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How to cook spare ribs in the oven?

This Barbecue spare ribs in the Oven are delicious, flavorful and tender, with the meat falling right off the bone. The ribs are seasoned with aromatic spices like garlic, paprika, pepper and sweetened with brown sugar, honey and ketchup. Furthermore, the acidity in the tomato and cider vinegar balances out the sweetness and give the spare ribs slightly tart flavor. You can also use your favorite spicy chili flakes or powder to add heat and quick.

The spare ribs are steamed to breakdown the meat, and oven baked (or grilled them). In this demo, I cut the ribs to fit my Insta Pot, but you can leave it whole and cook it in the large saucepan. After steaming the ribs, I bake them to get a crispy exterior and concentrate the flavor on the ribs. I use this technic when I have big family barbecue. I steam and refrigerate the ribs and I grilled them once my guests arrive. The spare ribs cook fast. My guests can enjoy this delicious Barbecue Ribs nonstop and I am able to mangle.

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs baby back ribs 
  • 2 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 tomato
  • 1/2 onion
  • 2 teaspoon ketchup
  • 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 5 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (optional)

How to make Barbecue spare ribs in the Oven?

Preheat oven to 375°F. 

Blend all the ingredients except for the ribs.

Remove the white membrane from the back side of the ribs (the side with less meat). It should pull off easily. Rinse ribs under cold water and lemon

In a saucepan, mix the rib and the blended ingredients. Cook for 40 mins.

Remove the ribs and save the tomato mixture.

Place ribs on a foil lined tray. Bake ribs for 30 minutes. 

Grill or broil over medium high heat 5-10 minutes

Serve warm with the tomato mixture Akpan, Ablo, Jollof rice, Alloco…

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Haitian pork griot recipe

For this recipe of pork griot and Jollof rice, I combined my West African culture and Haitian experience. Pork griot is one of Haiti’s favorite’s dishes. To make the griot, big and fatty chunks of pork shoulder are marinated with limes juice, garlic, ginger, fresh thyme, onion, bouillon powder and salt, then boiled and finally fried until golden and crisp. Traditionally, the pork griot is served with Pikliz, which is a mixture of cabbage, carrot and chili pepper pickled. The acidity of Pikliz balances out the richness of the griot, but for this recipe I chose to serve it with some Jollof rice.

This is the image of Haitian pork griot
Haitian pork griot

How to make the a tasty a crispy pork griot ?

Do you know that Pork is the world’s most popular type of meat? Yes, it is. Though not exactly a health food, moderate consumption of properly prepared pork can be an acceptable part of a healthy diet. For the griot, I love to season the pork overnight to guarantee a tasty and tangy taste. Once the pork has being marinated overnight, it is browned, the chunk of pork should be separated from the broth and cooled. Lastly, the marinated – browned – cooled pork is fried in hot oil to obtain the griot.

What is Jollof rice for the griot?

The jollof is a pot of rice loaded with tomatoes, tomato paste, onions, scotch bonnet peppers, salt, spices and vegetable oil and more flavor than you’ll know what to do with. Furthermore, vegetables, meat or meats and different types of local spices can be added to personalize it. The secret to a good jollof rice is the flavor build in the tomato broth and oil coupled with the perfect ratio of rice. As far as I can remember, jollof rice is served at every west African party.  The jollof rice originated from Senegal and is a popular dish served in Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Senegal, Togo, and Sierra Leone. The recipe varies lightly from one country to the next. The two main version are Ghanaian Jollof Vs Nigerian Jollof.

Ingredients for Griot

  • 1.5 kg pork (shoulder Cut in bite size)
  • 1-3 limes (juice) about 2 Tablespoons
  • 5 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 2 teaspoon ginger
  • 3 teaspoon fresh thyme
  • 1 medium onion sliced
  • 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon powder
  • 2 Teaspoons salt or more

How to make the Haitian pork griot?

Marinate the pork with lime juice, salt, chicken bouillon, garlic, ginger, onions, thyme, scotch bonnet pepper (optional).

Let it rest in the fridge for about 2 hours or preferably overnight.

In a saucepan on medium heat, bring to a boil and simmer until tender for about an hour or more.

When pork is tender remove from liquid and any bits of spices, herbs of the pork. Set aside pork.

Fry the pork at 350F (180C) until the pork is crispy.

