If you recall,
a few posts back I mentioned
a crock pot cook-off at Ace Hardware
on February 28.
I'm tossing around the idea of entering
the contest, so yesterday I bought ribs
on sale at Food Lion for 99 cents a pound
and gave it a trial run.
Ribs don't look too bad.
Until you turn them over
and look at all the fat on the underside.
Mr. Hawthorne trimmed off the fat,
put the ribs in our crock pot,
added a little water,
some salt and pepper,
and a few shakes of Stubbs' Hickory Liquid Smoke.
Meanwhile, I'm assembling the ingredients
for my barbecue sauce.
And, I'm making this up as I go along,
testing, tasting, and adjusting flavors.
My beginning ingredients:
onion
garlic
ginger
4 cubes of frozen veal stock
brown sugar
vinegar
tomato sauce
corn syrup
mollases
Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce
Soy Sauce
Texas Pete Hot Sauce
Stubb's Hickory Liquid Smoke
ground cayenne pepper

First, I chopped my garlic (4-5 cloves) and onion (medium).
And here's a tip when mincing garlic:
Run your knife under warm water.
It keeps the garlic from sticking.
I sauteed the onions and garlic in
about 2 tablespoons of olive,
then added in 1/4 cup of light brown sugar.

1/8 cup each of light corn syrup and molasses
1 cup cider vinegar
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1/8 cup each soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup crushed pineapple and juice
Now, I wanted to add in a bit of beef stock,
but decided, "Hey, why don't you use your veal stock."
Probably a waste of my veal stock.
Canned stock would have been fine.
I know I've given this tip out lots of times,
but you never know when somebody new
is going to happen upon my blog,
find a tip and realize their life
has become so much easier and they're
going to live happily ever after.
So listen up.
Here's the tip:
When you buy ginger, keep it in your freezer so it doesn't go bad.
When you get ready to use it, cut off how ever much you want,
nuke it for about 30 seconds, and the ginger juice flows out.

Oops. I lllliterally shook in a few shakes
of Stubbs Hickory Liquid Smoke.
Shake in some Texas Pete.
Here are my home-grown, dried, and ground
cayenne flakes and powder.
Cayenne into the pot.
I did a quick taste test
and remembered I'd forgotten the mustard.
Here, I'm adding in 1/8 cup Nine Fingers Montana
Western Style mustard, because that's what was
in my refrigerator.

Thought it needed the rest of the 20-ounce can of pineapple.

And another 8 ounces of tomato sauce.

I added in 1/4 cup of the honey.

And 1/4 cup of Special Mountain Stream Water,
also known as
The Recipe.
I have simmered and tasted and tweaked for about 1 1/2 hours,
trying to get just the right balance of flavors.
Then I decided I needed a secret ingredient.
Coffee.

1/8 cup freshly ground beans
went in, just a little bit at a time,
while I tasted.
Who'd a thunk?
The coffee in my BBQ sauce
is like chocolate in your
mole.
My sauce has cooked down for several hours.
Mr. Hawthorne wanted to blend the sauce
with his new gadget.
I let the sauce keep simmering for another 2 hours.
The ribs cooked in the crock pot on high
for about 5 hours.
My BBQ sauce is velvety smooth,
rich, flavorful, with a hint of ...
of ... what is that flavor?
The meat is falling-off-the-bone tender.
Squash casserole, marinated carrots,
and cole slaw rounded out the meal.
Delicious.
I just got an email from Ace Hardware
containing entry information
and there are only 4 categories:
Soup
Stew
Chowder
Chili
No ribs.
I can't imagine doing seafood in a crock pot.
That seems so very wrong.
I think I'll pass on the soup and stew
and go with the chili.
Ace info noted:
Contestants are required to make 5-6 quarts of food. All food must be set up by 10:30 am and ready for serving 11 am at Ace Hardware Nags Head Sat Feb 28. Contestants will be provided with electric, sample cups, spoons, and napkins. Contestants will be responsible for any garnishments or condiments and serving utensils.
I decided on the chili because I'm all about the garnishments and condiments.
I can make my own seasoned tortilla chips.
Hell, I may just try my hand at making the tortillas from scratch. And I can make my creme fraiche with the lime, jalapeno, and cilantro
and a corn salsa with, I'm thinking, black beans.
Sounds like a plan.
Now I just need to work on a good chili recipe.
Should I take Aunt Sandy's advice
for her #1 favorite thing,
McCormick's Seasoning Packets?
And I know this is Chef Lee's #1 thing because
I received my free issue of Sandra Lee Semi Ho-Made
and I quote:
"Her top five favorites include:
McCormick seasoning mixes for cooking mouth-watering meals without incurring the expense of multiple ingredients;
Miracle-Gro plant food for growing gardens great and small;
(Yeah, that's her special ingredient that makes everyone go,
"Hmmm... What is that flavor?)
Waverly Fabrics for numerous but easy-does-it adornments for the home;
and the object of her admitted obsession, Spray Mount, a quick-drying, spray-on adhesive used for handmade crafts items."
Oh wait a minute.
We got some Sandy math going on.
That's only 4 favorite things.
So you know I"m not just going to drop this.
I'm a dog with a bone.
Naturally, I emailed the magazine yesterday morning
trying to find out the identity of the elusive fifth favorite Sandy-thing.
Within minutes, at 11:36 am,
I received this email:
(I'm very excited since I've been assigned
an Inquiry number,
which makes it official.)
Inquiry (KMM29783243I103L0KM)We have received your correspondence, and it is being sent to a customer
service representative for proper handling. If additional information is
required regarding your inquiry, the representative will contact you
directly. Please do not respond to this email. Thank you.
At 11:37am, I received another email,
this time from Katrina.
Oh, and now I have a case ID number!
Thank you for contacting Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade.
We will forward your inquiry to the appropriate department for
handling.
Thank you,
Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade
Katrina
Customer's email address: rosiehawthorne@aim.com
Case id: 7866576
KMM tracking number: KMM29783353I103L0KM
Original Message Follows:
------------------------
Rosie
Hawthorne
Kill Devil Hl
NC
27948
United States
25471350
Mag Abbrev = SEM
New Email = rosiehawthorne@aim.com
On page 15 of Ms. Lee's premier issue, you say 'Her top five favorites
include ...'
McCormick, Miracle-Gro, Waverly Fabrics, and Spray Mount are mentioned.
What's the 5th favorite?
Thank you.
Finally at 12:11pm, the editor herself,
Alyce,
emailed me after asking Sandra
and getting
an email from her:
Oops – bad on our part.
Sandra just emailed me to say – HERSHEYS KISSES!
Alyce
ALYCE H. HEAD
Editor
Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade
Hoffman Media, LLC
1900 International Park Drive, Suite 50
Birmingham, Alabama 35243
205.262.2194
ahead@hoffmanmedia.com
And lookie!
All these packets just for chili!
With Sandy on my side,
I'm a shoo-in!!!!
We are almost on the same wavelink. I was thinking today about making some chili with beans and homemade corn tortillas. Spooky!
ReplyDeleteThat barbecue sauce sounds very interesting. I like watching your culinary mind working.
ReplyDeleteBut where were the seasoning packets? Wouldn't that have been easier? Not to mention saltier and more chemically-er?
That sauce looks really nice. I have been looking for a homemade sauce recipe and that looks like it might fit the bill. I got my husband a smoker for Christmas last year and we are both tired of K.C. Masterpiece! I have my own dry rub recipe, but no sauce! Thanks!!
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