Slow cooker sticky ribs with cheat’s fried rice

Oh wow, guys, this recipe! You’re in for a treat! A wildly exciting and delicious sticky ribs and fried rice dinner that is do-able midweek? “Impossible!” I hear you yell. Listen up. It’s totally, ridiculously possible when you have a couple of perfectly acceptable cheats up your sleeve…

Like my last post, Herby pea and pancetta risotto, this is for the peeps at Phipps PR. They wanted me to do a couple of posts for their favourite foodie clients. Last time it was Kallo. This time the product was (and here is cheat number 1) Levi Roots Reggae Reggae Sauce. So, I probably wouldn’t have picked this off the shop shelf normally. As, to be totally honest, I don’t tend to buy that many ready made sauces or marinades. That said, I am not averse to the odd hero product that will allow me to cut corners and get a decent home cooked meal on the table a bit quicker.

The ribs. I bought mine from the butcher. I chose one ‘side’, but next time I’ll get two sides as they were so good I wanted, like, double the amount in one sitting! You can get packets of ribs from the supermarket now – I know Ocado do them online. The sauce could not be simpler. I just plonked it on the ribs and shook the bottle with a good splash, like 1/4 of the bottle full, of extra water (I think it needs this extra viscosity as they are cooking for a long time). I used my slow cooker for the ribs. I chose to do them for 5 hours on Medium, but if you want to do them and head out for the whole day, then simply cook them on Low for 8 hours. One thing. My 2 year old did find the sauce a bit too spicy. But my 5 year old was able to take the heat. Maybe choose the ‘Mild’ one for young kids – I used the ‘Original’ sauce.

The rice. Listen, I think I may have had a minor rice epiphany. To go with the idea of making slow cooked ribs do-able midweek, I experimented and bought a packet of (cheat number 2) part-cooked rice that you (get this) MICROWAVE for 2 minutes. Hey! Stop judging, I’ve even seen Jamie Oliver use them in his 15 minute meals show! Ingredients-wise, you are getting 99% rice, so there’s no rubbish in there. The other 1% is salt and sunflower oil, presumably to keep it more separated. Anyway, it works a blooming treat. Sure, I’m still going to cook rice from scratch as it’s cheaper (plus I don’t see a quick brown rice product which is the rice I use most). But on those stressful midweek days – I am SO getting a few packets of this rice in. I went for Uncle Ben’s by the way, though I’m sure there are others available. Quickly fried off with some frozen peas and tinned sweetcorn – and a pinch of 5 spice – the kids absolutely wolfed this quick side dish up… #winningatdinner

Serves: 3-4
Prep time: 1 minute
Cook time: 5 hours on Medium OR 8 hours on Low
Total time: 5-8 hours

Ingredients: 
1 x side (750g) of pork ribs (you could use a lot more and still have lots of sauce left)
1 bottle of Levi Roots Reggae Reggae Sauce
Water (about 1/4 of the bottle filled with water and shook)
Honey to drizzle (optional)

For the rice: 
Oil or butter, for frying
2 packets of Uncle Ben’s Long Grain Rice (pre cooked)
1 tin of sweetcorn
250g frozen peas
1 teaspoon of Chinese 5 spice
A little light soy sauce (optional)

To serve: 
Fresh coriander
Chopped red chillies

Instructions: 

1. Chop your ribs if you got a side in one piece. Add to the pot. Pour over sauce. Shake bottle with good splash of water and pour over. Set to Medium or Low and cook for 5 or 8 hours.
2. Once ready, either serve as is, picking ribs out and pouring sauce on top. Or, carefully remove (they may be so tender that they are falling apart slightly) and keep them warm in a lowish oven until ready to serve. I drizzled a little honey on mine to keep them moist in the oven and make them extra glazed and beautiful. I poured my sauce into a jug and then reheated it once I was ready. 
3. Microwave the rice as instructed. Set a large frying pan or wok to heat up. Add little butter or oil and toss in frozen peas. Add sweetcorn and tip in rice long with some spices. Toss in heat until cooked through – about 4 minutes. Add a splash of soy sauce. Scatter some coriander through at last minute. 
4. Serve rice in bowls with ribs on top, a little sauce drizzled over. Top with extra coriander and chillies for adults. 

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post for Phipps PR as such it was a paid for post. The links are no follow as per Google guidelines.