Friday, February 24, 2012

My ribs

OK, so after reading my own blog on the Brussels ribs I decided to make some knock off Brussels style BBQ ribs. I first boiled the pork spare ribs in a water mixture which included some crab boil mix, garlic, ginger, and who knows what else.
Next step was to create a marinade sauce. I used a Korean BBQ sauce, Yoshida sauce (sold at Sam's), half a can of limeade, and of course garlic and ginger.
I marinated it over night adding some onions and mushrooms. Then I put them on my smoker all afternoon.








The picture is kind of bad but the ribs are down below and the mushrooms and jalapenos are upstairs.  The mushrooms came off after a couple of hours and I put them and the marinade on the stove and boiled it down. This thickened the mixture and concentrated the flavor. I then served the ribsit with this as a sauce.
 
The end results was wonderful. So yummy.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Brussels and Ribs

Brussels is a great city. Beautiful old-world buildings rising above cobblestones and ultra-modern ones melt together well.  Belgium in general makes me think of chocolate, waffles, NATO, and the EU. Don't forget the huge Belgium horses who are not so unlike their cousins the Clydesdale.  These huge animals were bred to be tractors and they were used by Anheuser Busch to move that precious Budweiser beer. The Belgium organic tractors were used to haul that heavy cream used to make the chocolate and the toppings for those wonderful waffles. Yes, I'll do a blog on the waffles sometime!

Belgium is a tiny little country, which accommodates the three languages of it's bordering states. German, French, and English languages are all prevalent and official. Maybe when you are small you must accommodate to survive.
When I think of food in Brussels, I think "mussels in Brussels" and one of my favorite restaurants, Amadeo, "the place for ribs."  There are several great places to get mussels but that isn't what this blog is about.

 
This restaurant  has kind of an old 1930's library motif.  It always makes me think of Indiana Jones. Sorry the picture quality is poor but you can make out the books on the walls.




They don't give you a menu even though you don't have to eat the ribs.  You can wander towards the kitchen, and you'll find a row of plates with what food they have to offer besides the ribs that particular night.  I've never eaten anything but the ribs, although I was there once with someone who ordered grilled shrimp.  They were huge and reportedly great.  I get the Rib deal.



These aren't the kind of ribs you find curled up for hours with a smoldering stick of sweet burning wood. If you are ever in Memphis (not Africa), a visit to the Rendezvous will satisfy that craving.   http://www.hogsfly.com/TheRestaurant.php

The ribs at Amadeo's have a slight Asian flair, probably from the Dutch colonies in the South Asian Seas near Indonesia. It's an all you can eat portion of tender tangy pork, slow cooked then fire roasted to perfection. A gooey mess which makes the animal in you come out.

 

They dress the plate with a baked potato covered in this almost curryish butter stuff. A nice slaw salad and you're set.  Again sorry about the photo quality...



Don't forget this place next time you're in town! A real treat!  Now go "Pig" out!!!!