Inspired by Nigella...

Shopping in my supermarket this weekend, a small package of boneless pork spareribs caught my eye. What could I make with this porky little treats? A Nigella Lawson recipe came to mind; her take on Chinese-style spareribs. I am a huge Nigella fan even though my genetic disposition often keeps me from indulging in her calories-be-damned-fare on a regular basis. A few Nigella items have found their way into my culinary repertoire and I figured it was time to venture into some new territory.

Here is the recipe below adapted from (my autographed copy of) Nigella's "Forever Summer" cookbook.

16 pork spareribs

For the marinade:
4 tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 red chilies, roughly chopped
2-inch pieces fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin slices
2 tbsp honey
2 star anise
1 stick cinnamon, broken into pieces
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp peanut oil
4 scallions, roughly chopped

to cook:
2 tsp five-spice powder
2 tbsp honey

Put ribs into a large plastic bag and add all the marinade ingredients and seal. Ideally leave in the fridge overnight, or for at least a couple of hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Let ribs come to room temp and pour entire contents of bag into a roasting pan. Cover tightly with foil and roast for 1 hour.

Take the foil off the roasting pan and sprinkle over the five-spice powder and spoon over the honey. Put the ribs back in the oven for another 30 minutes, taking them out halfway through and turn them over before returning them to become stickily glazed on the underside. Watch that they don't stick; they may only need another 10 minutes to become crispy and glossily brown.

Garnish with chopped chilies, cilantro and/or scallions. (Above serves 4 - 5)

Unfortunately for me, I slightly overcooked my ribs and they were a bit more stringy than I would have preferred. I am sure that if I used more fatty ribs on the bone I would have had juicier results.

I did not have a lot of the above ingredients on hand so I omitted the star anise and five-spice powder in my rendition, again probably to my detriment. What I did have is a slightly (albeit very slightly) healthier ribs than what I would order from my Chinese takeout restaurant. The few pieces that had a bit more fat on them were indeed juicier; proving my point that a fattier cut of meat on bone would have been a better choice.

And in the course of my cleanup, I did locate the star anise that I knew was in my pantry. DAMN!

NOTE: There wasn't a "warning" of the huge crusty mess this leaves in your baking dish and I just spent 20 minutes scouring the pan even after it soaked overnight. Perhaps a layer of foil would help in future for cleanup.

A healthy side portion of a mango and tomato salsa balances out the caloric hit I'll take from the ribs, but as long as you exercise portion control and exercise your ass off the next day - what's the harm with a little weeknight treat?

A Not So Lazy Sunday Afternoon

With a busy week ahead and a not-too-healthy weekend of eating and drinking behind me, I took some time this afternoon to prep some meals for the week.

First up was some simple roasted asparagus generously seasoned with Kosher salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic powder, fresh thyme and a light grating of fresh nutmeg.

While that was roasted I cut up some zucchini, yellow squash and an orange pepper; seasoned to pretty much the same proportions as the asparagus (sans nutmeg) and let the oven do the heavy lifting.

Once those trays were going, I cut up some thick chunks of crimini mushrooms and a few cloves of garlic. Once the garlic was fragrant, I added the mushrooms, a touch of chicken stock, salt, pepper, some more garlic powder (for good measure!) and lots of thyme. I continued to season as the mushrooms began to release some moisture and added lots of ground pepper in an ode to my Grandmother's super peppery mushrooms that I always enjoyed growing up.

With my vegetables just about complete, I sauteed some chicken seasoned with my trinity of salt, pepper and garlic powder in a large pan. I flipped the chicken and added some slices of ginger. Once the other side of the chicken had browned, I added a bit of Sherry to the mix. When the chicken was fully cooked, I removed from the pan and added a bit more Sherry to make a savory pan sauce; scraping up what brown bits remained at the bottom of the pan.

NOTE: Forgive the lack of play-by-play photos...my camera battery died during my cooking frenzy!

After enjoying a piece of chicken with some asparagus and a healthy serving of the crimini mushrooms, I prepped a marinade for tomorrow's cooking adventure; a slight rip on Nigella Lawson's spare ribs recipe. Stay tuned...

A Bohemian Cinco de Mayo

Saturday, Rockstar and I headed out to Queens to meet Thighs (formerly RFW) at the Beer Garden. If you are not familiar with the Beer Garden, it's official name is the Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden. It is THE outdoor drinking haven in Astoria, where you can fight for real estate on the Hall's many picnic tables; drink countless pitchers of beer and eventually stand in the grill line for something to eat. After a couple of Hoegarden's it was time for Foodie to get some nourishment before she passed out.

Eventually, I made it to the front of the line where I ordered the signature Kielbasa with fries for me and the portobella mushroom with fries for Thighs. The Kielbasa was crisp and well-charred with a nice snap to it. I grabbed two slices of seedless rye but sadly my sandwich-making skills (read: motor control) wasn't so sharp. No worries, the Kielbasa was so tasty that it didn't need the bread or the spicy mustard that accompanied it. The fries were decent but it was really the meat that stood out here; impressive given the pressure on the cooks to keep the line moving.

Thighs' mushroom was meaty and garlicky and served on bread although it stood up pretty well without it.

After a few more pitchers, we moved on to a Mexican restaurant whose name is escaping me. Margaritaville? After one super sweet Margarita on the rocks with salt our food arrived. I ordered a combo platter but I must say I am not quite sure what arrived in front of me.

There was chicken in a mole sauce and a sweet yellow corn tamale also with chicken. Red beans and some rice whose crunchy grains tells me it's been sitting on a warmer for some time rounded out the meal. With such great Mexican to be had in and around the city, this restaurant certainly didn't stand up to the competition.

Recounting the day's events with Thighs this afternoon I think she summed it up perfectly: "Our meal wasn't really that good was it?"

Next trip to Queens: I'll have one Kielbasa and a Portobella Mushroom to go!