Pork Country-Style Baby Ribs with Plum Sauce Recipe

Assemble these supplies:

• 2/3 cup safflower or sunflower oil, approximately
• 1 cup fresh orange juice
• 8 country-style pork ribs, each
• 1 1/4 to 11/2 inches thick (about 5 pounds total weight)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large red bell peppers (about 1 pound total weight)
• 1/4 pound snow peas
• Small piece fresh ginger (optional) Medium-size onion, peeled and chopped
• 3/4 cup Japanese plum wine, German Gewiirztraminer,
• or sweet Riesling
• 3 cups chicken or veal stock 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 jalapeno or Anaheim chilies (about 2 ounces total
• weight), or 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 4 Italian prune plums, or 6 to 8 pitted prunes
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot or cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic

Steps in preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. In small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the oil and 1/2 cup of the orange juice.
3. Brush each rib with about 1 teaspoon of remaining oil and season with pepper. Place ribs on rack in roasting pan and cook, turning ribs with tongs 3 or 4 times and basting them with juice mixture, 40 minutes.
4. While ribs are cooking, wash red bell peppers and dry with paper towels. Halve, core, and seed peppers. Cut one pepper into strips and chop remaining pepper. Trim and string snow peas. If using ginger, peel and mince enough to measure 1 teaspoon.
5. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in medium-size heavy-gauge saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and chopped red bell pepper, and sauté until onion is translucent and pep­per is soft, about 5 minutes.
6. Remove pan from heat. Add 1/4 cup of the plum wine and, averting your face, carefully ignite. When flame sub­sides, return pan to heat, add stock, remaining 2/3 cup orange juice, cumin, and coriander, and bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any froth. Reduce heat to low and simmer until reduced to about 2 1/2 cups, about 15 minutes.
7. While sauce is reducing, wearing rubber gloves, cut chilies, if using, into 1/2-inch-thick rings and remove seeds. Halve and pit plums or prunes, then cut into wedges. In medium-size bowl, combine plums or prunes with chilies, if using, and pepper strips, and toss mixture with 1/4 cup plum wine.
8. When sauce is reduced, pass it through fine sieve set over medium-size bowl, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Return sauce to , pan, set over low heat, and add snow peas.
9. Meanwhile, blend arrowroot or cornstarch with remaining 1/4 cup plum wine in small bowl and slowly add to sauce, stirring, until sauce thickens, about 1 minute. . Add minced garlic and red pepper flakes and ginger, if using, and stir in pepper and plum mixture. Cover pan and set aside in warm place.
10. H. Place dinner plates under hot running water to warm. Dry plates. Remove ribs from oven. Divide ribs among plates and top each serving with sauce, fruit, and vegetables.