Sauerkraut-Braised Ribs with Smoked Beer Barbecue Sauce

Rib Date: October 12, 2013

Ribsters: Crispy and Stacey Pomeranian, Kim and Barry Wiss and the Stults family.

 
Since we are progressing through Steven Raichlen's "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs" book one recipe at a time, in succession, it was purely coincidental that we'd be doing the very Oktoberfest-friendly Sauerkraut-braised ribs with smoked beer barbecue sauce in October.

Coincidence aside, the best thing about this ribs was the amazing assortment of wine we enjoyed with them.  We started in theme with a Madrigal Gewürztraminer, but switched over to reds with a Walt Anderson Valley Pinot Noir and killer Napa cabs from Krupp Bros., Ladera, Nickel and Nickel and Patel. 

Onto the ribs.

Of all the ribs recipes done on this journey, this was definitely a unique preparation in that the ribs were braised in tin foil. 

It started, after the usual preparation, with laying the ribs in foil and slathering both sides with sauerkraut.  Then they were cooked slow and low for three hours on my Weber bullet.  I probably could have gotten away with a half hour less, but the ribs were fall off the bone tender at that point.

My sous chef/wife prepped the smoked beer barbecue sauce, which is your typical homemade barbecue sauce with some beer and liquid smoke in it.

The ribs get basted in the barbecue sauce and grilled over direct heat for a few minutes per side.  Voila!  Sauerkraut-braised ribs with smoked beer barbecue sauce.

Ribster comments

Chef Kim said they were "finger lickin' good," and added that they were perfect ribs for Oktoberfest.

Mr. and Mrs. Pomeranian both appreciated the fall-off-the bone tenderness. 

The ribs got approval from both my kids.  Riain said he liked how tender they were and he liked to homemade barbecue sauce as well.

My sous chef/wife summarized these ribs perfectly, saying "I liked the fact they were fall off the bone, but other than that they were kind of bland."

I concur.

Next up: Bad to the Bone Ribs with Razor Bone Sauce.

Brazilian Coconut Rotisserie Ribs with Piri Piri Relish

Rib Date: April 20, 2013

Ribsters: Kim & Barry Wiss, Eric Jorgensen, my mother-in-law Maureen visiting from Scotland and Stults family.


Brazilians seem to get a few things better than most: Giant statues of religious figures, flesh eating fish, waxing, and cooking meat.  I've never been to Brazil, but would like to visit.  That's a pretty good list, but for the man eating fish.  I did have pet piranhas in college.  Watching those things devour an ugly bubbly eyed goldfish was a fun Friday in Pullman.

These ribs marinate in a sauce consisting of puréed peppers, onions, garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, lime juice, coconut milk and cilantro.  Yummy mixture.  Build a fire.  Thread the marinated ribs on a spit and watch them rotate for an hour and a half while enjoying an adult beverage.  Baste and top with slightly spicy yet very favorable Piri Piri relish and you have a tasty dinner. 

I was battling a very strong wind that had the flames dancing like it was Carnival, but I persevered.

The Brazilian Coconut Rotiserrie Ribs were enjoyed with a fragrant rice and good local wine.

Ribster comments:

"First bite was rib perfection; amazing texture.". Me

"Goes great with rice.". Son Riain, who may be part Asian.

"Best low oxalate ribs ever.". chef Kim Wiss. "Delicious, tender, cool over the open fire, where the juices rotated evenly over the meat."

"Zesty; not overpowering," Eric Jorgensen.

"They were lovely.".  Maureen.

Bottom line:  Really good ribs, but the Huli Huli ribs on the rotisserie were better, quicker and easier.  So much so that we've already repeated that recipe a couple times.

Next up: Sauerkraut-Braised Ribs with Smoked Beer BBQ Sauce. 

(All recipes from Steven Raichlen's book "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs.")

Huli Huli Ribs

Rib Date: March 2013

Ribsters: Stults family and Eric Jorgensen

Disclaimer: I grew up in Hawaii.  I see the words "huli huli" I my mouth begins to salivate.

"Huli" means turn.  So, it doesn't take a genius to figure out huli huli means turn turn.  Or, rotisserie.

About a year ago I got an Australian Spit Roaster as a gift from the family.  The "Auspit" is a battery operated rotisserie that you can pretty much use anywhere.  Make a fire.  Pound the Auspit into the ground.  Put on meat.  Switch on Auspit.  Drink beer while meats turns.  Eat meat.  Life is good.  A bacon-wrapped pork loin on the Auspit is food porn.

The Huli Huli ribs fall into the food porn category as well. 

The ribs get covered in a rub comprised of salt, pepper, garlic and ginger.  Thread 'em on rotisserie, let 'em spin over flames and occasionally baste 'em with a teriyaki glaze and about an hour and half later you have food magic.  Simple but amazing.

