Pork Spare Ribs - Venetian Style

The other day I happened to catch a show on PBS called "Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth", wherein Ruth Riechl of Gourmet Mag fame visited Venice with Dianne Wiest to take some cooking classes with Enrica Rocca. Apparently I am late to the game since this was an episode from Season 1, and I think they are now in Season 3...

BUT ANYWAY!

Being a glutton for Venice since our trip there, I decided to give a try to the spare ribs they made. Here is my adventure, with a few pictures. The link to the actual recipe, HERE.

You need:

2lbs of pork spare ribs
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 garlic cloves thinly sliced
2 tbs of fresh rosemary (I used dried, and only had 1 tbs, so I added one tbs of dried Herbes de Provence, which was equally delicious)
3/4 cup of dry white wine (I never use anything I won't drink so I actually used a great Idaho Riesling)
3/4 cup of water

Normally, you are supposed to hack the ribs in half crosswise, but I don't have cleaver so I made them whole.

First you want to heat a large skillet (I used my 12" Le Creuset pot) on medium-high, adding in 1-2 tbs of extra virgin olive oil until the oil shimmers. Brown your ribs as follows in batches (so you don't cool your pan too much, and get an even cooking). After each batch cooks, set it aside on a plate.
After you are done cooking all of your ribs, add them all back to the pot, along with your Rosemary and Garlic.Add your wine and water, and then stir to coat.

Put the lid on your pot/skillet, reduce your heat to medium low and cook for 1-1.25 hours. Mine did well in just over an hour. When it is done you will have a nice flavorful sauce to serve over the ribs.

I made a batch of gluten-free cornbread from Bob's Red Mill when I made chicken soup the other night which, served with the ribs, made this a very simple but exceptionally delicious meal.