Slow Cooker Ribs

I love slow-cookers.
I love that I could prepare this dinner at 11 in the morning, and that I had a delicious dinner waiting for me when I got home from work tonight.

Look at them. All cozy in there :)

 Ingredients:

• 3 lb baby back ribs
• Salt and Pepper
• 1-2 yellow onions
• BBQ Sauce

It is at this point that I would like to add that you can use any BBQ sauce you want, or you can make your own. I have historically not been a fan of sauces that are too ketchup-y or molasses-y. I like a sauce that is more smokey, and so I used Bull's-Eye Hickory Smoke BBQ Sauce.

The smokey flavor was not too sweet, but delicious!

Directions:

First thing you need to do is admire your beautiful ribs.

YUM. Yumyumyumyum.

Then you need to take off the gross membrane from the bottom side. This is the stuff that gets stuck in your teeth when you eat ribs! It peels off pretty easily, you just have to get the tip of your knife under the membrane, and then it should just peel right off! (Grab it with a paper towel for a better grip!)

I should note that this hand is not mine. I do not have man-hands. :)

Then, cut the ribs into 3-4 rib sections. Pat them nice and dry, season with salt and pepper, and place on a broiling pan (or a cooling rack on a baking sheet).

Put under a broiler for about 15-20 minutes on each side, until they start to brown up a little.

While the ribs are broiling (and your house begins to smell DELISH!), slice up an onion or two into rings. Put these along the bottom of your slow cooker as a soft comfy bed for your ribs to go on!

When the ribs are done broiling, baste them with BBQ sauce, make sure they get covered, and throw them in the slow cooker. Then go ahead and throw some more sauce on to make sure they are EXTRA covered!

Cook in the slow cooker on high for an hour, then set it to low until they are done (typically anywhere from 8-10 hours total cooking time).

See-you can even SEE how good it smelled!

These ribs came out delightful, literally sliding off the bone! And because there was no membrane, they were not stringy at all. Instead, they fell apart into a plate full of deliciousness!

Served with french fries, corn, or whatever other sides you like!

Importantly, tonight this was served with a Shipyard Pumpkinhead Beer.

I love fall. :)

Delightful Slow Cooker Beef

Happy winter, blog readers! To help you make it through these cold days, I thought I would provide you with a good, stick to your ribs, slow cooker beef dinner!

Yes, it IS as tasty as it looks!

This was a SUPER easy dinner - and the beauty of the slow cooker meal is that it was almost all ready for me to eat when I got home from work today!
Well,
almost. :)


If you are looking for an easy way to eat hearty and stay warm this winter, this is the meal for you!


(Adapted from the Zesty Cook)
Ingredients:

• 1 beef roast (~4 pounds)
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup red wine (Food network always says to cook with a wine that you would also drink! We used a cabernet)
• White mushrooms (if you want a specific amount, we used 15 and quartered them. But listen to your heart :) And my heart loves mushrooms!)
• Cherry tomatoes (again, for specifics, we used about 10)
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• Thyme (The recipe I found didn't specify an amount, so I pulled the leaves off of about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cornstarch

Directions:

PART I: IN THE MORNING:

In a large pan with olive oil, on medium high heat, sear all sides of the meat until caramelized.

Place meat in the slow cooker.

Add the mushrooms, tomatoes and garlic. 

Then add the salt and pepper, wine and chicken broth, and then the thyme.

Cover and set on low. Cook for at LEAST 8 hours.

THEN GO DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! 

If I had it my way, I would have spent the 8 hours necessary to properly cook this doing something awesome, like Geocaching... or going to see a movie.

Or napping.

But instead I had to go to work...

After working up an appetite counting pills, it was time to come home to my dinner.

PART 2: AT DINNER TIME:,  

Take out the meat and vegetables and put the sauce in a pan. Bring to a boil and reduce.

Add 2 tablespoons cornstarch to 3 tablespoons of water, mix well, and add to the sauce.

Allow the sauce to thicken and create a (delicious!) gravy.

We served our beef with corn and a baked potato. And of course crusty bread. If you're questioning our use of crusty bread, just keep reading other posts. It goes with EVERYTHING. But really, just do whatever makes you feel good :)

And as always... enjoy!