Soy Sauce Ribs

I've been pretty absent lately. I've been swamped all weekend and I started my first class in a 12 week amateur baking series on Sunday. So far, I've learned a billion things about...yeast. I've been reassured that by the end of the 12 weeks, I'll be awesome. Yay!

Rather than sharing a recipe on the bread, here's one of my favorites from my mom's collection. Soy Sauce Ribs! If you like soy sauce and garlic (my two faves), then it's delicious. When my mom first made this, she used a lot of oil, which I think made it taste better. She noticed that we kept dipping our finger into the pot and licking it and so the recipe was adjusted to be a little healthier and to prevent the finger dipping. Sigh.

P.S. Sorry for the less than pretty picture. I was given less than a minute to steal the dish and snap a quick one b/c everyone was starving!

Ingredients
Pork Ribs
2 tbsp minced garlic
3/4 c rice cooking wine
1 tsp black pepper
Corn starch as needed (~1/2-1 c)
Soy Sauce
Brown Sugar
Cooking Wine
Honey
Sesame Oil

(Ratio of Soy Sauce:Cooking Wine:Honey:Sesame Oil - 3:1:1:1:1)

1) Wash ribs
2) Marinate with garlic (2 spoons), rice cooking wine (2 handfuls) and black pepper for 20-30 min
3) Dust with corn starch and fry in a pan until lightly browned
4) Simmer soy sauce, brown sugar, cooking wine, honey and sesame oil in a pot large enough to hold ribs. Taste and adjust if necessary.
5) Add ribs, cover, and stir every 10 minutes for 30 min.

Note: Steps 1-3 can be done in advance. Just put the ribs in an airtight container and freeze away until needed. Thaw out meat and continue with steps 4 and 5.

xoxo,

lemonie

Yummy Garlic Knots

I really wanted to make pizza today, but I didn't have all the ingredients, and I'm still housebound so I couldn't run out and buy some. So, I thought of what else I could make with pizza dough...

And decided on garlic knots. It wasn't until I had mixed the yeast with the flour and sugar that I realized that I didn't actually have garlic. I only had garlic powder, but it was still delicious.

For the Dough
1 package active dry yeast (0.25 oz)
1 tsp white sugar
1 c warm water (110 degrees F)
2 1/2 c bread flour
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt

1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
2) Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 min.
3) Beat in flour, salt, and oil. When smooth, let rest for 5 min.
4) Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface to form a sheet. Cut into 3/4 inch strips. Cut strips in half and tie into knot. Place on greased pan.
5) Bake until golden brown, 10-15 min. Remove knots from oven and place in big bowl.

Garlic Topping
1/3 c olive oil
6 tbsp minced garlic
5 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tsp salt

Drizzle olive oil on top of the knots while they're still hot. Sprinkle with other toppings, toss, and devour.

Notes: The olive oil taste was too strong for me. I used part olive oil and part butter. I think next time, I'll use all butter. I also really love the taste of garlic, so I scooped some of the leftovers and just plunked them on top of the knots. Delicious, but now I have fire breath!

xoxo,
lemonie