Pete read this post over my shoulder as I was drafting it and said, “More Römertopf evangelism?” Sorry folks, I’m on a roll.. x
. . . . .
All my friends have gone Römertopf pulled pork crazy.
PeteV has made the dish twice. Carol baked a large pork neck, and the entire two kilo cut was demolished by her family in one sitting. Dredgey managed to get a pork shoulder into his Romy (I still haven’t figured out how) and ended up with meat so tender that he couldn’t lift it out of the pot.
The Spice Girl told me today that she’d made this (with a dozen extra spices added) and her son had requested it for lunch and dinner three days in a row. Our friend and neighbour Will squished a small pork neck into his baby pot, baked it until it was falling apart, then ate it like a caveman.
My friend Lisa, a Römertopf novice, no longer hates me for posting photos that made her son nag her into buying one. On the first night, she made the pulled pork, and on the second, a chicken stew which her family devoured. The ease of cooking in the clay baker surprised both Lisa and Carol – once it’s in the oven, all the hard work is basically done, and after the meal is finished, the pot goes straight into the dishwasher.
Caught up in this wave of enthusiasm, I’ve been trying all sorts of dishes in my well seasoned Römertopf. The latest were these pork ribs, a riff on one of our earlier recipes.
I began by rubbing two large racks of what we call American spare ribs (I think these are known as baby back ribs in the US) with two tablespoons of brown sugar and a tablespoon each of paprika and sea salt…
Following a similar method to the pulled pork recipe, the ribs were layered into the presoaked baker and placed in a cold oven. I turned the temperature to 200C with fan and set the timer for 30 minutes. After that time, I added two cups of hot water and turned the oven down to 150C with fan for a further 1½ hours baking time. The cooked ribs were tender and moist…
I removed the ribs from the pot and spooned over our barbeque sauce marinade:
- ½ cup tomato passata
- ¼ cup runny honey
- 1 tablespoon (4 teaspoons) light soy
- 1 tablespoon (4 teaspoons) Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon (4 teaspoons) white wine vinegar
They were then placed on a lined oven tray and put back into the oven under the top element to colour up. The end result was delicious – not quite as tender as I’d hoped (I think I overcooked them a bit in the final browning stage), but packed with flavour. My hungry wolves devoured the entire platter’s worth…
I poured all the liquid from the clay baker into a large bowl and put it in the fridge overnight to set. The following day, I scraped off the flavoured fat (which went into a batch of Pan Cubano the day after that) and stashed the two containers of rich jellied stock in the freezer…
A week later, I defrosted some of the stock and used it (plus a little annatto paste), to season a batch of Basmati rice. The end result was this incredibly flavoursome pilaf…
…which we topped with frijoles negros refritos, (defrosted) pulled pork, tomatillo salsa and corn chips…
That’s it for now, folks – I’ll try to give the Römertopf posts a rest for a while!
PS. I buy all my Mexican ingredients online from Sydney-based Fireworks Foods. They have a huge range, great prices and quick delivery!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
Please can I come and live with you when Pete is away. You always have the most magnificent meals and all your wonderful bread. Oh a girl can dream.
Have a super day.
:-) Mandy xo
Mandy, wouldn’t that be nice! Hope you’re having a great weekend! xx
I received one of these as a wedding gift many years ago, and sold it in a yard sale about 5 years later. I refuse to buy another, no matter how many recipes and stories you post. So there!
Hahaha…I feel the same way about slow cookers.. :)
Oh my goodness! Yum! Do you think my ex would part with my Romertopf?! Doubt it, huh! (*Kicks self for leaving it behind).
I run three in tandem – two for the oven, and one in the microwave. Our small round one gets used daily and is starting to chip. It doesn’t seem to matter really, the clay chips don’t seem nearly as sharp as the pyrex ones were! :)
I’m going to christen mine very soon ; ) xoxxo
Celia, you have nearly convinced me to buy one at POK when I am next in Sydney.
Glenda, the ones at PoK are 3L, whereas the one in the photo above are 4L. I’ve made my pulled pork in the 3L ones as well, so they’re still a good size, but I need the larger one for chooks and legs of lamb etc.
I am drooling, definitely going to make this!
Lisa, enjoy! My family wolfed these down!
I love how the Romertopf led in to the Mexican which looked delicious. I do love Mexican flavours perfect rice!
Tania, thank you – the stock was almost the best bit of the whole dish, and that’s saying something, as the ribs were amazing! :)
You have me converted! I have never used a römertopf…it looks like it does wonders! How does it compare to a slow cooker?
Laila, I’m not a slow cooker fan, so I gave mine away. The Romertopf works by absorbing water during the presoaking process, which it then returns to the dish as steam when it’s in the oven. It seems to suit the way we cook on a week day – everything goes into the pot raw and cold, the pot then goes into a cold oven, and then I have very little to do until it’s finished cooking. Then it goes into the dishwasher to clean. I was thinking how good it might be for all your game meats…
There’s more info about the pots here:
http://www.roemertopf.de/english/
And the one in the photo above is this one:
http://www.roemertopf.de/english/roemertopf_klassik/rustico.htm
(As you can tell, when I evangelise, I do it properly.. hahaha)
Thank you for all of the useful information! :)
Wow.
:)
the Evangelist at work! And nice work it is too :)
Hahaha…Pete told me I had to stop, or I’d frighten off all my vegetarian friends.. :)
Oh don’t these look scrumptious! I don’t blame you for telling us how awesome this method is- just look at the gorgeous results sweetie! :) xox
Thanks darling. In the past I’d simply put on the sauce and baked it, but the extra braising made it both tender AND added another layer of flavour. Definitely how we’re going to make it from now on! Hope you’re feeling much better… xxx
No, no – don’t stop!!
