Slow cooked caraway-spiced pork ribs served with sauerkraut
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time2 hourshrs30 minutesmins
Total Time2 hourshrs50 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Polish
Keyword: caraway, onions, pork ribs, sauerkraut
Servings: 4
Ingredients
1rackpork back ribsor 3-4 pounds country style ribs
2Tbspvegetable oil
salt
ground black pepper
1carrotcut into 1-inch lengths
1ribcelerychopped
1large onionhalved then sliced
3clovesgarlicminced
1Tbspwhole caraway seedssee note
4-6sprigsfresh thyme
2Tbspflouroptional, for gravy
1poundsauerkrautdrained
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.