Spare Ribs, Pintos and Jalapeno Cornbread

I trimmed a slab of spare ribs, brushed them with bacon drippings and sprinkled them with a bit of my homemade smoked seasoned salt....



Fired up my drum and added some hickory...

After smoking for about 1 1/2 hours (this was a small rack of ribs)... I foiled the ribs with a mixture of beer, dales marinade and a bit of cayenne...

I let the foiled ribs smoke for another 1 1/2 hours. I also added a pan of scalloped potatoes...

Then I removed the ribs from the foil and smoked for another hour....until tender...

The smoked scalloped potatoes and rib trimmings....

The ribs were flavorful enough without adding sauce. I like my sauce on the side....

The next day.....

I made a batch of pinto beans. I sort, then soak the dried pintos in cool water overnight, drain and add fresh water to cover.

Let them simmer on low all day..

To this batch I added the smoked rib trimmings, onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, 1 bay leaf, and a couple pinches of oregano and thyme, kosher salt and cracked black pepper.......

I add the salt after the beans have become tender.

I made a skillet of jalapeno cornbread to go with the beans.

The cornbread recipe...

1 1/4 cups of flour

3/4 cup of yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup of sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup of milk

1 egg

1/4 cup of oil

I like to heat the oil in my cast iron skillet in the oven...at a temperature of 400 degrees.

Mix the dry ingredients then add the milk and egg.

To this I add about 1 cup of cooked corn,

minced onion

and at least one chopped jalapeno

Bake for 25 minutes or until the top is light golden.

I love pintos and jalapeno cornbread. The smoked rib trimmings added just the right touch of smoky flavor I wanted. :)