This is sticky finger food at its very best.  This recipe is from our cookbook author of the week, Diana Henry.  Rather than roasting, try cooking these tasty ribs on a braai, or smoke in a kettlebraai, as we do at Wickedfood Cooking School, in our outdoor cooking class. Also try the marinade with chicken wings or drumsticks.

±3kg rack pork spare ribs

5 cloves garlic, crushed

1T  Tabasco

4cm ginger, peeled and very finely chopped

¾ cup syrup or molasses

½ cup honey

3T  balsamic glaze

2½T  Dijon mustard

1½T  Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup bourbon or whiskey

1. Mix all the ingredients (except the ribs) together. If you have time, pour two-thirds of the liquid over the ribs, rubbing it in well, and leave them to marinate overnight. If not, preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Line two or three big roasting tins with foil and paint the ribs on both sides with the glaze, keeping back about a third to add during cooking.
3. Arrange the racks meat-side up in the tins, making sure they don’t touch. Roast for 30 minutes then reduce the heat to 140°C and cook the ribs for another 1½ hours, basting with glaze from time to time.
4. Add the last bit of glaze 20 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Cut into individual ribs and serve.

Click here for more recipes from Diana Henry

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

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I love braais and everything to do with braaiing. If I had my own way I would sit by the pool with a beer in one hand and braai tongs in the other. In my opinion,  a braai isn’t complete without these few elements: beer, boerewors, bacon rashers, T-bone steak, garlic bread, a garden salad, and a potato bake. These are normally present at all braais but I started getting frustrated at the prices we are now paying for a simple “must” at any braai and that is garlic bread, I bought one the other day (I won’t name the shop) but it was dry and the lucky two people who grabbed from the middle were the only ones lucky enough to get the garlic butter mix. So I thought I’d give you the recipe and method on how to make your own great tasting personalized garlic bread.

Garlic-bread

1 French loaf (30cm)
±10 garlic cloves minced (depends on how much you like)
250g butter, softened
1 small bunch parsley, finely chopped
pepper

1. Start by slicing the garlic bread, in 1cm slices (don’t go all the way through as it needs to hold its shape).
2. Combine all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well to form a paste.
3. Spread each slice with a thick layer of the butter mixture, don’t forget the end slices.
4. Once all the mixture is spread evenly among the slices wrap the bread tightly in tinfoil and place in the fridge for ±1 hour (can be left in the fridge for 1-2 days or frozen for up to 3 months).
5. When ready to cook do so as you would normally do with a store bought one.

This is a very basic recipe but there are endless possibilities on ways to improve the tastes and varieties of breads and here are some ideas on what to add to your garlic paste.

Chopped pepperdews,  grated mozzarella, blue cheese,  sweet chilli sauce,  chopped dry chillies, fresh herbs, coriander, basil, mint, origanum, thyme, biltong, chopped fried bacon, chopped chourizo sausage,

and the list goes on, so try it and let us know how it works out for you and if you have any flavours of your own I would be keen to try them out.

The Wickedfood chef.

Braaiing is part of our South African culture and now that the weather is warming up and summer is on the way, we will be finding ourselves having many weekends in the sun around the braai.

It is easy to make a braai day healthier by keeping these few tips in mind:

1. Always choose lean meats and cut off all visible fats BEFORE cooking
2. Use skinless chicken breasts and make your own kebabs with red peppers and oni on
3. Add fish to the braai for a healthy alternative rich in Omega 3 oils
4. Use raw veggies as snacks instead of the high fat chip alternative
5. Roast your potatoes in foil on the coals and dress them with low fat cottage cheese
6. Smoothies made with fresh fruits and fat free yogurt make for amazing healthy desserts
7. Remember to drink lots of water while being out in the sun

Louise Bembridge

Registered Dietician

For more healthy braai tips or nutritional information contact Louise on louise.diet@iburst.co.za

Q: How do I get a smoky flavour to meat that is cooked in a kettle braai?

A: Smoking with Speciality Wood – Speciality wood is the secret many grill fanatics swear by for authentic barbecue smoke flavour. Which type of speciality wood to use is widely debated, since each creates a certain flavour. Think of speciality wood as a seasoning for your barbecue. Using it will give flavour to the meat just like using a barbecue sauce.

Varieties of Speciality Woods – Wood from nut trees, such as hickory and pecan, tends to be much stronger flavoured, which some people don’t like. Fruit trees tend to have milder flavours – pecan, cherry, hickory, oak, orange, mulberry, apple, peach, apricot. Until you know which type of smoking wood you like, you might want to try a variety. That way, you can experiment with different flavours without having to buy a whole bunch of different cooking woods.

How to Cook With Speciality Woods – Like wine, certain types of specialty woods go best with certain types of meat. Most barbecue experts like oak with beef, and lighter fruitwoods, such as apple, with chicken. Many seasoned chefs also mix their smoking woods. For instance, you can use half pecan and half apple for a new taste when grilling chicken.
To use speciality woods, soak the wood chips in water for at least half an hour before adding them to the grill. If you have a smoker box in your grill, you can put the chips there. If you are using a gas grill, wrap them in foil and puncture a few holes. If you are using a charcoal grill, you can put them in right on top of the coals.

Smoky roast chicken

Simple roast chicken is delicious. Together with baked potatoes and boiled vegetables, or a green salad it makes a really good healthy family meal. For a delicious slightly smoky flavour, there is no better way of cooking chicken, than on a kettlebraai. Simply rub with salt and pepper, and maybe a bit of lemon juice and cook. The addition of wood to the fire as you put the chicken on gives a wonderful smoky flavour.

1 x ±1,5kg chicken
Salt and pepper
Lemon juice – optional

1-2 sticks of fruit tree wood

1. Trim the chicken of excess fat, checking especially the neck and tail cavities and make sure that there are no feathers left on.
2. Rub the chicken well, including the stomach cavity, with salt and pepper, and lemon juice if using.
3. Place the chicken on the roasting grid of the kettlebraai, breast side down with a container underneath to catch any dripping juices. Add the wood onto the coals, if using.
4. Roast the chicken for 40 minutes, at about 180°C, then turn it over, breast side up and roast for a further 20 minutes.
5. Carve into pieces and serve.

Serves 4

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Boksburg – (011) 823-5365 boksburg@wickedfood.co.za

Runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and teambuilding cooking classes these classes are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

The name comes about due to the butterflied chicken liberally seasoned with red chili flakes, but for a milder version just omit the spice.

1 x 1.5kg. chicken
2 lemons
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1-2 t red chili flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, butterfly the chicken remove chicken backs by cutting along both sides of the backbone. Discard backbones, or save for making stock. Place the  butterflied chicken on a cutting board skin side up, and roll a rolling pin on it, leaning heavily on the pin to flatten the bird.
2. Place chicken in a wide, deep dish. Squeeze the juice from the lemons over the chicken, and add the oil. Sprinkle both sides with chili flakes and season to taste with salt and lots of pepper. Set aside to marinate for 30–60 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, preheat the a gas bbq grill or kettlebraai.
4. Remove chicken from marinade. Grill birds over a medium-heat, basting occasionally with the reserved marinade, until skin is well browned on both sides and thigh juices run clear when pricked with a fork, about 40 minutes. Set the chicken aside to rest for 10 minutes, then cut into quarters.

Serves 4

Wickedfood Cooking School

Sunninghill – (011) 234-3252 sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Wickedfood Cooking School Johannesburg runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built cooking studios. Classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – team building cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference.

Our classes are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these classes are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.