Ribs! YUM!  I usually only eat ribs a couple times a year because they’re rather indulgent and typically slathered with some sugary sauce.  We were on our weekly visit to The Healthy Butcher and decided to pick up some Wild Boar Ribs to see if I could do them up Paleo-style.  The Wild Boar was local and pastured so it wasn’t oozing in fat like typical pork ribs.  One of the wonderful butchers recommended that we braise the ribs and then throw them on the grill for a bit.  That’s what we did and they were AMAZING!  You can do the braising a day or two in advance and then we you want to eat them, just grill them for a few minutes. The braising takes 3 hours, so make sure you’ve got the time set aside.  This would work on any pork rib, so if you can’t find boar use it on some pork ribs.

Ingredients (serves 2-4)
– 2 racks of wild boar ribs (any pork ribs would work!) 
– 3 Tbsp paprika
– 1 Tbsp onion powder
– 1 Tbsp garlic powder
– 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
– 1/2 tsp cinnamon
– lots of fresh ground pepper
– 2 Cups of chicken stock 
For the asparagus:
– 1 large bunch
– 1 Tbsp olive oil
– 1/2 tsp cumin
– 1/2 tsp coriander
– 1/2 tsp garlic powder (or use some fresh minced)
– lots of fresh ground pepper 
– good pinch of sea salt

Directions:

  1.  ALERT! You need 3 hours for the braising, so make sure you’ve got time.  You can do it 1 or 2 days before then pop it in the fridge until you’re ready to grill.
  2. To braise, pre-heat oven to 200.
  3. Prepare the rub by mixing together Paprika, Garlic, Onion, Cayenne, Cinnamon and Pepper.  Spread the rub over the ribs to create a light layer.  You will likely have some of the rub leftover (I only used 1/2 of mine) – save it and use it on some other meat (i used some on veal cutlets..mmmmm).
  4. Put the ribs in a baking/casserole dish.  Pour the chicken stock into the baking dish so that it barely covers the ribs.  Yes, some of the rub will wash off during this process, but most will stay in-tact.
  5. Cover tightly with foil and pop in the oven for 3 hours.  Check it after 2 hours.  You want to take it out as soon as the meat starts to feel tender and come away from the bone.
  6. Once it’s finished braising you can grill it right away or let it cool, pop it in the fridge and grill it another day.  
  7. Grill the ribs at medium-high heat for ~5 min per side.  Depending on whether you had them in the fridge or not will impact the cooking time.  Ours were in the fridge so it took 5 min per side with the bbq lid down.
  8. For the asparagus, mix together the olive oil, garlic powder, cumin, coriander and salt and pepper.  Pour over the asparagus and coat them evenly.
  9. Grill the asparagus at the same time as the ribs until they are tender but still crisp.
  10. Enjoy!

Primal-Husband LOVED these and gave the following testimonial, “These are incredible! So good! Are you going to eat these last few? (me: no) I’ll take them.”