Sweet, Sticky, and Unexpectedly Earthy Ribs

Barbecue just got a plot twist!

I’ve been experimenting with tomato powder lately, and this week, it found its way into a comfort food: country-style pork ribs. I cooked them sous vide for 12 hours at 145°F, which gave them that perfect tender-but-meaty texture I like—still sliceable but rich and juicy all the way through.

But here’s where things got fun. I wanted a candied finish, so I whipped up a simple rub using sun-dried tomato powder, sugar, and garlic powder. The ratio was two parts tomato powder, two parts sugar, and one part garlic powder. After patting the ribs dry, I generously dredged them with the mix and slid them under the broiler until the sugars caramelized into a sticky, burnished crust. NOTE: if you wanted to use it as a rub before cooking, I would add some salt, but in this case, since the ribs had already been cooked with a rub, I just wanted flavor and caramelization.

The flavor surprised me—in the best way. The tomato powder added an earthy depth that reminded me of dried chiles, such as ancho or guajillo, but without the heat. It might’ve been more earthy than those chiles, almost like a shortcut to that rich, slow-roasted flavor you get from traditional Mexican moles or barbecue sauces made from scratch.

It’s a trick I’ll be using again, especially on meats that benefit from a bold finish. I may even try adding a little smoked paprika or a little white pepper next time. If you have tomato powder in your pantry and haven’t tried it this way yet, I highly recommend giving it a try.

Here are the two I have been experimenting with:
Burlap & Barrel Sun-Dried Tomato Powder
The Spice Way Tomato Powder

Click here for more information on tomato powder!

Beyond the Basics: Unexpected Ways to Use Sugar

Once you start thinking of sugar as more than just a dessert ingredient, it opens up all kinds of little kitchen hacks—some of which can save time or elevate a dish without much effort.

One example is caramelized onions. Traditionally, you’re looking at a length time commitment to get that deep golden-brown flavor. But if you’re in a rush, a small pinch of sugar speeds things up dramatically. It’s a bit of a shortcut, and though purists might object, it works. The sugar helps kickstart browning and boosts that rich, sweet-savory flavor.

Here are a few other less obvious uses worth trying:

• Tame bitterness. A small amount of sugar can help soften the bitterness of greens like kale, mustard, or radicchio when they are sautéed or roasted.

• Add shine. Brushing a sugar-water glaze on roasted vegetables (like carrots or sweet potatoes) gives them a glossy, appetizing finish.

• Balance salty sauces. A touch of sugar can help mellow out overly salty broths, soy sauces, or dressings.

• Elevate spice blends. A bit of sugar in a dry rub or curry powder enhances the depth of other spices—especially warm ones like cumin, paprika, or coriander.

These aren’t tricks to make food taste sugary. They’re about rounding out the flavor, speeding up techniques, and finding that little edge in your cooking that makes people wonder what your secret is.

That’s it for this week.

Thanks for reading!

We’ll be back next week with another kitchen experiment, something spicy, smoky, or maybe even fermented. Until then, if you haven’t seen our post on tomato powder, click here to check it out.