A Mid-Week Dinner

I am always on the look-out for a new twist on an old favorite. Recently, I decided to make an Asian-inspired boneless pork rib dish. Having given up on trying to find the 'right' recipe, I began pulling out ingredients from my very own refrigerator and pantry. Hey, that makes me a Semi-Homemaker, according to Sandra Lee! Except not.

Here are the likely suspects for this dish. From the back left we have rice vinegar (always get the unsalted version), Low-Sodium Soy Sauce, Sweet Chili Sauce, Honey, a Scallion, a Garlic Clove, Ginger Root (I wrap this in plastic wrap and then seal in a zipper-top plastic bag and freeze) and the boneless pork ribs. I grated the garlic and about a tablespoon of ginger and chopped the scallion.

I knew that I wanted the meat to marinate overnight, so I began working on this after the previous night's dinner.

I sliced the pork rib into bite-size pieces and placed in a zipper-top bag. Then I added ingredients, mixed and tasted until I was happy with the marinade.

A bit of the marinade went in with the pork while the remainder was kept apart to be used as a finishing sauce. This all went into a plastic container to guard against leaks and was placed in the refrigerator overnight.

The next morning I pulled the pork out of the marinade and placed the pieces on a rack over a pan so that the pieces could dry out. This went back into the refrigerator. The used marinade was discarded.

And now it's time to work on a side dish that I know only I will be eating. Oh well, they don't know what they are missing.

I have decided that I actually do like Brussels Sprouts, but only if cooked in a certain way. Here I have my good Balsamic Vinegar, Brussels Sprouts, Black Pepper, Salt, Bacon and a Shallot.

I decided to handle the tedious chore of separating the leaves of the Brussels Sprouts while I watched Sandra Lee commit her crimes against food on her show on Food Network.

First I cut out the core and pulled off the outer leaves. Then, it gets to be very difficult to get the things off, so I cut the sprouts in half through the core. Be warned, you will likely find evidence of bugs that once resided inside the sprouts. Clean that out or discard those leaves. Makes you wonder about eating the entire sprout, huh?






There, the leaves have been separated and the bacon and shallot chopped.

First I cooked the bacon and shallot.

Once the bacon is nearly cooked through I added the Brussels Sprouts.

These continue to cook until the sprouts have begun to lightly brown. It was at this point that my daughter wandered in and complained that I was making the whole house stink. I think you can guess that she won't be eating any.

Now, this looks good. The Balsamic Vinegar was drizzled over the top at this point. I still had the entree to finish, so I placed the dish in a warm oven.

And now you can see why I wanted the meat to dry before I cooked it. I added a bit of oil to a pan and cooked the pork in batches. Once cooked, the meat went into a dish that was placed in the warm oven.

I also baked some waffle fries (the Semi-Homemade part of the meal) for my daughter.

The reserved sauce was drizzled over the meat. Sweet, yet tangy.

The Brussels Sprouts were sublime.

All in all, this was a good and satisfying meal.

Wednesday's Dinner

Preparations for Wednesday's dinner actually began Tuesday evening. I wanted to marinate some boneless pork ribs overnight before cooking them. I also had a surprise up my sleeve for my daughter who would be my only dinner companion. But more on that dangerous maneuver later.

Canola oil, rice vinegar, low-sodium soy sauce, crushed red pepper flakes, ground ginger and garlic cloves were combined with some honey for the marinade.

I sliced the pork into smaller pieces.

The pork and the marinade were sealed in a zip-top bag...

Before being put in a bowl to guard against leaks. This was put in the refrigerator until it was time to cook.

And now for the surprise. One of the great things about food blogs is that there are so many great ideas and recipes out there. My dear friend Rosie Hawthorne has often blogged about her Brussel sprout dishes and I found one that I really wanted to try.

Disclaimer: It is at this point that I feel I should admit that I really have never liked Brussel sprouts. Yet, I felt compelled to give the poor things another chance, so I decided to try again. Oh, and I should also tell you that my husband and daughter really, really hate Brussel sprouts. And no, they don't feel like giving the things any more chances.

But on with the show: Rosie's recipe calls for black pepper, salt, balsamic vinegar, Brussel sprouts, bacon, red onion and sugar (not shown). You will notice that I only purchased three Brussel sprouts as I anticipated being the only one who would be eating them. Wow, am I psychic or what?



I cut up and cooked the bacon.





Then the Brussel sprouts, which had been trimmed and quartered, went into the pan with the bacon and the bacon fat.

Finally the red onion, salt, pepper and a bit of sugar were added to the pot.

I drizzled a bit of balsamic vinegar over the dish at the very end.

I had also sauteed the marinated pork ribs before tossing them in some barbecue sauce.

'Dolled up' purchased mashed potatoes accompanied the Brussel sprouts and the barbecue pork ribs. I made a sandwich with my pork ribs.

This recipe has turned me into a believer. I will say though that I actually liked the leaves that had fallen off and sauteed individually better than the quartered sprouts.

However, my dear daughter who was finally coerced into trying the tiniest bite, declared that it was horrible (okay, I'm paraphrasing here) and that the Brussel sprouts contaminated the bacon. I also believe that my well-being was threatened if I ever even thought about trying to serve them again.

My husband called after dinner and was greatly relieved to learn that he had missed the experience.

I guess I'll be eating these beauties by myself from now on. My family thanks me.

And I thank Rosie Hawthorne for yet another terrific recipe! I don't care what my family says.