We ate the Huli Huli ribs with rice, of course, and had a nice bottle of Pinot Noir because light red wines go great with teriyaki.  Duh.

Ribster comments:

"I LOVED 'em." My daughter Eilidh

"I loved the sugary soy sweetness and how the sauce caramelized over the flames." Wife Gillian.

"I liked them.  They weren't spicy and the sauce was good on the rice." Son Riain, aka Mr. Teriyaki.

"Really good ribs.  I liked them.  They were tastier than Kuipo with far less fat.". Eric Jorgensen making a funny yet gross comparison to his chubby former Hawaiian girlfriend.


Mahalo for the ono ribs recipe Steven Raichlen.  These ribs will return to my rotisserie often.

Grilled "True" Baby Back Ribs with St. Barts Seasoning

And we're back.  Miss me?  Didn't think so.  I didn't miss you either, my dozen followers.

I have actually grilled, smoked, and rotisseried ribs since my last post a half year ago.  (A half year?  I'm a little behind).  Some highlights therein include a forthcoming Huli Huli Ribs recipe done over open fire (awesome), McGiver ribs done with inferior equipment on a butt cold day for my brother-in-law's birthday in Scotland this summer (rocked 'em) and breaking in my Mom and step-father's new Weber with baby backs in West Virginia, following a red-eye no less.  So yes, I've been busy in general (hence a six month absence) and been rib-busy as well.

Picking up where we left off...

One of the many things that keeps me busy is coaching my kids basketball teams the first half of each year.  After a game this past winter, I'm guessing late February, we had the coach and kids from the opposing team over for ribs.

Grilled "True" Baby Back Ribs with St. Barts Seasoning

Rib Date: February 2013

Ribsters: Stults family, Frommelt family, Wickersham family and Francis Davin

Even though Sean Wickersham's undefeated basketball team beat us that day, we invited him and Julie and his good guard daughter Devon over for dinner.  We're cool like that.  We were joined by my assistant coach extraordinaire Paul Frommelt and his brood, as well as Francis Davin, who's helped me coach both our sons' and daughters' teams for many years.  Good peeps all.

Unfortunately those fine folks got bad ribs.

Most of the recipes in Steven Raichlen's book, "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs" have been winners.  But, like my basketball team that day, "Grilled True Baby Back Ribs" were losers.

These Caribbean-inspired ribs were kinda tough and chewy.  They are grilled like the name implies.  Before hitting the grill, they marinade for a few hours in a mixture of tomatoes, Ginger and garlic, with added spices.  Then grill over direct heat for about 40 minutes, flipped halfway, and, voila! you have tough, chewy ribs.

We served these icky ribs with red beans and rice to keep the Caribbean theme going.  We drank wine because that's how we roll here in Napa. 

Comments from the ribsters:

"The rice and beans were nice." - Sean Wickersham

"Not exactly fall-off-the-bone tender." my wife Gill.

Then, after more wine, "I must be getting buzzed.  I like these; Simple flavors.- more Sean W.

"I liked everything about them, except the ribs." - Leslie Frommelt.

"I've had better; these could be worse.  Rustic." - me.

That about sums it up. 

Cousin Dave's Chocolate Chipotle Ribs

Rib Date: Saturday, November 17, 2012 (yes 3 months ago)
Ribsters: Frommelt Family, Pomeranian Family, Perry Family, Gregory Family, Stults Family, including father-in-law Douglas visiting from Scotland, and Jerry Mathers as the Beaver

Even though I haven't updated the blog in nearly five months, it doesn't mean I haven't been cooking and eating ribs.  Err...yes it does.  Except for this one time-- the Saturday before Thanksgiving-- when we did Cousin Dave's Chocolate Chipotle Ribs.

These ribs were pretty damn good-- think mole' flavor-- kind of a Mexican chile smokiness with a sneaky chocolatey sweetness sweeping up at the end.  Nothing overpowering.  Just layers of subtle deliciousness.

Apparently the recipe comes from rib guru Steven Raichlen's cousin Dave, who is a university professor by day and grilling enthusiast by night.  Cuz lives in Texas, hence the Tex- Mex characteristics of this rib recipe.

For as tasty as they were, these ribs were not that tough to make.  Essentially the ribs get slathered in a homemade chipotle paste for about half a day, go on the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker for a few hours, get a dusting of grated chocolate and last but not least, get devoured.

Evidently, the comments and quotes extracted that night came after copious amounts of red wine.  That could be Paul Frommelt's fault.  I think he brought over a case of wine and doubt he took any of it home. 

Even though he himself is a Texan, Crispy Pommeranian said the ribs were on the spicy side.  "These ribs are hotter than a whorehouse on nickel night.".

