Apr 05 2015
It would just be my wife, me & the dog for Easter dinner
this year so I had something a little different than my usual ham. I had smoked
bone in BBQ country ribs, cheesy baked potatoes, green bean casserole, corn
bread and buttermilk pie for dessert.
I did the ribs Saturday on my smoker and baked the pie; this
would leave with not as much to do on Sunday. Two days to prepare meals suites
me now at my age and the bad leg slows me down some. I guess you could call
this old age low & slow cooking!
Friday night I put the ribs in brine; a half gallon of
water, 1/3 cup of coarse kosher salt and ¼ cup of molasses. They were in the
brine a little over 8 hours then rinsed and dried; seasoned with some Penzey’s
Galena St. rub and in the fridge about 3 hours before smoking. I had thought I
would do them for 4 hours at 250 deg. grill level and then finish them Sunday
in the Crockpot.
I checked the IT on the ribs at two hours and looked like
another hour would get them to 165 deg. so I sauced them with some of Kah’s BBQ
sauce. In a half hour I turned them and sauced the other side. In another half
hour they were all at 165 to 170 deg. so I pulled them off. I placed them in a
covered casserole dish and let set a half hour then in the fridge until Sunday.
After lunch Sunday I baked my cornbread in a cast iron
skillet. I got my ribs in the Crockpot at 3:00. I cut some of the excess edge
fat off, sprayed the pot with a little olive oil, layered in some sliced onions
and enough Black Butte Porter to almost cover the onions. Three of the ribs in
and some BBQ sauce, the other 3 ribs and more sauce. I had the Crockpot on
high. At 45 minutes in I knew they were not hot enough yet so I placed the
Crockpot in the microwave and nuked 4 minutes on high. Now I was sure they
would be good in another two hours.
My cheesy potatoes were my standard; enough potatoes peeled
and sliced about ¼ inches for two layers in a 10X10 casserole dish. Place the
potatoes in a large bowl and add a can of Campbell’s cheddar cheese and stir to
cover the potatoes. Add half to a buttered or oiled dish then add some shredded
cheddar cheese, ½ to 1 cup, repeat with the other potatoes and more cheese.
Pour ¼ to 1/3 cup of milk, cream, or buttermilk over. Cover the dish and bake
for 1 ½ hours at 350 deg., removing the lid the last 25 minutes. For the cheese
I like sharp cheddar the best but any shredded cheese or combination will work;
it’s a good dish to use up shredded cheese.
My green bean casserole was a can of cut green beans and a
can of French cut beans drained, a can of cream of mushroom soup, a half cup of
milk, a Tbs. of soy sauce and about a cup of French fried onions all mixed in a
casserole dish, baked for 40 minutes uncovered and more French fried onions added
the last 10 or 15 minutes. Next time I will omit the milk, we like it thicker.
It all was ready at 6:00. Tasted great, the ribs were moist,
fork tender with a little bark. The Kah’s BBQ sauce is the best and wish I had
the recipe; it’s made by my butcher. My
wife said this is the kind of ribs you should fix all the time! I felt bad; I
like baby back or spare ribs better and thought I did a good job! I will just
have to mix in more country ribs for her.
Buttermilk pie
Cornbread
Ribs
Seasoned and ready to smoke
After 2 hours
After 2 hours sauced and turned
After 2 1/2 hours
3 hours of smoke, ready for the fridge overnight
A layer of sliced onions, beer and 3 ribs
All 6 in and sauced
Potatoes ready for the oven
Potatoes done
Green bean casserole done
My supper
Almost all gone!
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