Recipe: Barbecue Pork Ribs with Spinach and Caper ‘Salsa Verde’
Well, the snow is just about gone for good and Calgary has been getting a fair amount of sunshine lately. When it comes to the weekend and the sun is shining down, all my friends and I want to do is sit outside, soaking up the rays and enjoying some good food and, perhaps, a beverage or two.
The first part of this recipe is really straightforward when it comes to the ribs. The spin on a salsa verde is what really elevates everything. You don’t need to have it with only ribs, try it with tenderloin or chops too. Just promise me one thing: If there’s warm weather, eat your dinner
outside!
What you’ll need…
Pork Ribs:
1 rack pork ribs (halved)
salt and pepper (to season)
1 1/2 cups mild barbecue sauce
Salsa Verde:
1 clove garlic
1 lemon (zest and juice)
1 1/2 cups fresh spinach (firmly packed)
1 tbsp capers
1 tbsp caper juice
2 tsp liquid honey
3 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper (to season)
Directions:
Pork Ribs:
Fill a large pot 2/3 full of water, salt generously and bring to a boil on high heat.
Reduce to medium-high heat, add pork ribs and let cook for 45 minutes.
Remove from water, pat dry with paper towel, season with salt and pepper and brush with barbecue sauce until well-coated.
Grill on barbecue, applying more barbecue sauce and flipping over regularly until both sides are caramelized, about 15 minutes.
Take off grill and let rest for several minutes before portioning to serve.
Salsa Verde:
Place all ingredients except for the olive oil in a food processor or blender and puree until a paste forms.
Continue to puree while slowly adding in the olive oil until the consistency is very smooth.
Season to taste with salt and pepper, transfer to a container and keep in the fridge to use as desired.
Will keep in the fridge for several days.
Serves 2-3 (will yield 1 1/2 cups salsa verde)
Total cook time…1 hour, 10 min