Ok, Pitmasters, drop the judgement before reading any further. Today, we are discussing ribs. Ribs in the slow cooker. I can feel the barbeque purest rolling their eyes even as they gaze past this to the recipe all the way to the hate filled email. In the words of Elsa, ‘Let it Go‘.
Now, for those of you intrigued by the slow cooker rib method, let me just tell you. It’s a pretty easy way to make pull apart ribs. I am a fan and personally grill all winter long, but some days, I am just too lazy to stand outside and push the snow off the grill. Not because I can’t, because I am freakin’ cozy in the warmth of my home and don’t to change out of my fluffy slippers into real boots. And this is when these ribs come in handy. Or maybe you don’t have space or budget for a grill yet, your complex doesn’t allow outdoor grills, but you still want to enjoy the mouth watering goodness that is a pork rib. Pop those bad boys in the slow cooker and let’s call it a day.
These Slow Cooker Asian Pork Ribs are a winner. Sure, they don’t have the sweet sear of charcoal flames or that award winning smoke ring, but they are all the amazing perfection that is a pork rib to an audience who just wants to chow down on some good food. Bring a pile of napkins and get the gang ready for an indoor barbecue festival of a different sort. PS, just tween us girls, the oven method is pretty kicking too.
Slow cookin, like a boss.
Ingredients
- 1 cup hoisin sauce
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup dry sherry
- handful of fresh cilantro stems chopped and leaves coarsely chopped
- 8 scallions whites chopped coarsely, greens minced thin, divided
- 3 tbs ginger minced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 4 strips of zest from an orange about 3 to 4" long
- 1 3/4 teas cayenne pepper
- 6 lbs baby back pork ribs
- salt and pepper
- 1 10 oz jar hot pepper jelly
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Whisk the hoisin, sugar, soy, sherry, cilantro stems, scallion whites, ginger, garlic, orange zest and 1 1/2 teaspoon of the cayenne in a bowl.
- Pat the ribs dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Grease your slow cooker with vegetable spray and arrange the ribs standing and wrapping around the rim of the cooker with the meaty side facing outwards. Pour the sauce over the ribs, cover and cook for 6 to 8 hours on low.
- Set up and preheat your broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and place an oven safe rack in it. Coat the rack with vegetable oil. Place the ribs meat side down on the rack.
- Strain 3 cups of cooking liquid from the cooker into a sauce pan. Whisk in the hot pepper jelly, vinegar, cilantro leaves, and remaining cayenne pepper to the liquid. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until thickened.
- Brush the ribs with the sauce and broil 2 to 4 minutes. Carefully flip the ribs over, brush with sauce and broil another 8 to 10 minutes, until ribs are sticky and browned, brushing with liquid every 2 minutes.
- Tent the ribs with foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving with minced scallion greens and additional sauce if desired.
Besides that, these don’t cause cancer. wink emoticon Lookin’ good!
Can you elaborate on just how this works “arrange the ribs standing and wrapping around the rim of the cooker with the meaty side facing outwards”? Standing how, on the edge of the rib bones or on the meat end? What wraps around the rim of the cooker and the meaty side faces outwards from what; are the rib bones on the bottom of the cooker and meat on top? A picture would be very helpful as just words are not doing it.