Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes

 

I absolutely love salt and vinegar potato chips. So you can certainly understand my joy at coming across this recipe in the New York Times. Now I have Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes as one of the all-time great side dishes to serve with a grilled rib eye steak.

It's a very simple recipe. Your only decision needs to be what kind of vinegar to use. Choose white vinegar if you are looking for that great big punch of acid. Apple cider vinegar will give you a more subtle nuance. My favorite is malt vinegar...the same that the Brits use to flavor their fish and chips. It's closer to the white vinegar spectrum...just a little more mellow.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons vinegar, divided, plus more to taste

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper

2 pounds of skin-on potatoes: russets or Yukon gold; cut into 1-inch chunks

Flaky sea salt for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oven to 425º. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, 1 tablespoon vinegar, kosher salt and pepper. Add the potatoes to the bowl and hand-toss to mix thoroughly. Place the potatoes on a sheet pan, cut-side down. 
2. Roast until potatoes are crisp and brown, about 40 minutes.
3. Place the potatoes in a bowl. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon vinegar to the cooked potatoes (or more to taste). Toss to mix throughly. Put potatoes on serving plates and generously sprinkle each serving with flaky sea salt. Serve.

Smoked Beef Short Ribs

 

Smoked beef brisket is on of my very favorite meals. However, it takes an enormous amount of time and labor to do the job correctly...so much so that I never bother. I can't fathom getting up at 2am to start a fire and then tending the smoker for 16 hours so that I can eat brisket for dinner. And that is why I am a huge short rib fanboy. Same great taste of smoked brisket but it only takes one-third of the cooking time.

Short ribs come in two different cuts. Flanken short ribs have multiple bones and are cut thin...perfect for a quick turn on the grill. English-cut short ribs have a single bone and a big chunk of beef attached to the bone. That makes them an ideal candidate for low and slow BBQ.

I don't like to be bothered with tending a fire for smoking. I use a pellet smoker that maintains a constant temperature for the entire cook. That leaves me plenty of time for the important things in life....like playing The Legend of Zelda.

INGREDIENTS
5 pounds of English-cut beef short ribs

French's Yellow Mustard

Famous Dave's Rib Rub

1/2 cup beef broth

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat smoker to 225º (I use a mix of hickory and oak pellets).
2. On a foil covered sheet pan, place all of the ribs bone-side down. Place a generous dab of mustard on each rib and then spread the mustard so it coats the rib. Then sprinkle  Famous Dave's Rib Rub on top of each rib. (You will never taste the mustard....it is only a binder for the rub.)
3. Place each rib on the smoker grates, bone-side down. Smoke for 3 hours.
4. After 3 hours, place ribs, bone-side down, in a pan or aluminum foil roasting pan. Add 1/2 cup of beef broth and then seal tightly with aluminum foil. Put pan in smoker and cook for another 2 hours.
5. When 2 hours are up, uncover the ribs by removing the foil, then smoke the ribs for 30 more minutes.
6. Remove ribs from smoker and serve.

Pairing: An ice-cold Pilsner