Using a sieve drain pork liquid, reserve the liquid and discard the rest of the herbs and spices. (I use ice to cool down the mixture and remove the excess oil)

Place pork liquid in a small saucepan on medium add 1 teaspoon tomato paste, 1 cup tomato,  1/4 cup oil, sliced onion and bring to a boil. 

Add the rice (2 cups water for 1 cups jasmine rice). Salt to taste. Add the cut vegetables (carrots and bell pepper).

Stir in rice and boil over medium-high heat until the water evaporates

Be sure the lid fits tightly on the pot. Turn down the heat to its lowest setting. Let the rice simmer for about 18 minutes, then remove from heat and allow the rice to steam in the pot for another 5 minutes.

This is the image of Haitian pork griot with Jollof
Haitian pork griot with jollof

Serve the rice with the griot.

Notes:

  • Cleaning the pork with vinegar or lemon juice is a test to see if the meat is still good. If the pork smells “off” even after its vinegar or lemon juice bath, chances are it’s not okay to cook.
  • The vinegar or lemon juice tenderizes the pork, cuts down on cooking time, and lets you store pork for a little longer in the fridge if you end up not cooking it the day you prep it.
  • The FDA currently does recommend against rinsing meat, however, in the African/Caribbean, there’s a common practice of rinsing off the meat and fish with a mild acid like lemon or lime juice or vinegar prior to cooking.
  • Before everyone owned a refrigerator, cooks would apply an acidic solution because they believed it killed any bacteria on the bird and to impart a little extra flavor. Currently, many folks use this same technique to get rid of any odors and add flavor to the meat.
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Pork Fried rice

Pork Fried rice

  • 4 eggs
  • 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 4 cups cold cooked rice
  • 1/2 cups onion and bell pepper chopped 
  • 1 cup frozen vegetable
  • 1 lb pork belly
  • 5 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon ginger
  • 1 cube

Boil the pork belly with the garlic, ginger and cube for 30 mins. Fry carefully and set aside.

Beat the eggs with 1/2 tsp. sesame oil. Heat up a non-stick frying pan and add 1 tablespoon. of oil. Pour in the eggs and swirl around to coat the bottom of the pan. When set, flip over onto a chopping board and cut into small pieces.

Heat up a wok and add 2 tablespoon of oil. Add the chopped onion and bell pepper and fry for 3 minutes. 

Add the rice, and frozen vegetable and soy sauce. Fry on high heat for about 5 minutes or until the rice is hot and fragrant.

Add the eggs and fried porc. Stir for a minute then turn the heat off. This is now ready to serve.

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Pork feet Stew

Pork feet Stew

1 kg of pork feet

½ tablespoon fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon paprika

Pepper

2 cubic broths (Maggi)

1/4 cup of oil

2 onions

2 fresh tomatoes

2 tablespoons concentrated tomato

A pinch of potash or baking soda

3 habanero pepper

Salt

Clean the meat, marinate the meat with 1 onion, ginger, garlic, pepper, cubes, paprika Cook over medium heat for 45 minutes

In a pot, heat and onion until the onion is tender.

Add the concentrated tomato and the puréed tomatoes, remaining in place until a red and heavy paste is obtained.

Add the meat broth and uncover the meat and simmer for 15 minutes until the meat is well cooked.

Have a good meal!

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Pork Fried Rice

Pork Fried rice

4 eggs

3 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 tablespoon soy sauce

2 teaspoon sesame oil

4 cups cold cooked rice

1/2 cups onion and bell pepper chopped 

1 cup frozen vegetable

1 lb pork belly

5 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tablespoon ginger

1 cube

Boil the pork belly with the garlic, ginger and cube for 30 mins. Fry carefully and set aside.

Beat the eggs with 1/2 tsp. sesame oil. Heat up a non-stick frying pan and add 1 tablespoon. of oil. Pour in the eggs and swirl around to coat the bottom of the pan. When set, flip over onto a chopping board and cut into small pieces.

Heat up a wok and add 2 tablespoon of oil. Add the chopped onion and bell pepper and fry for 3 minutes. 

Add the rice, and frozen vegetable and soy sauce. Fry on high heat for about 5 minutes or until the rice is hot and fragrant.

Add the eggs and fried porc. Stir for a minute then turn the heat off. This is now ready to serve.