Corn Salad

Ingredients:

1 bag frozen sweet corn
1 bell pepper (orange or red)
1/4th  purple onion
fresh cilantro
1/2 lime ( or 3-4 squeezes from a plastic lime)
Sriracha
Basil (I use the kind that's already minced and in a tube)
salt and pepper


1) Throw the whole bag of corn in a large frying pan (frozen or thawed, it doesn't matter). I also used a pat of butter, but I really don't think it needs it.

2) Salt and pepper the corn liberally. Cook until the corn starts to brown. Stir and let the corn brown again. Remove from heat and put the corn in a mixing bowl.

3) Finely chop the bell pepper and the 1/4th of the onion (you want the pieces to be about the size of the corn kernels). Mince about 1/4th to 1/3rd cup of cilantro, depending on how much cilantro you like (this is an estimate. I used two handfuls of minced cilantro). Add all this to the mixing bowl.

4) Add the juice of 1/2 lime (or three squirts of a plastic lime), two squirts of Sriracha, and two squirts of the basil. Stir and taste test. Add more of the ingredients to taste, but I wouldn't recommend adding any more basil.

You should let the salad sit for a while to let the flavors blend. I let the salad sit in the fridge for about an hour before eating.

Eat it in butter lettuce tacos with this pork recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/chinese-slow-cooked-pork-shoulder-recipe.html

The best ribs and potatoes you will ever have IN YOUR LIFE

The other day my roommate bought me Trader Joe's BBQ dry rub with coffee and garlic. It's pretty pungent when you smell it in the can, but it is absolute HEAVEN on pork ribs. I made some ribs over Memorial day weekend with corn on the cob, sugar snap peas, and herbed potatoes. It was literally one of the best meals I've ever had in my life and I can't stop thinking about making it again!
I used this recipe as a guide. I tweaked that a bit, and the instructions below are exactly how I cooked them. I might tweak this in the future to use only the oven or only the crocpot, but this recipe cooked them perfectly:

• Thick country cut pork ribs (not the rack ribs, the kind that are individually cut)
• TJ's dry rub (I didn't measure the amount I used)
• 4-5 red potatoes, sliced max 1/4 inch thick
• Melted butter
• Oregano
• Dill
• Black Pepper
• Sweet white corn on the cob
• Sugar snap peas

1) Coat the ribs VERY GENEROUSLY in the TJ's dry rub. You'll want to make sure each side of each rib is completely covered in rub. You won't need to salt. Let sit for about 30 minutes. While they're sitting, preheat your oven to 275 degrees F. (As a note, the oven that I cooked mine in doesn't heat well, so I did 300 degrees for 2.5 hours, but I don't recommend that).
2) Line a baking sheet with  foil and set a cookie cooling rack on top. Place the ribs on the cookie rack and pop it all in the oven.
3) Cook at 275 for 2 hours.
4) Once the 2 hours are up, put the ribs in the crockpot on LOW for 3 hours max. This mix of oven and crockpot will ensure that the ribs have a nice crust but also are nice and moist.

While the ribs are in the crockpot, you can start on your potatoes. I sliced them not super thin, but not super thick either. You should aim for less than a quarter of an inch, and try to keep it as uniform as possible.
Line a baking sheet with foil and brush with melted butter. Use lots of butter. Lay out the potatoes flat on the sheet. Sprinkle with just a little bit of salt and pepper. Then sprinkle with LOTS of dill and oregano. Seriously, go wild. Pop in the oven at 375 F for 30 minutes, flipping the potatoes halfway through. Some of the potatoes should be getting golden brown before you pull them out. If they haven't reached that stage, cook them 5-10 minutes longer.

Cook the sugar snaps according to directions on their bag, and cook the corn per usual (simmer until the cobs are bright yellow).
And there you have it, an amazingly delicious summer meal! Feeds 3-4 people.