Barbecue Is Non-Existent In An Apartment

So... I've never owned a grill. I've always envied people who lived in houses and/or apartments that allowed grills. Because mine doesn't. So I've always loved the ideas of barbecues and grilling because I could never do it myself.

And what did I do when I was craving barbecued stuff? Burgers and hot dogs were easily accessible because everyone does it. But what about ribs and all that good stuff?! No one I know ventures into that realm. And Ribs-On-The-Run on Central Avenue in Yonkers is quite nasty.

So I told Ed about my craving, and of course he was all in to help me to create something close to the real thing. In fact, I don't think I've ever had like real ribs, or anything good at least. All I know is that I like tender meat falling off the bone smothered in a rich sauce. Smokiness is preferable but I figured that was like impossible in the tiny area of my apartment kitchen.

Slow Cooker is the answer.

I started off by making the BBQ sauce. Canned tomatoes and garlic into the saucepan.


Then add Japanese style Worcestershire Sauce (a.k.a. Vegetable and Fruit Sauce/Tonkatsu Sauce), Hot Sauce, and, Cowboy Steak Rub (by Rub with Love... has stuff like brown sugar, cumin, etc.).


And the secret ingredient that I didn't tell Ed until after eating because he hates it... MUSTARD POWDER! *mixed with cold water


Well actually before starting the sauce, I stuck the ribs (salt and peppered) in the toaster oven (because my regular oven is still broken, ugh) to brown. 350 degrees for 30 minutes, turned halfway.


Then, after your sauce is created (I totally improvised my sauce), layer the bottom of the slow cooker with the ribs.

Then pour the sauce all over the ribs and make sure all the ribs are covered. Cook on lowest heat setting for 6 hours.

I flipped the ribs over after every 2 hours. But towards the end, the meat was getting soft so I was very careful when doing so.

While these were cooking, I made a few sides. Purple and red new potatoes from Fishkill Farms, simply roasted with oregano, salt, and pepper.

Also, some easy peasy frozen veggies cooked with salt, pepper, basil, and garlic.

The end product?

I know I get really vulgar when I like the way something tastes at the first bite. But this one was intense. I grunted. I cursed. And I thanked God. The ribs were awesome. Try it. It's so easy!