Texas Style ‘Slow-Enloe’ Beef Short Ribs:

In Texas, my home country, we do not rush the cooking of beef; our signature barbecued food is whole smoked beef brisket which spends as much as 18 hours in a smoker at about 200 to 250 degrees (Fahrenheit), a.k.a.; slow and low... This recipe (which feeds about 6 people) is for a similar cut, the ‘braising’ or ‘short’ beef rib; a cut which the butcher at a local abattoir described to me as ‘old-fashioned.’ I guess that means that it ain’t diet food. It is similar in that both the brisket and the braising rib have a lot of connective tissue and fat, the elements that make a braise or a slow smoke work so well. Over time, at low temperature, the connective tissue (or tendons) actually melt and turn into gelatin, which is that magic, mysterious ingredient that gives slow cooked meat the amazing ‘sticky’ mouth feel that we associate with everything from pork ribs at the local Chinese restaurant to the demi-glace at the finest French bistro. The fat, which is critical, works as a slow baste, melting and helping to keep the meat moist throughout the long process. Sped up, the tendons seize and become gristle, the fat melts too quickly and becomes a frying oil, either flaring up and becoming dangerous or (depending on the cooking method) actually frying the meat and creating a different product altogether. When you do take your time, however, this ‘old-fashioned’ cut really shines!

You’ll need:

A good smoker or barbecue pit and wood, charcoal, or even (in a pinch) propane and smoking chips; this chef does not recommend propane, (I don’t care for the flavour) but should you have no choice, make sure you have lots of well soaked wood chips in an aluminum pan or in a pouch of foil with holes punched in it. Much has been written on the process of smoking, so we’ll assume you have the ability to figure this part out, but the key points are indirect heat, and mostly closed heat dampers to keep in as much smoke as possible, and choosing good wood for flavour.

5 lb. Aubin Farm’s beef braising ribs
½ cup ‘Steve’s Spicy Coffee’ barbecue rub (recipe follows...)
1-2 tablespoons salt (a good sprinkle...)
Texanadian Barbecue Sauce (recipe follows...)
Root Cellar Slaw (recipe follows...)
Buns

The evening before a lunch or early in the morning before a dinner to serve these, light your barbecue pit or smoker, then, coat the meat with the rub and the salt and let sit for about an hour, while the coals burn down. If you have a thermometer, when the internal temperature of the BBQ is about 250 degrees and you have good smoke, the coals are ready; rake them all to one side of the pit. Place your ribs on the far side of the grill, away from the fire, close the lid and allow the smoke to do its magic. Make sure there is constant smoke by feeding more soaked chips or chunks for at least the first couple of hours and also watch the temperature closely, being careful to never allow it above 250 degrees. You can even switch the meat (covered) to an oven after the first few hours and get some sleep. Most Texas BBQ pit masters will remind you that a good lager in an ample, steady supply is essential to this process and I will not diverge from that philosophy in this recipe. As Lone Star is not available here, I would recommend Beau’s Lug Tread as a more than suitable substitute. The ribs will need at least 8 and as many as 12 hours of steady, slow cooking; you’ll know they are ready when the bone lifts out of the meat without effort. Serve the pulled meat on buns with barbecue sauce and Root Cellar Slaw.

A quick note on choosing wood and two stage smoking:

I learned how to smoke meat with mesquite, a resinous wood that when used judiciously is one the world’s finest seasonings, but can also result in an acrid creosote flavour after too long with too much smoke. As such, I learned a two stage smoking process, a few hours of smoke followed by either wrapping the meat in foil to finish cooking or even removing it to an oven for the last few hours. These days, in an attempt to achieve a genuine local product, I use a wood blend that includes maple, apple, white cedar and sometimes black walnut. Including some resinous woods like the walnut and cedar reminds of mesquite, in that you can get a stronger, better smoke flavour, but it can also lead to the same problems; if you are using just maple or oak, don’t worry so much about over-smoking or wrapping, but if you, like me, want that deep flavour that only a resinous wood will provide, just plan to be judicious and ease up on the smoke after the first few hours.

Steve’s Spicy Coffee:

I took a batch of this rub to the cottage a few years back for a barbecue, but early in the morning on the day of the barbecue my groggy (...hung-over...) brother-in-law mistook it for the coffee and brewed us all a big pot; ever since, we can only refer to it as Steve’s Spicy Coffee in honour of his finest hour. (Thanks for being such a good sport, Steve...)

1 cup ground, dried medium spice peppers such as ancho, guajillo, or chilhuacle.
¼ cup freshly ground coffee beans (decaf, if you must...)
¼ cup brown Sucanat or brown sugar
¼ cup ground cumin
2 tablespoons dried oregano

--Mix together, use as needed, store excess in an airtight container and use as you would a chili powder or a Montreal Steak Spice, etc.

Texanadian BBQ Sauce:

‘It’s the Maple Syrple!’

½ yellow onion, sliced thin
2 teaspoons canola or sunflower oil
¼ cup ‘Steve’s Spicy Coffee’ or your favourite chili powder blend
2 cups canned Utopia tomatoes and juice
4 tablespoons Utopia tomato paste
1 cup maple syrup
2/3 cup Barkley’s apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup tamari soy sauce

--Caramelize the onion in the oil. Add spice, then add remaining ingredients, simmer ½ hour. Blend.

Root Cellar Slaw:

Weather-wise, we locavores in Canada are in the dip right now waiting for the first green shoots to get long enough to pluck and eat, while concurrently staring at the bottom of last year’s barrel. The weather is drawing us outdoors to barbecue, but what veggies do we eat today? Boiled turnips again? How about taking those turnips, those beets, even the cabbage, carrots and onions from the back shelf of the root cellar and making this delicious, quick slaw?

3 cups shredded mixed roots such as carrots, beets, sunchokes and turnips
3 cups shredded cabbage
1 small onion, sliced thin
1 tablespoon salt
¼ cup Barkley’s apple cider vinegar
¼ cup honey or sugar
¼ cup sunflower or canola oil
2 teaspoons dried dill
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon chili flakes
1 teaspoon toasted caraway seeds

--In a large bowl, mix the veggies and salt. In a small saucepan, bring the remaining ingredients to a boil, pour the hot dressing over the veggies, stir and cover for five minutes. Then uncover, stir again and enjoy!