There is the classic Salade Nicoise with its lovely composition of tuna, tomatoes, sliced eggs, olives, potatoes, haricots verts and anchovies–or variations thereof. The tuna is generally canned, and there is very little in the way of lettuce leaves. Then, there is the more updated trend, the Ahi Tuna Salad, with its delicate strips of seared fresh ahi tuna, arranged in overlapping slices and serve on a bed of lettuce often with a wasabi-soy- mustard drizzle or a honey ginger vinaigrette. Combine the best of both salads, add a rainbow of color and crunch, and you have a hearty, healthful main meal dish with the unusual twist of fresh tuna served, not in slices, but rather in cubes to get the sear on all sides. If your New Year’s resolution is to eat healthy and somewhat preservative-free, the Over The Rainbow Cubed Ahi Tuna Salad is your creative and crunchy kick starter in a salad bowl!
olive or avocado oil
Country Style Pork Ribs
We’re heading into a nice long Fourth of July holiday week and I hope there will be plenty of chances for you to get your grill on and cook up some good eats! Have you thought about firing up a big batch of meaty and flavorful Country Style pork ribs? Those are the ones that are loaded with meat and virtually no bone. So wait a minute. Why do they call them ribs then? Well, country style pork ribs are actually not ribs at all. They are from the shoulder or the blade end near the shoulder. These cuts of pork are meaty and marbled—which equals flavor! They often get passed over in the meat department in lieu of actual ribs, and that’s a shame because they are delicious grilled and slathered with BBQ sauce or cut up for kebabs. Speaking of BBQ sauce, with this recipe, the BBQ sauce is a bonus that is used as a finishing sauce because all of the flavor is in the rub! I’m using a variety of spices for this rub that combines sweet, heat, salty and spicy. What a flavor profile! It’s a great combination that you can make your own by adding more brown sugar or less chili powder, according to your taste. It’s so simple to mix the spices together and sprinkle over the country style ribs, and the magic happens when you refrigerate them! The spices draw out the moisture and when you put them in a hot pan or grill, that juicy outside caramelizes and seals in the moisture. When the ribs are cooked, you can then slather on the BBQ sauce and serve them up with your favorite fixings like baked beans, roasted corn on the cob or macaroni salad. If you’re lucky enough to have any leftover ribs, you can slice them up for sandwiches or chopped up for a salad. So if you haven’t had country style pork ribs lately, this may be a great week to give them a try. I can almost guarantee you’ll be licking your chops!
