Chicago Style Baby Back Ribs

Ribs, who doesn't love them! Covered in sweet, sticky rib sauce they're even better, but the stuff in the bottle doesn't suffice. Nor do the marinated ones from the butcher! You need that smokey, slightly nostril searing flavour that's finger licking good! To make good ribs, you have to put in the effort to make them right!

Traditionally, good Chicago style baby back ribs are smoked over a very low heat, like 100 degrees or lower. Most of us would have a hard to making sure our BBQ or webber stayed at the level. But fear not! There is another way....

Sticky BBQ Wings

This weekend a group of friends came over for a Bogan BBQ in the 'burbs. On the menu: baby back ribs, chicken wings and snags on the barbie of course! I've always had a soft spot (literally) for honey soy BBQ wings, sticky and blackened! These ones keep true to the basic flavours but add a little more depth with the addition of the scallions, ginger and sesame oil. And the chilli sauce gives them just a bit of kick! If it were just me eating them, i'd up the chilli sauce a bit more.

The cooking time might seem excessive but a person in the know (thanks mum!) let me in on a good secret: there's nothing worse than wings where the fat in the skin has not melted, so it's a bit rubbery. The long cooking time ensure that the fat melts through the meat, keeping it tender and crisping the skin! Good basting and turning will ensure the wings don't burn. 

Tsumiki Fusion Soba with Cha Siu Pork

A bit of background lifted from About.com: Tsukimi soba is hot buckwheat noodles with a raw egg topping. Tsukimi means moon viewing in Japanese. Since the egg resembles the full moon, these kinds of noodle dishes with egg toppings are called "tsukimi."

This dish, with it's sweety cha siu pork, bok choy and chicken broth base, it most definitely not your authentic Japanese noodle soup. But hey! This one is even better :)

Smokey Red Pepper & Chickpea Salad

Salad time! Another leftover ingredient-user from my cupboard, this one gobbled up my supply of chick peas and my frozen chorizo!! This is a very rich salad and easily served as a meal for my family. Alternatively it would make a delicious side in a spanish banquet.

Beef Stir Fry with Shiitake & Oyster Mushrooms

You often hear of this obscure term, the 'breath of the wok'. Many of us know what it refers to, that smokey, almost indefinable flavour imparted into food cooked well in a wok. I had thought that it necessitated good wok seasoning, and extremely strong wok burners like those in noodle shops. But i am happy to say that with this recipe, i succeeded in imparted the breath of the wok into a dish!

Simple oyster sauce is one of my favorite types of stir fry. The delicious mushrooms soak up the rich sauce and the slightly singed greens are still crisp and fresh, but not raw as is the mistake of some wok newbies. Here i am acting like an expert when this recipe was ripped from the Masterchef website!