Lunch yesterday was these delicious and easy Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps. There are countless variations of lettuce wraps. Use this recipe as a starting point. You could easily substitute ground turkey or chicken for the pork if you like or change up the veggies and spices. Enjoy!

Asian Pork Lettuce Wraps

1 ½ lbs ground pork

3 Tablespoons rice vinegar

2 Tablespoons tamari

2 teaspoons sesame oil

¼ cup scallions, thinly sliced

¼ cup carrots, shredded

1 teaspoon ginger, grated

1 clove garlic, grated

¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted

¼ cup cilantro, minced

leaves from 2 heads of Boston Bibb lettuce

Sauté the ground pork until thoroughly cooked.  Place in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the remaining ingredients (except lettuce).  Serve the pork mixture in a serving bowl with a large serving spoon. On a separate platter, arrange a stack of chilled lettuce leaves. Let people fill their own wraps.

One of our favorite places to eat here in Park City is Chimayo’s Restaurant. All of their food is wonderful, but the ribs are amazing. I’ve been on a quest to try to duplicate the tenderness and favor of those ribs at home. The other night I came really close.

Low and slow is the key to fall off the bone ribs. I’ve found that using a slow cooker leads to consistently tender ribs. Plus it’s super easy. The spice rub adds the first layer of flavor and then glazing them while on they’re on the grill adds the kicker.

The glaze has a lot of honey in it, so if you’re trying to lose weight or watching carb intake, this recipe is definitely a once in awhile splurge. If you don’t want the glaze, just use your favorite Paleo friendly barbeque sauce instead.

Ingredients:

2 full racks pork baby back ribs

Spice Rub:

1 tbls paprika

1 ½ tsp chili powder

1 ½ tsp sea salt

1 tsp ground cumin

¾ tsp ground black pepper

¾ tsp ground white pepper

¾ tsp ground oregano

½ tsp cayenne pepper

Glaze:

20oz can pineapple, packed in juice

2 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce

1tsp grated fresh ginger

1 cup honey

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all of the spice rub ingredients. Rub all over the ribs. Wrap in saran wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours.

Unwrap the ribs and place them on edge in a slow cooker. You kind of curve them into the shape of the cooker. Don’t add anything else. Cook on low for 7 hours.

Carefully remove the ribs to a baking sheet. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile make the glaze. Dump out half the juice from the can of pineapple. Puree pineapple, remaining juice, the chilies and the ginger together. Place in a small saucepan. Add the honey and salt and pepper. Heat slowly until the glaze has a smooth consistency.

Brush the glaze onto the cooled ribs. Place ribs on a hot grill. Flip about every 5 minutes, brushing on more glaze when you turn them. Cook until heated through and the glaze is nice and crispy, about 20 minutes. (Note-I only used about half of the glaze)

If you like your ribs really sticky, brush on some more glaze just before serving.

Grab some extra napkins and enjoy!