Thursday, March 26, 2015

Sticky BBQ Ribs

My love for spare ribs started in secondary school (in Nigeria) when one Sunday, a classmate brought in some ribs from her mom's restaurant (Pintos) for us to share. 

Many a restaurant rib later (although somehow I live in Texas, the land of bbq and haven't had any here) plus many 'so-so' attempts at making mine; I discovered a method of making 'sticky' wings after watching a unique method by an Asian chef on Food Network's Diners, Drivers and Dives.

The method is a simple 2 step process.

Step One: Boil ribs (I used pork ribs) in a saucepan with your favorite spices and enough water to just about cover the ribs. My choice spices were curry powder, thyme, garlic powder, ground ginger, onion powder, salt (seasoned salt), black pepper and a dash of maggi sauce. Once softened to your liking, drain boiling liquid/stock.

Step Two: Turn oven broiler on. Place ribs in a single layer in a baking pan lined with foil and brush favorite barbecue sauce over them. Place under the broil and keep an eye on it to prevent burning. Turn over to the other side and brush sauce on the other side and repeat broiling. Each side should take about 5 minutes to brown/char.

The result is a deliciously sticky and tender rib. Next time, I'm going to try teriyaki sauce instead of barbecue sauce. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Oatmeal-Apple Pancakes


Today's recipe is semi-homemade (whatever happened to that show on food network?). These days in an effort to be healthier but not necessarily completely give up foods I love, I look for ways to make them more nutritious and filling.

All you need for this one is 3 simple ingredients:
1) Pancake mix (a simple, just add water mix is perfect)
2) Quick oats or minute oats
3) Chopped up apples (peeled)

Preparation
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl with water to desired thickness (use box instructions and add water to adjust for the added oats)
- Heat up skillet, or griddle, spray with cooking spray and scoop pancake mix unto it
- As soon as the bubbles start to appear on the surface, flip and cook on the other side for about a minute or two (until no longer runny when pressed with a spatula).

Enjoy hot alone, with syrup or like I did with cut up fresh strawberries and sugar-free syrup.

Filing and delicious!