Tuscan Balsamic Spare Ribs

Got some beautiful pork spare ribs delivered, and I wanted to slow roast these with Tuscan flavors to remind me of vacations in Italy. This dry rub is wonderful on many different pork cuts, but something about that charred crust on top of the succulent fall-off-the-bone rib meat leaves you wanting more. If you don’t have a grill, no problem — these were cooked entirely in an oven.

Ingredients:

• Dry rub:

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons fennel seeds

  • 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

  • 2 teaspoons chopped thyme

  • 2 teaspoons sweet paprika

  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander

• 2 pound slab of pork spare ribs

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the rub rub ingredients until it forms a paste. Make sure you pat-dry your ribs. Massage in the rub all over the ribs, and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (overnight even better).

• 1 hour before you are about to cook the ribs, remove them from the refrigerator to come to room temperature

• Pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees (non-convection).

• Transfer your ribs to a sheet pan, and place in the oven to slow roast for 2 hours. After a couple hours, brush the top of the ribs with the balsamic vinegar.

• Turn on your oven to broil (500 degrees), and broil until you get a charred crust on the top of the ribs. Remove from the oven and let cook for 10 minutes before slicing.

• To serve, place the ribs on a platter and go for it. Bring a lot of napkins because no utensils required.