Ha! You’re sweet, thanks love xxx
You are on a roll Celia – a fantastic one at that! Those ribs look so good, especially all browned up which I think you just have to have for ribs. I love how you used the stock on the rice – great idea. You just always seem to eat so well.
Diane, the braising stock from the meat is SO delicious that I can never bear to waste it. The rice was almost better than the ribs, in my opinion. :)
I don’t have one of these either but I keep eyeing them. These ribs look wonderful!
Ok, but when you get one and have to find a spot to store it, please don’t tell John it was my idea.. :)
I could give you a huge kiss and hug at the moment! Starting at the ‘wrong’ end I know, but have just accessed ‘Fireworks Foods’ – WOW!!! I have a couple of fabulous foodie gfs in Mexico forever sending me those terrific recipes, but here in the country I have not found all the ingredients! Just for the weekend comes Celia – my fairy Godmother!! Oh, have fished my Romertopf out of the back of the cupboard and your recipoe sounds just what I feel like doing next I get close to some ribs!!! Thanks bigtime!!!
Went on quite a ‘shopping spree’ milady ~ had fun too!
Hooray! They’re nice people to deal with, and their products are so reasonably priced. I’m glad you got to stock up Eha! :)
Yum! I don’t have a ROM but I’m starting to think I should invest! Delicious post as always. I love the way no morsel is wasted :-)
Thanks Jaqi – that bit made me happy too! :)
No! Don’t stop posting about römertopf. Somehow it justifies all my romertopf purchases :) Yes, I have 4 different kinds of it now.
Did you make tomatillo salsa or is that ready made?
You now own four Romertopfs? Your fiance is going to kill me, Diana. ;-) Bought the tomatillo salsa from Fireworks Foods (link in post above, they’re very good).
These must have been divine! With winter on its way I’m sure your pots will be getting a lot more use :)
Tandy, thank you, they were. It’s not so much winter that drives the Romy use as much as how busy our lives get – they’re such a time saver (in the same way folks find a slow cooker a time saver, I guess) that when we’re busy midweek, we often just eat a Romertopf dinner. :)
The Römertopf sounds like a fantastic discovery. :-) And I’m thrilled you shared the link for your Mexican food sources. They are nearly nonexistent where I live and I miss them dreadfully. :-)
Krista, so happy to hear that you’ll now be able to get your Mexican supplies! We’re just starting to explore the cuisine properly!
This clay pot of which you speak, did you order this online from site mentioned? And is it treated? Those ribs look amazing and yes, we call those baby back ribs in the US 😊
Julie, I bought the clay pot from a local Sydney online store called Peters of Kensington. At the moment, they have a smaller version of the one shown in my post, but it’s still a good size. The ones we get here are German made and they’re glazed on the inside of the base, but I believe the ones on sale in the US are unglazed. I’ve seen them for sale on Amazon. Hope that helps! :)
Thank you Celia! I’m gonna check them out- they use them a lot in Mexico as well, but I had heard awhile ago there was the possibility of lead. The brand from Germany sounds the safest 😊
Julie, I wrote to Romertopf very early on and asked them about lead. Here was their reply:
As a 100% “made in Germany” producer we are subject to controls of different authorities. We are able to assure you that our clay, digged in our region, as well as our glaze is free of lead.
Good to know Celia! Definitely order through them when I purchase. Now can you fly over here and make those ribs? 😊
My sister snapped up 3 of those Roms from the Op Shop for $5 each in various times! Obviously someone out there had no idea how to use it. One of it she could smell the Chinese medicine being cooked on it. She adores it for Sourdough baking which can fit nicely all 3 in her Smeg oven
Yvonne, that’s a fantastic buy! They do pick up some odours – Romertopf recommend using a separate one for fish – but otherwise ours have been fine.
I’m happy to read all that you post about using your Romertopf Celia, the recipes look so easy and the results look so very good.
Jan, you are always so nice, thank you. :)
Romertopf Evangelism Celia? I think surely you should have named this for your post ;-)
I didn’t want to trip the wrong google searches, Brydie.. ;-)
Made these last night. “Best ribs ever!!” Was the comment from family. Please keep the ROM recipes coming Celia.
See, your comment just made the whole post worthwhile! Thanks so much Suzee! :)
I’m starting to do more on-line shopping too – it seems there are packages being delivered every second day. I love how everyone’s getting into the spirit of the Romertopf! I have been meaning to cook your pulled pork as it seems this is such a popular recipe. But the ribs look good too! xx
Charlie, I love that we live at a time when we can shop with specialist dealers online – no more having to drive around trying to find what we want at supermarkets and department stores! :)
oh dear, how can one resist this…
I especially love how there is no waste with you! The fat gets used in bread, the stock over rice – you are the poster girl for zero food waste, in addition to Romertopf of course ;))
Ah, you’re very kind, thank you. I think the fat and stock are gold – much to good to waste! :)
Well now it sounds like I must purchase one of these clay cookers! Love trying new things. Thanks for sharing.
I love new things too! Thanks for stopping by! :)
Dinner for friend coming round tomorrow dinner sorted – could I improvise with a casserole?
Sally, I think Nancy at Jamjnr made hers in a cast iron pot, so maybe! :)
This sounds like a great cookery item, Celia, and that dinner is the proof. Wow! Great, too, that you used the fat for your Pan Cubano. You certainly did get your money’s worth out of those ribs. :)
Thanks John! Best bit was actually the pork stock flavoured rice! :D