Another Deer Rib Recipe -Walnut Oil / Ponzu Sauce

Just Starting the Slow Cooker

Outside of the tenderloin, deer ribs are one of the first meals I will make soon after a deer has been harvested.  I do this while I am in my processing mode so that after I am done with butchering and packaging meat for the freezer, a reward is waiting for me that is part of the harvest.  It can also be done while the rest of the deer meat is aging in your deer fridge.  It is an easy recipe to follow and is relatively a passive cooking process until you are grilling.

I trim of as much of the thick outer fat from a side of deer ribs and cut them into 6 sections, three cuts along the ribs leaving about 3 or 4 bones together and one cut through the ribs separating the 3 sections into 6 with a small saw.

After 7 hours in the Slow Cooker

These six sections are then placed into a slow cooker and covered with water on low heat for 6 to 8 hours.  If you want to reduce the time by an hour or two, set it on high for about 30 minutes just to get the temperature up in the slow cooker faster.  No seasoning is required. The goal is to slowly break down the connective tissue in the meat by allowing the fat to slowly liquefy and the mixture of fat and water penetrate the meat making it more tender.  This liquefied fat also helps a glazing form later.

As I near the end of the cook time I prepare a dry rub that I sprinkle onto the freshly removed sections of ribs.  It is also a good time to start the grill and get it on medium high heat. 

After the 6 to 8 hours, as I pull the sections out of the slow cooker, I flip them around in a small bowl to remove any water sitting on the meat, the goal is a moist section of ribs, not a section with pools of water on it. Don’t be tempted to dry them off with a paper towel, the moisture will help the dry rub stick to the surface of the ribs.

Dry Rub

The dry rub consists of these ingredients mixed thoroughly:

1 tsp Salt (your choice on what type)
1 tsp Fresh Cracked Pepper
1 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 ½ tsp paprika
1 ½ tsp onion powder
2 tsp Chili Power
2 tsp Ground Cumin
2 tsp garlic powder
(This quantity gives me just enough for a light sprinkled coating.  If you feel like you want more seasoning, increase the amounts accordingly.)

Dry Rub On the Ribs Just after the Slow Cooker

Sprinkle the dry rub on all sides of each section of ribs.  And then prepare the basting mix.

Basting Mix

The basting mix has four ingredients:

2 tbsp of Walnut Oil (avocado oil will work too but I like the full flavor of the walnut oil)
2 tbsp of Ponzu Sauce
1 tsp of Chili Powder
1 tsp of Ginger powder
Increase the amount as necessary but only a small amount is needed.

With the ribs covered in the dry rub, place them on the preheated medium high heat grill, meat side down first for 3-5 minutes then turn them over with the thicker meat side up for another 3-5 minutes. 

Be careful to not let them burn.  While the thicker meat side is up, pour or brush your basting mix over the ribs.  Watch for flare ups!  Once basted, flip them one more time with the now basted side on the heated grill grates.  Watch them closely to prevent heavy charring but allow some if you prefer it that way.  The basting mix will help the moist fat in the rib meat form a light glazing.  This will only take 1 or 2 minutes but watch closely, it can happen fast.

When you are satisfied with the char and grill marks, pull the ribs off and let them cool for a few minutes.

 

Serve them up how you wish but be sure to have a few napkins around and quick hands, they will be snatched up fast.