Slow Cooker Asian Short Ribs–A Story About One Amazing Mom

I share a love of good food and cooking with my family. Though it may sound funny, food has enriched my life and given me (and continues to give me) many great memories. In my last post I told you about my dad’s creative cooking skills. I’ve also mentioned our mutual love for trying weird/unusual things. But today I’d like to share a little bit with you about my mom.

My mom is amazing. She has been, and will always be, one of my greatest role models, heroes, and sources of inspiration. Growing up she always made sure that there were yummy homemade meals on the table, healthy lunches for us to take to school, and a healthy dose of sweet treats to let us know she loved us. Over the years she made sure that she taught me how to read a recipe and many other basic cooking skills. I remember one year when she put together a set of large manila envelopes that were labeled “Main Dishes”, “Salads”, “Desserts”, etc. She would tear out recipes from magazines that she thought looked good and put them into those envelopes. Then she would occasionally pull out recipes from those envelopes and try them out. When I graduated from high school and moved away from home she presented me with a cookbook that she had put together of all of her favorite recipes so that I would have something to cook from. I remember calling her on countless occasions for advice or further direction on a recipe. I quickly became a confident self-functioning cook. I’m convinced that this is one of the reasons that Mr. Fuji wanted to marry me. I fed that boy ALL THE TIME when we were dating, and not just grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup either. I remember having him over for a slice of tarte tatin once–he was spoiled! I attribute my ability to do that to my mom.

Food and cooking have become things that my mom and I love to share and talk about. We are constantly sharing new found recipes with each other, scoping out fun new places to try (she recently found a wonderful place called Crepes de Paris that we tried out–you can read my review here), raiding each other’s chocolate stash, or collaborating in the kitchen. She was my partner in crime for making Sandra Lee’s recipe for Crunchy Doughnut Eyeballs that I shared with you recently. Can you tell how much fun we have together?
Last week I got an email from my mom telling me about a recipe she had found in Real Simple Magazine and how I needed to make it because it was so YUMMY. The recipe was for Asian style short ribs made in the slow cooker. I’ve already told you what a big fan I am of slow cooker recipes, so I’m sure you’re not surprised to hear that I was immediately intrigued by this recipe.
I bought the necessary ingredients on Saturday, woke up yesterday morning, threw everything into the slow cooker, got ready for the day, and then went off to church with the Fuji family. When we got home the aroma was intoxicating and we were hungry! It took me about 5 minutes to finish the sauce and put everything on the table and then we dug in. The recipe was everything my mom claimed it to be, so now I’m passing on the love. You need to make these ribs because they are so YUMMY! I will definitely be using this recipe again. I think next time I’ll try it with a different cut/kind of meat because the sauce is so delicious and would be good on everything from a roast, to pork chops, to chicken. The ribs were amazing–tender and flavorful. You can find the recipe here. I love you Mom!

* Don’t forget! You have until Thursday, November 13, 2008, 10:00 PM PST to enter the Enstrom’s Chocolate Almond Toffee Giveaway (go here for instructions on how to enter).