Serious Eats: Recipes
Indoor Grilling: Beer-Braised Ribs
"These ribs were tender with a richness of flavors from the beer, cinnamon, ginger, garlic, and chilies in the braise."
[Photograph: Joshua Bousel]
Although grilling is most definitely a year-round practice in my household, when the cold and dark arrive, my time grill-side deeply diminishes—but my cravings don't. So I'm always looking for ways to bring my favorite foods indoors.
When it comes to ribs, once smoking low-and-slow is out of the equation, I have no problem toying with different cooking methods. For indoor ribs, I've become fond of a braise-then-broil approach. This week I had the perfect super-sub-zero day to try out a Mark Bittman recipe I've had my eye on for a while. You sear the rack stove-top, then braise it in a porter, then finish them under the broiler.
The wintry aromas emanating from the braising ribs had my mouth watering, deeply anticipating the first bite, which did not disappoint. A totally different animal than their smoked, summer counterpart, these ribs were tender with a richness of flavors from the beer, cinnamon, ginger, garlic, and chilies in the braise.
They were the perfect comfort food for that bitterly cold day, and even better because I got to keep nice and warm inside the entire time.
Indoor Beer-Braised Ribs
Adapted from Mark Bittman.
