Braised pork spareribs/ Learning about control

As many of my dinners are apt to start, I pulled out a frozen pack of mystery meat from the freezer.  As it spun in the microwave on a brief defrost dance, I peeked in to try to guess what we'd be having for dinner tonight.  Pork spareribs (boneless?)!  It instantly hit me - braise them like I've braised Boston butt and beef chuck roast.  

Braised Pork Spare Ribs with Roasted Asparagus and Red Potatoes

Flavor profile - I decided to try for an Asian kick.  I recently was able to visit Trader Joe's, Wegman's, and Whole Foods for the first time in my life (what meccas!) and had come back with an assortment of Asian ingredients that I'd been pining to try.  After the pork defrosted fully, it started...

Dry rub for 3 spare ribs (caution - all my "measurements" are approximate, since I never measure anything):

• 3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ginger powder
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp garlic powder

Mix rub together and sprinkle on all sides of the pork, rubbing it into the meat.

In a dutch oven, heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil on high heat.  Brown the spare ribs on all sides before adding liquids...

• Equal parts low fat, low sodium beef stock, chicken stock, and water - enough to come 3/4 of the way up the spare ribs
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• 3 Tbsp mirin
• 2 Tbsp tamari (or soy sauce)
• 2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 small or 1/2 a large onion - sliced into chunks from pole to pole, so that they are held together, and peel removed
• 1 carrot peeled, or a handful of baby carrots, diced
• 1/4 c of raisins, rehydrated in 1/4 cup hot water

Cover tightly with a lid and put into a 300 degree F oven for 2 hours before checking them (90 min if your spare ribs are boneless, which mine turned out not to be).  I decided to put them back in for about another 30-45 minutes.  The key is that they are ready to fall apart when you touch them.  Mine actually fell into 2 pieces despite my best efforts, but it ended up making for a nice plating.  

Those who know me might be surprised that I've been able to handle my spare ribs falling apart in such good humor.  What I noticed during this recipe was that, unlike most areas of my life, I'm totally at peace with my recipe not going exactly as I had thought of it.  Maybe this is because, unlike a lot of things I do, I don't go into it with an exact concept of what I will get at the end.  Hmm... food for thought there...

Anyway, in the meantime, I boiled 6 red potatoes whole then allowed them to cool.  I cut them into chunks, then browned them over high heat in olive oil, salt and pepper.  To add some zing, I finished them with about 6 Tbsp of Gazebo Room dressing, but if you don't have that you could do equal parts wine vinegar and olive oil with a good shake of whatever herbs you like.

I also prepared my classic asparagus to roast in the oven after the pork was done.  Crank the oven up to 425 degrees F and put in...

• 1 bunch of thin asparagus (usually around a pound), snapped to get the tough ends off, tossed on a baking sheet pan in the rest of the ingredients
• 2-3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp kosher or sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

After about 10 minutes, check it.  If the bottoms are getting brown, shake them around to get the spears rolled over and give it another 5 minutes or so.  Watch that the tips don't burn.

While the asparagus and potatoes are cooking, put the dutch oven on top of the stove and carefully remove the pork.  Pour the liquid in the pot into a blender (or use an immersion blender) and blend until smooth then return to the dutch oven.  Get your tasting spoons ready to balance the flavor.  I ended up adding...

• 2 Tbsp ketchup
• 1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar

So, truth be told, it didn't taste Asian-inspired at all.  Not even a little.  But it did taste like a rocking BBQ sauce with incredible depth of flavor.  So, letting go of the idea that it would taste Asian, I called it a success.  Now, to just let go of calling everything else what I want it to be in advance, and maybe I'll end up more content in my life.  Although, the contentment in this case may have come from the succulent braised pork at the end of the effort, which I can't say for most of my other life endeavors.

To anyone reading this, including perhaps myself someday, I'd suggest humbly that you either try braising some pork, or, probably more beneficially, letting go of some of the ideas about how things are going to go, and trying to be happy with whatever succulent or saucy goodness comes from them.