Man Made Meals by the Man Himself

I received a very nice Father's Day gift from Gill and the kids this year- Steven Raichlen's new book, "Man Made Meals - The Essential Cookbook for Guys."  That in itself would've been a cool gift, but the cherry on top was that I got to pick up my Dad's Day present at at a book signing event at Peju Winery, and get it signed by Steven.  Excellent!
 

Last Saturday was the day.  My wife was out of town, so I attended solo.  I was an early arriver, so I got my book and headed over to meet Steven and get my gift personalized.  It was great that there wasn't yet a line, which allowed me the opportunity to chat with him briefly. 

Steven was a nice guy.  Pleasant.  Humble.  More so than I anticipated I guess, given that he penned more than 10 award-winning cooking-related books, plus one fictional novel, hosted television programs, etc. etc.  I debated on whether or not to tell him about this here blog project.  Given we weren't rushed, and he seemed cool, I told him.

He seemed legitimately interested.  In fact, he asked me to email him the link.  My initial thought was, "Oh that's nice."  But that quickly switched to, "Oh crap, what if I said something unflattering along the way?"  I mean, I've been writing this blog for three years, done what seems like an infinite amount of rib recipes, most of which have been real tasty, but some, not so much.

He asked me which of the recipes I've enjoyed the most.  I mentioned that the Asians and Southerners seemed to have it pretty well dialed in, but the ones I enjoy cooking the most were the recipes that called for rotisserie cooking over an open fire- like the Huli Huli Ribs, because there's something to cooking over live fire that makes you feel like a man. 

Steven smiled, wagged his finger at me and said, "I like that."
 

You can get "Man Made Meals," as well as Raichlen's other books, online at Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Steven-Raichlen/e/B001H6PZU6

 

BB's Rib Tips

 Rib Date: June 14, 2014

Ribsters: Pomeranian family, Szmidt family, Stults family and Eric Jorgensen as the Beaver
  

BB's Rib Tips was a new porky frontier for me.  I'd never cooked this cut of meat before.  In fact, I'm not sure I've eaten this cut of meat before. 

Rib tips weren't easy to come by here in the Napa Valley.  We found them at the American Canyon WalMart, a place I've avoided going into.  Ever.

What's a rib tip?  They are the "cartilaginous ends of the spareribs," according to Steven Raichlen, from whose book, "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs" all these recipes stem.

BB's rib tips come from a famous KC BBQ joint called BB's Lawnside BarB-Q.  Raichlen claims BB's has all three "B's" necessary for Kansas City good livin': Beer, Blues and BBQ.  Dig it.

Raichlen asserts that rib tips are "the true test of a pit master's mettle."  I think I passed, but maybe with a "C" grade.

Aside from the funky cut of meat, it's a fairly standard process.  Rib rub (but with meat tenderizer since this is a tough piece of pork). 

Low and slow on the smoker for several hours.  The highlight to me was the accompanying Spicy Apple BBQ Sauce.  The owner of BB's Lawnside BarB-Q suggested listening to Muddy Waters while cooking.  Brilliant!  I did that.  And a Coors Light.  I did that too.  A few times.
  

Stacy Pomeranian thought the rib tips were more tender than anticipated (I managed expectations...) and loved the sweet spicy BBQ sauce.  Her hubby Chris, a CIA-trained chef, dug the sauce too.  Actually most of the comments reflected the meat was better than anticipated and the sauce was killer and woulda been better on normal smoked baby backs.

All in all: interesting effort.  Worth trying, but probably not more than once.

Nearing the finish line of this multi-year adventure.  Next up: Country Style Ribs with Chilean Pepper Sauce.