Many people are skeptical that a clean diet can be tasty. This Paleo slow cooker Asian pork ribs recipe is a great example of how it’s possible!
What Makes it Asian?
I’ve had many styles of barbeque, and it’s hard to go wrong with any of them. But sometimes you’re looking for something a little outside of the box.
I decided to do an Asian take on pork ribs using signature sauces and spices. Garlic, ginger, tamari sauce, and Chinese 5-spice give these ribs an authentic Asian flair. Green onions cap off the dish in an appropriately Asian style.
What is Chinese 5-Spice?
If there’s one thing you might not have in your pantry, I’m guessing it’s Chinese 5-spice powder.
Typically 5-spice contains star anise, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, fennel seeds, and cloves. Ingredients used less often include turmeric, ginger root, anise seed, Amomum villosum pods, licorice, galangal, or Mandarin orange peel.
Don’t feel like you’d only use it for this dish. It pairs well with pork, chicken, seafood, and duck.
How I Made This Paleo
The ribs are Paleo by themselves, without my help. It’s all that pesky sauce that people slather on that can be problematic.
I like a sweet barbeque sauce as much as the next person, but guess what’s probably in it? Sugar, corn syrup, brown sugar…all of the things that aren’t so great for us.
Still, I wanted this Paleo version to have some sweetness, so I used just a bit of erythritol. This offers the right flavor without spiking your blood sugar like regular sugar.
Some recipes call for ketchup. Nothing wrong with the tomatoes in ketchup, but guess what else is in there? Sugar, or corn syrup. Not exactly Paleo.
Since this is an Asian recipe, I was looking for the taste of soy sauce without the gluten. Tamari sauce works well for this (just make sure you buy a gluten-free product).
Stress Less
A Paleo lifestyle is about more than just food. Finding ways to reduce and prevent stress will make you happier and healthier.
I like slow cooker recipes like this one, because they don’t require monitoring and tend to be easy to clean up. But there are other ways you can cut down on your stress levels.
Check out this article on simple but proven stress management techniques for coping with the causes and effects of stress. You’ll learn more about how exercise, naps, vacations, and down time can improve your quality of life and reduce stress.
Place the rack of pork ribs into a slow cooker. You may have to halve the rack to fit snugly into your cooker. Add the onions, garlic paste, ginger paste, and chicken broth. If the ribs aren’t completely covered, add a little more stock until they are. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours.
Remove the ribs and set aside, covered with foil to stay warm.
Transfer the onions and stock from the slow cooker to a clean pot on the stove top. Use a hand blender to blitz well, then add the tamari and Chinese 5-spice. Reduce the mixture over moderately high heat until thick and jammy. Taste the marinade and stir in a pinch of erythritol if you want a little bit of sweetness added.
Brush this marinade over the warm ribs and garnish with sliced green onions.
Notes
All nutritional data are estimated and based on per serving amounts.
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