BBQ Ribs: Boiling or No Boiling?

I contribute to another food blog called The Pathetic Suburban Males’ Grill Club (www.psmgc.com). Here’s a recent post I had discussing a recent rib dinner I made.

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Here's a no-brainer on how to make fall-off-the-bone barbecue pork ribs cooking the ribs in a crock pot first and then finishing them on your grill.. Use 5-6 pounds of pork loin back ribs or spareribs ... if you're not a fan of the fatty taste of pork then use beef ribs. Be sure to remove the silver skin from the backside of the ribs before cooking. If you leave it on it'll toughen up the ribs and you won't enjoy them. Take a sharp deboning knife and start working the silver skin off one end, use a paper towel or dry dish rag and grab hold of the silver skin and just pull it off ... it should peel off very easily.

Next, cut the ribs into portions of four bones each. Boil the ribs for 20 minutes in a mixture of apple juice and water (enough liquid so the ribs are covered). I added six cloves to the pot. Boiling the ribs first cooks off some of the excess fat. While the ribs are boiling prepare the barbecue braising sauce. In a bowl pour in the following ingredients: 1/2 cup of ketchup, 1 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce (mine is Sweet Baby's Ray), 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar, 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar, 3 tablespoons of yellow mustard, 1cup sweet onion (chopped), 14 oz. can of chopped tomatoes and its juice, and 2 cloves of fresh garlic (chopped).

Next, set up your crock pot. Pour just enough sauce in the bottom of the crock pot to cover the bottom. Start layering the ribs in the pot. Pour the rest of the sauce over the ribs. Make sure the ribs are covered completely. Just add water (or apple juice) if you need to add more liquid so the ribs are covered. Cook the ribs for about 4 or 5 hours ... until they are fork tender. When done, remove the rib portions carefully because you don't want them to fall apart ... they will be really tender. Let them cool completely ... put them in the frig when ready to grill.


While the ribs are cooling, strain the braising sauce from the crock pot, put the sauce in a sauce pan and reduce until the sauce turns into a thick barbecue sauce.

When you're ready to eat, fire up your grill, place the rib portions on the grill, mop on sauce and let the ribs get warmed through. Turn the ribs over and mop sauce. The sauce will caramelize and the ribs will get crusty and develop a deep red color.

Serve the ribs with a side of sauce, slaw, and sweet tea. Must be a southerner at heart.

The question the blog master posted along with my entry was if boiling ribs was a good thing or not. What do you think?

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

Foodie Public Relations Endorsement

It's OK to toot your own horn when a client gives you a pat on the back. I received the below note from the Glen Ellyn library regarding the work I did in helping them organize its summer good program.

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

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Hi Rob ... I would very much like to thank you for all the work you've done to make the Parent/Teen Cooking Demos here at the library possible this summer. Your connections with the local restaurants were essential in making such a program work. So far, the feedback has been positive and the photos of each event depict nothing but smiles. It is such a wonderful thing to see different sectors of the community working together for the benefit of residents.

Madeline Shea

Young Adult Librarian
Glen Ellyn Public Library
400 Duane Street
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
(630) 469-0879
www.gepl.org

David Waltuck at Charlie Trotter's

Quiet a while ago, April to be exact, I was invited to a luncheon at Charlie Trotter's to celebrate David Waltuck's latest book, "Chanterelle: The Story and Recipes of a Restaurant Classic." The lunch was carefully planned with seven recipes from the book.

~Chilled White Asparagus Soup with Smoked Salmon
~Crab Ravioli with Almond Oil & Avocado (shown here)
~Cod with Pigs Feet, Manila Clams & Fresh Herbs
~Sweetbreads with Sherry Vinegar & Wild Mushrooms
~Braised Pork Belly with Apple Cider & Root Vegetables
~Ken Hom's Fruit Compote
~Fig & Goat Cheese Tart with Huckleberry Ice Cream

Waltuck's master sommelier Roger Dagorn also was at the lunch to talk about Chanterelle's wine program.

The combination of Waltuck's food and Trotter's service provided a perfect combination for a wonderful afternoon ... as is the usual outcome when dining at Trotter's.

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

Cooking Demos at Glen Ellyn (IL) Library

Anna Davidson, pastry chef at Honey in Glen Ellyn, IL, demonstrated making and decorating designer cupcakes this past week at the Glen Ellyn library to more than 30 tweens and their parents. It was huge success.

The library is hosting local chefs/restarurants who are doing various cooking demos. It's free to the public, last only one hour and is loads of fun ... free food, too!



Visit for more information about other cooking classes or call Foodie Public Relations at 630.913.6289.


Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

New (soon-to-be) Restaurant in Chicago!

For those of you who come to Chicago for its art and its restaurants, you're in for a special treat next month. Around May 16 the one and only Tony Mantuano, from the world-famous Spiaggia, will be opening Terzo Piano at the Art Institute! Can you believe it?! This is great news!

The restaurant will be located on the third floor of the Modern Wing and will be open for lunch and dinner.

I'll be sure to pass along more news about the menu and phone number once it all becomes available.

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

70% savings at Restaurant.com

Have you visited Restaurant.com yet? They are now offering 70% discounts on their already basement-bottom restaurant gift certificates!

You can purchase $25 restaurant gift certificates for only $3! What a steal!

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie

Easter Dinner

Twelve adults and five children will be joining me at my dining room table for Easter dinner on Sunday. So today begins my mis en place (ie, preparing to cook) the Easter feast.

While I (and my wife) have cooked the entire meal for our family in the past, this year everyone has been assigned a dish (the hors d'oeuvre, sides, and desserts). I will be preparing the two main dishes (a traditional Easter ham, and instead of leg of lamb I'll be preparing a Mediterranean-style stuffed boned-out leg of leg).

Hors d'oeuvres will include the ubiquitous deviled eggs (from my brother's family) and an antipasto plate (from my Italian Aunt Edith).

I want to have a soup and salad, but that's too much work, too much time, and too many plates, so I'm trying a soup/salad combo: Caesar Salad Soup. Don't pass judgement until you try it. It's different, but it's very flavorful and still crunchy.

My mother is in charge of the two side dishes (straightforward Brussels sprouts and green beans a al paysanne). A delicious homemade potato salad is being prepared by my mother in law, too.

I haven't decided what kind of roll will be served, but it'll be a yeast-based variety.

Desserts will included a cheese service (compliments of my brother's family), the traditional lamb cake (from my mom), a chocolate mousse pie from my sister-in-law's partent, and my mother in law is going to bring a special treat.

Wines are still being decided, although my father in law is contributing as is my mom and dad.

I'll keep you posted on the menu as I moved along and will take pictures.

Happy Eating! Mr. Foodie