Polish ribs Żeberka wieprzowe
Slow cooked caraway-spiced pork ribs served with sauerkraut
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 rack pork back ribs or 3-4 pounds country style ribs
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- salt
- ground black pepper
- 1 carrot cut into 1-inch lengths
- 1 rib celery chopped
- 1 large onion halved then sliced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tbsp whole caraway seeds see note
- 4-6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 Tbsp flour optional, for gravy
- 1 pound sauerkraut drained
Instructions
- Heat oven to 275°F.
- Wash and dry ribs. Cut into sections of 2-3 ribs each or about four portions.
- Heat oil in a dutch oven. Season ribs with a sprinkle of salt and pepper then brown on all sides in the dutch oven.
- Add the carrot, celery, onion and garlic to the pot. Sprinkle with caraway seeds and place sprigs of thyme. Add about 2 cups of water but not enough to completely submerge the ribs.
- Cover the dutch oven and put in the preheated oven for 2½ hours. Check for tenderness and cook an additional ½ hour if needed.
- Transfer ribs to a serving platter to rest. Remove the vegetable solids from the liquid. Reserve (if serving) or discard. If you'd like to make a gravy/sauce for your ribs, continue with next step.
- Pour liquid into gravy separator or skim excess fat from the top. Return braising liquid to the dutch oven, avoiding as much of the fat as you can. Dissolve about 2 tablespoons flour in a cup of water. Heat the braising liquid to boiling on the stovetop and slowly stir in the flour slurry to make a gravy. The liquid should be fairly well seasoned already so you may not need to add any additional seasoning; taste to confirm.
- Heat well-drained sauerkraut (preferrably Polish-style) and serve with a rib section and the braised carrots and onions.
Notes
Allspice is an optional spice for this dish. Use it in place of the caraway if you prefer. In addition to ground black pepper you could add some peppercorns to the pot as well.