Dad Street

Interestingly enough I love cooking and yet haven’t talked about it at all on this site. I think mostly because I’ve really been focused on keeping my site about being a Dad. But what could be more dad friendly than cooking for your family, right? I love cooking gourmet foods but just don’t get to do it very often. With the onset of summer and Memorial Day weekend upon us my mouth was watering for one of my favorite grill recipes. What was great was that both O and Jake loved it! Jake is 21 months and O just turned 3 so I’m thinking if it passed their taste test it should work for your family too.

I wish I could say this was my own homemade recipe but alas, I cannot. I’ve pulled the recipe from a Bon Appetite Magazine. Yes, I subscribe to Bon Appetite. Remember? I said I cook!

The only variation to the recipe below is that I let the ribs marinate in pineapple juice for 24 hours before putting them in the oven. I haven’t tried this yet but I also think they could be more tender if I slow-cooked them or boiled them (perhaps in pineapple juice) before grilling them. Using this recipe they are nice and tender but they’re not fall-off-the-bone tender. Otherwise, this is one of my favorite sauces.

Pairing

I’m a big wine guy (not like a fat wine guy, I just like wine a lot) and so pairing a good wine to match your food is important. I’d go two ways with these ribs. I’d either go with a nice jammy Zinfandel (Yes, red not white) or go to the other side and match it up with a nice Champagne or Sparkling wine. Perhaps a nice Reisling might work well too. I think the acidity and certainly the fizz from the Champagne would cut through the fat nice and highlight the honey in the rib sauce.

Well here’s the recipe for you to try at home. Let me know what you think!

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup bourbon
1 1/2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon plum sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons mild-flavored (light) molasses
1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
3/4 teaspoon hot chili paste (such as sambal oelek)*
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 2 1/4- to 2 1/2-pound racks baby back pork ribs
1 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

Preperation:

Whisk first 11 ingredients in small bowl.

Do ahead: Glaze can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place long sheet of heavy-duty foil on each of 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Sprinkle rib racks on all sides with salt and pepper. Place 1 rib rack on each foil sheet. Fold up sides of each foil sheet around rib rack to form boat-like shape. Pour 1/2 cup pineapple juice over each rib rack. Fold up foil to seal packets. Bake until ribs are tender, about 1 hour. Remove ribs from foil packets. Transfer to roasting pan; pour any juices from foil over and cool.

Do ahead: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate.

Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Cut each rib rack in half. Grill until browned, brushing frequently with glaze and turning often, about 10 minutes. Cut racks between bones into ribs.

*An Indonesian hot chili paste; available at many supermarkets, at Asian markets, and from mingspantry.com.