The Pauley Principle: Delectable Num-nums, New Year's RibFest 2012

Welcome to The Pauley Principle!

The Pauli Principle, named for Wolfgang Pauli, deals with atoms and electron-sharing that results in new, stronger bonds. Think 2 parts hydrogen and 1 part oxygen, a shared delectable (!) electron and VOILA! Water!

Similarly, when you prepare whole food to share with family and friends, especially foods you've grown, something amazing happens. Meals become tastier and healthier. Your soul, not just your stomach, becomes fulfilled. You live life more abundantly as a result. During a shared meal, the bonds that people create grow stronger and become something new: GREATER than the sum of the parts! I give you The Pauley Principle.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Delectable Num-nums, New Year's RibFest 2012

The winning ribs from our family's cooking competition! In all fairness, every entry was a winner. My category was "Best Texture" but I also won the grand prize. (I got in good with the judges. That's where age and treachery have it over on youth and vitality every time! ;)

Having a cook-off is great family fun time! If you have friends and family members who love to cook, enjoy a little friendly competition, and can find some reliable (or easily-bribed [HA-HA!]) judges, go to it! That's a way of creating lasting memories while you enjoy some really great food! And what a way to bring in the New Year, setting the tone for laughter, good times, and delectable num-nums in the days that follow.

New Year's RibFest 2012 COOKS:


Patience and Josh, ready for the announcement that they would win	for best sauce

Jessi with her prize for best taste, winning with help from Scott who is not shown

Ronda, center, capturing the moment

New Year's RibFest 2012 JUDGES:

The judges sample each rib entry and use their predetermined criteria to determine winners.

Sharing their thoughts in secrecy adds to the fun.

In all seriousness they made their announcement, complete with prizes for the winning entries.

For a photo essay on the entire event, check out Jessi's Gluten Free World post of the 2012 Ribfest. Yes, cooking gluten- (as well as onion-and ginger-) free added to the challenge!

My recipe, adjusted from the Memphis-Style Ribs in Better Homes and Gardens' New Grilling Book, requires an overnight marination and four hours of slow cooking with added chunks of hickory for smoking. I modified this recipe from a dry rub to a wet marinade to add more moisture and sweetness to make it a cross between Memphis-style and Carolina-style, a taste I figured would please the judges. (I know the judges pretty well! They're my grandchildren!!!) After their announcement, our judges received hearty applause and a gratuity in appreciation for their hard work.

MODIFIED MEMPHIS-STYLE RIBS

7-8 pounds of pork loin back ribs or meaty ribs

10 T brown sugar

1 1/2 T paprika

1 T chili powder

1 1/2 T garlic powder

1 tsp ground black pepper

2 tsp ground red pepper

2 tsp salt

4 T ketchup

1 T apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup Southern Comfort

Trim the fat from ribs. Place ribs in a shallow dish with a lid or a plastic bag that can be sealed. Mix all ingredients until flavors are well incorporated. Pour over meat. Turn to coat evenly. Marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 24 hours. At least one hour before placing on the grill, begin soaking hickory pieces in enough water to cover.

In a smoker, arrange charcoal and have enough on hand to keep stoking the fire every thirty minutes. Place ribs bone-side down on a grill rack. Put the lid down and maintain a temperature of 200 degrees for four hours' cooking time. Don't baste. Check the ribs only a couple of times to reposition if necessary, trying to maintain constant heat. By the end of the four hours, the meat will be done and tender but not dried out.

This is a spicy treatment for ribs, but the judges weren't scared off by the spice! They loved it and I think you will too! Consider using this recipe or check out Jessi's Gluten Free World for the other recipes used in the 2012 RibFest.

I challenge you to have you own cook-off! If you do, I want to hear about it!

