb. pork should, skin removed
• 1/2 cup Alton Brown’s Rub Number Nine, divided
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 cup ketchup
• 1/2 cup chili sauce

Special Equipment:

• 6 qt. Slow Cooker (I have this one)

Directions:

1. Rub the pork shoulder all over with 1/4 cup of the dry rub. Place in the slow-cooker. Add the orange juice. Cover and cook for 10 hours.
2. When the time is up transfer the pork shoulder to a cutting board and allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes. While it rests combine the ketchup, chili sauce, remaining dry rub and 1 cup of the liquid from the slow-cooker in a small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes until sauce reduces to about 1 1/2 cups.
3. When the pork is cook enough to handle start shredding the meat. I pull a large piece off the shoulder with tongs and then use 2 forks to shred it. Place shredded meat in a large bowl.
4. When all the meat is shredded ladle about 1/2 cup of sauce and 1/2 cup of liquid from the slow-cooker over the meat. Toss the meat in the sauce and serve.

Notes:
I flipped the pork shoulder every 2 hours in the slow-cooker.

This could be made a day or two in advance. Pull the meat as above and stash the cooled meat in a large zip top bag. Strain the liquid in the slow-cooker and save that separately. To reheat: Place the meat in an oven-safe dish, add a cup of the slow-cooker liquid and cover the dish with foil. Heat in a 200°F oven for 15-20 minutes. Make the barbecue sauce while the pork reheats and toss the heated meat with the sauce when you are ready to serve.

If you are more ambitious, or just plan ahead, you can prep and rub the pork shoulder 24 hours in advance, wrap it in plastic wrap and stash it in the fridge. This will give the sugar and salt in the rub an extended bit of time to do it’s magic in seasoning the meat.

Oven Barbecued Ribs

This recipe comes from my parents. It’s unclear to me who created it. I thought it was my dad however my mom still makes it and it tastes as good as ever. I think the only difference is that she finishes them in the oven while he used the grill. I find her way infinitely more practical as the grill can be a finicky thing.

Oven Barbecued Ribs
Servings: 6
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 2.5 hours

Ingredients:

• 4 lbs. country-style pork ribs
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 2 lg. onions, 1/2″ dice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups ketchup
• 3/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. hot sauce

Directions:

1. Cover ribs with water in a large pot. Bring to a boil (this might take 30 minutes), reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hour (start the timer after they come to a simmer). The pork should be fork tender but not falling off the ribs (yet).
2. While ribs cook melt butter in a saucepan or skillet and cook onions until tender over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add remaining ingredients and stir to incorporate. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 5-10 minutes. Taste the sauce for flavor, adjust as desired and set aside.
3. When the pork is ready line a cutting board with paper towels and transfer the pork to the board.
4. Preheat oven to 400°F. Place a large oven bag in a roasting pan and add in a 1/2 a cup of sauce. Nestle about half of the ribs into the bag. Drizzle a 1/4 cup of sauce over the first layer of pork. Add the remaining ribs and drizzle that with another 1/4 cube of sauce.
5. Tie the bag shut and bake for 45 minutes.
6. Remove roasting pan to a rack and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Reheat the leftover sauce you made earlier. Transfer ribs to platter and serve with extra sauce on the side.

Notes:
This is a great make ahead meal. It tastes even better after cooling, sitting in the fridge overnight and reheating.

If you don’t have an oven bag then you can line the roasting pan with aluminum foil and spray the foil with cooking spray. This will aid in clean-up. Add the ribs to the pan and toss them in a cup of the sauce. Cover the pan with foil and bake as in step 5 above. Feel free to turn the ribs occasionally to get all sides covered in flavorful sauce.

Baked Beans

I’ve made these several times for parties or large gatherings. They are heartier than the usual canned version with a nice dense bean.

Baked Beans
Servings: 12 to 16
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

• 4 28-oz. cans of small red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1 1/2 cups tomato puree
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup vinegar
• 3 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbsp. smoked paprika
• 1/2 Tbsp. ground red chipotle
• kosher salt and cracked black pepper

Directions:

1. Adjust the oven racks so a large Dutch oven (with lid) will easily fit. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
2. Add the ketchup, tomato, brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, Worcestershire, paprika and chipotle to a bowl. Stir until the brown sugar has broken up and been well mixed into the other ingredients.
3. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium until shimmering. Add the chopped onions and a good pinch of kosher salt. Stir to coat with oil and cook for around 5 minutes. The onions should be translucent.
4. Add the sauce mixture to the pot, stir into the onions, bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the beans and incorporate. Cover pot and bake for 75 minutes.
6. Remove the lid and cook for another 15-20 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Test seasoning for salt and pepper; adjust as desired.

Notes:
For best results make this dish in advance, cool and refrigerate overnight. Reheat the next day in a slow-cooker or a 350°F oven for 30 minutes.

This recipe is roughly based on one by Dave Lieberman. I pulled the bacon to make it more vegetarian friendly though I don’t mark it as vegetarian because Worcestershire sauce is not vegetarian.