A wannabe vegetarian, Leslie Frommelt gave the ribs a test drive and proclaimed, "I love these ribs.  Except for the meat."

Her daughter Henley, a star point guard on our girls' basketball team, said the ribs were "spicy, but not super, super spicy."

Her teammate, my daughter Eilidh, agreed.  "The ribs are perfect for people who like spice, but also perfect for those who don't.  They're balanced."

My wife Gill also liked the ribs.  "The grated chocolate over the top was delicious."

Last but certainly not least was my father-in-law Douglas.  Being from Scotland, good food may not be ingrained in his DNA, but good whisky is!  He complimented the ribs (even had seconds) then led the team on a single malt whisky tasting to conclude the evening.

Cousin Dave's Chocolate Chipotle Ribs recipe can be found on page 110 of Raichlen's book, "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs."

Peanut Butter Ribs

Rib Date: September 1, 2012
Ribsters: JR and Aiden McDonald, Kim and Barry Wiss, Stults family

My friend Jim Smith, owner of the Wine Country Inn in St. Helena, Napa Valley, makes killer peanut butter and jelly ribs. These Peanut Butter Ribs were entirely dissimilar, but still good.

The Peanut Butter Ribs were Southeast Asian-inspired (think satay from your neighborhood Thai joint...)

The ribs spent the day relaxing in a bath of homemade peanut butter, coconut milk, chicken stock, soy sauce, lime juice, ginger, garlic, etc. All your typical tasty Asian ingredients. TIP: Shake up your extra coconut milk with some pineapple juice and rum for a refreshing cocktail while you watch the smoke bellow from the smoker.

The ribs went on the Weber Smokey Mountain smoker around 2:45 pm, and, other than feeding more charcoal as required, required little else for 4 hours and 15 minutes. They did take longer than most others. Not sure if the thick coating of peanut butter spicy goo insulated the ribs from the heat, or if the lack of wood smoke somehow affected the cooking duration. Whatever. You can't be in a hurry when you are smoking ribs. And, it allowed for more homemade pina coladas and catching up with good friends.

We rode the Asian theme, as Chef Kim made a tasty Vietnamese rice noodle salad and JR did spinach sautéd with spicy sausage. Simple but delicious.

While the ribs themselves were pretty good, the meal as a whole was excellent! All the flavors tied together nicely and everyone went back for round two.

Some comments from the attending ribsters:

Chef Kim said they were delicious, but her recommended tweak would be to thin the peanut butter sauce out a tad. She's right.

Her hubby Barry also liked the ribs, but thought the peanut butter sauce would benefit from a touch more spice. He's right too.

A collective suggestion was to add some Asian chili oil, like they have on the table at most Chinese restaurants, which would thin it out will kicking it up a notch. Bam!

My wife Gill liked how they fell off the bone and how the caramelized peanut butter sauce gave it that Asian twist.

JR liked them, adding that they went well with his 12 pack of Coors Light. (We enjoyed a nice bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from Provenance Vineyard in Napa Valley- a great wine!)

For a kids' perspective, my 11 year old daughter Eilidh said they were merely "OK.". She didn't dig the peanut sauce, which was pretty much the entire recipe, so, that explains her less than positive review.

We spent dessert (Model Bakery almond cookies and a bottle of Dow's LBV port- remember, real port comes from Portugal!) game planning our booth at the Browns Valley Elementary School Chili Cookoff. Vote for team Holy Mole'!!!

Dinosaur Baby Backs

Rib Date: July 18, 2012
Ribsters: Connor Best, Susan Duke and her husband Joe, Anne Steinhauer, Gillian and Rex Stults

No, the ribs weren't really from a dinosaur. They were from a pig. Dinosaur BBQ is a legendary joint in Syracuse, NY. I've never had the pleasure of visiting, but have heard it's destination dining. And I do own their BBQ cook book. Hope to visit one day.

The Dinosaur Baby Backs have a "Mojo Marinade" and Pineapple BBQ sauce.

This recipe originates from Cuba and definitely has a tropical, fruity and slightly spicy thing going on.

I smoked these babies for several hours on my Weber Smokey Mountain cooker, using oak wine barrel heads as the wood source.

After an hour, the ribs received a regular basting of the Mojo sauce, which had OJ, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt n pepper. The last half hour or so, I slathered them with the pineapple BBQ sauce, so it had some time to caramelize.

All in all, these ribs were pretty good, but nothing to write home about, or, apparently, even write blog about, as it took me a month and a half to do so.

We had them with a nice rose' from Boyd Family Vineyards here in Napa, which, being dry and slightly fruity paired nicely with the tropical flavors in the BBQ sauce.

Another good recipe by Steven Raichlen in his book, "Ribs, Ribs, Ribs."