1 comment:

UnknownJanuary 3, 2012 at 3:15 PM
The judges took the reins and ran the program! :)I'm so glad I wasn't judging. It had to be a difficult task. And eating each kind of rib! WOW! Their appetites were impressive!
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Give Yourself the Fast Food Alternative: 1, 2, 3 makes 4 and More

For many people, late night ballgames, church, work and other events make fast food too convenient to resist, but what's in that stuff? I can't begin to answer. Big franchises such as Taco Bell say the 63% or so that isn't beef is made up of "the secret ingredient". If we consume their food, don't we have a right to know what that secret is? And more importantly, what's it doing to our bodies? My plan is worth the effort since meals eaten at home with the family benefit our physical and mental health.

Here's an alternative and my answer to Rachael Ray's A Week in a Day. I call it 1,2, 3 Makes 4 and More. On the fifth day, Friday, make a quick and easy pizza.
In one day, you can make a roast, a hearty soup, and a one-dish casserole to get you through most of the work week.
Meal 1: the roast with salad and a veggie.
Meal 2: the soup served with warm bread or in a bread bowl.
Meal 3: the casserole with a salad.
Meal 4: soup from Meal 2 served with sandwiches using the roast, Meal 1.
Meal 5: homemade pizza.

Plan meals and shop for it. Then take a few hours to prepare the entrees ahead. Start with a roast seasoned to taste. I'm talking real meat. While that's slow cooking, start chopping veggies and meat for a good, hearty soup, one that will be a meal in itself. Get it started and simmering away and then begin a one-pot meal that takes a little more attention.

This week my plan is Day 1, a slow roasted ham with salad and mashed potatoes; Day 2, minestrone; and Day 3, shepherd's pie. I'm making mashed potatoes for two days (meals 1 and 3) at one time on my cooking day. The fourth meal will be ham sandwiches with minestrone. Salads and breads round out the meals for the week. Fruits with cheese make a quick and good-for-you dessert. A truly delicious recipe for shepherd's pie is in my blog.

Be good to you. Be good to others. On days 6 and 7, change it up by going out, having a pot luck with friends and family or grilling out. Remember, live your life abundantly.

About Venison

Venison should taste really delicious! No kidding. It is my favorite meat, except for crab.

Some things to consider though:
*If you wouldn't think of eating a bull, then don't eat a deer that had huge antlers or was in rut. I don't. It affects the flavor and tenderness of the meat.
*Replace the deer fat with beef fat for your ground meat for an 80/20 ratio. Deer fat tends to be slightly bitter and leaves that thick coating in your mouth that, although edible, is not palatable.
*For roasts, sear with butter and olive oil. These impart a wonderful flavor.
*For sausage, use pork shoulder, at a ration of about 3 parts ground venison with 1 part ground pork shoulder.
*Venison by nature is a lean red meat. A good young deer processed properly will give you many delicious meals.
*Anything you would do with beef, except ribs, you can do with venison. Look for my recipe for Shepherd's Pie. Use either beef or venison. Enjoy, share, and live abundantly.

Plan Now for Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is cooked down from sap that you gather from sugar maple trees. There are no other ingredients, not even water. And it's incredibly good. On the market, maple syrups will often have corn syrup, gluten, color and other additives which can stretch profitability and decrease the steaming time required. Since it takes 35-45 gallons of the thin slightly sweet sap to make a gallon of pure maple syrup, doing it the old-fashioned way takes time but the result is pure YUM!

If you have the opportunity to tap into maple trees and decide you'd like to give this a try, plan ahead. If you steam off the sap inside your kitchen, it can strip your wall-paper! Been there, done that, at our old farmhouse. If you cook it down outside with a gas turkey fryer, the cost can end up being around $8 a pint. We began cooking over a wood fire a few years ago, using a tripod and kettle. Oh, and a large firewood supply. Whatever method you choose, proceed slowly and with caution.

Gather your supplies. We use food safe plastic jugs, buckets, and little water line spouts. Maple syrup production houses will collect into stainless steel vats using long water lines but we simply gather the jugs, pour into buckets and bring it to the kettle twice daily. I buy little pint jugs to store it in. Very fresh, very pure. Start tapping the trees when daytime temperatures are going to be above freezing but nights are still very cold. In Ohio, the sap will be running fast sometime in February.

Try my cousin Stephanie Krupla's recipe for Sticky Bun Tea Ring and you'll want to search for maple trees you can tap into yourself!