Slow-cooked, sticky-glazed pork ribs go with cucumber slaw in Sam Way's recipe

Slow-cooked pork ribs, grilled with a sticky glaze… you just can’t beat it! This recipe is from the “Quick Prep, Slow Cook” chapter of my cookbook, “Sam’s Eats.” It's a very versatile chapter.

The idea behind these recipes is that they take very little time to prepare, but are left to cook for an extended period. This is one of my favorite ways to cook, as it requires little effort to create a stunning meal. Making these pork ribs for lots of people is a fail-safe way to impress.

A little trick is to crumble a stock cube into the marinade — this is a quick and easy way to add depth and rich, umami flavor.

Pork Ribs with Cucumber Slaw

Servings: 3 to 4 as a main, 4 to 6 as part of a spread

Ingredients

For the ribs:

3 tablespoons olive oil

5 tablespoons red wine vinegar

6 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons smoked paprika

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 chicken or vegetable stock cube, crumbled

2 pounds, 10 ounces individual pork ribs (each one 3 to 5 ½ ounces)

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For the cucumber slaw:

2 cucumbers, halved, deseeded, julienned

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 teaspoon dried chili flakes

Directions

Mix the marinade ingredients together in a bowl, seasoning with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pour the marinade over the ribs and leave to marinate in the fridge overnight, or at least a few hours.

When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 325°F.

Place the ribs in a baking dish or on a sheet pan, pour 1 cup of water into the base of the tray and tightly cover the tray with foil. Cook in the oven for 2 hours, until tender.

Meanwhile, mix the slaw ingredients together in a bowl, season with sea salt, then cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Remove the ribs from the oven and lay them in a new dish or pan (or clean the first one), pouring the juices into a small saucepan. Place the saucepan of juice over a high heat and reduce until thickened.

Preheat the broiler to high, then brush the ribs with some of the reduced juices. Cook under the broiler for 4 to 5 minutes until slightly charred on top then remove them from the oven.

Brush the ribs once more time with the reduced juices, then serve with the cucumber slaw.