St. Patricks 2014: Irish Indoor Ribs

Somehow it's already been a year since we did the fabulous pork apple sirloin with homemade gouda bread for St. Patrick's 2013!

As the snows continue to fall in Montana we've been wishing it were grilling season already, so we decided to take a traditional grilling meat - pork ribs - and do an indoor oven version. There's two twists here though. First is that we're trying out rib tips for the first time ever, and second is a little Irish spin in honor the holiday. The full meal will be Rib tips marinated in Killians beer, with a side of colcannon (a traditional Irish potato dish).

Rib tips are different from standard ribs in that they have several small scale shaped bones at regular intervals, rather than large continuous bones, so they are actually easier to pull meat off or eat with a fork than to pick it straight up and go to town.

For the Irish Rib Tips you'll need:

• Half rack of pork rib tips (if you are feeding more than 2 or 3, do a full rack instead)
• Kosher salt
• Cracked black pepper
• about 3 tbsp. Honey
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
• ½ – ¾ bottle your preferred beer (for the Irish theme, we went with Killians Red. If you want a thicker, more dark flavor, use Guiness instead. For a fruity kick, go with )
• ¼ cup savory barbecue sauce (just enough to brush on the ribs)

To get these rib tips ready, we're going to marinate them for a few hours. First we season with salt and pepper.

Next up we're going to smother them in some honey, to make a sweet balance to the savory flavors.

Next we'll add in about 2/3rds of a bottle of beer and the apple cider vinegar - just enough to cover the ribs. After allowing the flavor to soak in, we're going to throw these in the oven at a low heat - 225 to 250 degrees - for several hours. This will allow for even cooking and ensure the meat doesn't dry out and get tough.

With only about 15 - 20 minutes left or cooking time, we're going to drain out the excess liquid from the pan and then brush these with a savory BBQ sauce. A hickory would be great, or any of our previous homemade versions (Root beer, coffee, and so on) would do as well. This time for convenience we went with a Jim Beam's bottled bacon BBQ sauce.

After rubbing they go back in the oven at a slightly higher heat to caramelize and get a little crispy, and they're done!

For the Colcannon you'll need:

• At least two pounds and up to six pounds red potatoes, skin on (for a more traditional mashed potato taste, go with peeled baking potatoes)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/3 medium sized head of cabbage, roughly chopped
• one bunch green onions
• ½ cup sour cream

We always find a way to work this traditional Irish side into our meal schedule in March. It's basically just a fun enhanced version of mashed potatoes. To get this going, boil potatoes as you normally would, and in the mean time melt about two tbsp. butter in a pan and then throw in the chopped cabbage and green onions.

After the potatoes are boiled and the veggies have softened, through it all together in a large mixing bowl.

Add in the butter and sour cream and mash it up. Here Megan is doing it by hand with a wooden spoon to help keep the shape, but if you are pressed for time an electric mixer works too.

Here's our prepared colcannon, ready to hit the plate!

Two rib tips and a hefty dollop of colcannon makes this St. Patrick's meal almost complete. Pop open a few more of the Killians and you're good to go!