Texas-Style Ribs
(Serves 8-10)

1 1/2 C white sugar
2 1/2 T black ground pepper
3 T paprika
1/2 tsp. cayenne (see sidebar)
2 T garlic powder
4 racks pork spareribs
---------------------
Sauce
1/2 C onion (chopped)
4 C ketchup
1/4 C salt
1/2 tsp. cayenne
1/4 C cider vinegar
2 1/2 C hot water
4 T brown sugar
salt & pepper to taste

Rub: combine the first 5 ingredients and rub mix all over ribs.  Stack ribs in two large roasting pans, each pan with 2 ribs, one on top of the other.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Ribs-stage 1: preheat oven to 275.  Bake ribs, uncovered, for 3 hours. Meat should be tender but not falling off the bone.

Sauce: drain 4 T of pork drippings from the baking pans into a skillet.  Sauté onion till soft, add remaining ingredients, and stir to blend. Simmer, uncovered, over a low heat till sauce thickens. 

Ribs-2: bring a grill up to a medium heat. Place ribs on grill, brush with sauce, and turn frequently. Grill 20 minutes till ribs are brown and slightly crispy.

Tips & Glossary: Tex-Mex

Hot, hot, hot!  For many that’s the pleasure of Tex-Mex food. But if you’re sensitive to throat-burning, eye-popping peppers, then turn down the heat. Just reduce the peppers in these dishes. 

• Avocado: use only ripe avocados with dark purplish-brown skins. If you have any unused avocado (why would you? But say you do…), rub the flesh with lemon juice to keep it from browning.

• Chili Powder: dried ground chili peppers typically mixed with cumin, garlic powder, and oregano.  You can make your own blend, adding cinnamon, cloves, coriander, paprika, and nutmeg.  Briefly heat dried peppers in a skillet to release flavors, then grind them into powder.

• Chili Pepper: any small hot pepper, as opposed to larger, milder bell peppers; includes, cayenne (red), chipotle (smoke-dried jalapeños), habanero, jalapeño, paprika, poblano, serrano, and tabasco.

• Chimichanga: a deep fried tortilla, filled with rice, beans, cheese, or meat, and folded into a rectangular packet. It's thought to have originated in Arizona.

• Coriander:  also known as cilantro and Mexican or Chinese parsley. Both fresh leaves and dried ground seeds are used in Mexican, Mid-East, Asian, and Indian cuisines.

• Cumin: an aromatic kin to theparsley and carrot plant; an important ingredient in chili powder.  Used especially in Indian curries, but also in Mexican, Thai and Asian dishes.  It has an earthy, peppery flavor.

• Enchilada:  made using corn tortillas, dipped in a sauce, filled and rolled up.  They are placed in a casserole dish, topped with sauce and cheese, then baked.

• Quesadilla: (kay-sa-dee-ya), literally, “little cheese thing.” In Tex-Mex cooking it has come to mean a sort of grilled cheese sandwich, using two tortillas filled primarily with cheese, grilled in a skillet or griddle, then cut into wedges.