Feminism & Cooking : Spice-ly Sweet Pork Ribs

Traditionally, women are expected to 'stay at home' or 'be kept in the kitchen'. This discriminatory law falls under an umbrella of feminist movements which includes everything from fights for maternity leave to equal pay. It traditionally saw women trying to mow their way out of the kitchen and ditch their needles and threads.

The movement was started by women from the middle or upper class who got the chance to education but faced discrimination in the working world where men were more welcome and women's skills were snubbed.

A Generational Funk
And that is why for generations, mothers (and aunts and fathers) kept their little girls out of the kitchen if they had a chance to study or find work. Work in the kitchen was an unceremoniously demoted status of life.

And that’s why she didn’t want my sister and me to spend our time in the kitchen. She wanted us to put our energy into learning everything she never had the opportunity to experience - Yeganeh Rezaian, The Lily

My generation of women is educated. In Malaysia and other former British-colonies, we often speak and write so much English that it continues to surprise some people from other countries, especially some of our Asian counterparts. English is a part of our normal school curriculum while extra tuition or special classes are needed in other countries.

Thanks, Britain!

More Men in the Kitchen than Women
There are more men in the boardroom than there are women, this goes without saying, although I sometimes wonder why in this modern day and age.

But the funny thing is that there are also more men IN THE KITCHEN than there are women.

Where....are....all....we...women, then? Although, I note that there is a rise in the number of female Michelin Chefs. (About time we bloody wrestle the apron back, lol, jk, no butthurt, please)

Ambitious Women Don't Work With Ovens
The kitchen is reserved for the matronly, motherly, the ones who provide the band-aids and who kiss your bruises. These are not the kind of women you want making top corporate decisions.

Hence, the perception that women who are good in the kitchen are not ambitious enough to not just climb the corporate ladder, but to kick ass (in general, you know). They're also conventionally known as people who don't like to fire people. Is that a bad thing? I don't know.

I would argue that people who are good in the kitchen are exceptional people, especially when the heat is on. Pun intended.

Do you know how many things you mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother had to juggle just to put food on that table? On top of ensuring that the heat is on 'high for 10 minutes' and then 'low medium for 2 hours', she had to put together a grocery list, decide what to cook, cut things up, find ingredients, don't burn the pot (or the kitchen), stir, fry, stew, bake and then wash, wash...and then WASH.

That's a whole lot of stress every day. She didn't even have a Gordon Ramsay crew with her! Just one person.

Not Everyone Love To Cook, Of Course
Although I love experimenting with different recipes all the time (well, I kind of have to, like I don't have a choice here), it's still hard work. It's work on top of my work. But I found a system that runs for me and things are a little smoother now.

But I like cooking.

One of those professional goals has always been to write for an audience. Cooking helps me expand on that ambition, giving me a new subject to write about - Elite Traveler

I love feeding my family. And then I love sharing stuff because it worked for me. Sans gloating, I just want people to go ahead and try it for themselves because it's worked for me.

It's like...try it, really, it worked for me and I hope it works for you too, and share the sh-t around, please! It's not about the credit. It's about making people happy just from one little-shared story...what with the internet nowadays and all.

So, we've come one whole circle to what I wanted to share today right from the start. LOL.

Spice-ly Sweet Slow Cooked Pork Ribs

The link above will take you to a printable Cookpad recipe page if you want to print out the thing. Otherwise, here it is.

Have fun! 
Love,
Marsha

I made a mix of spices based on another recipe but had leftover of spice mix. I CAN'T throw it away when it's perfectly good! So after thawing out some pork ribs, I had to do something with the leftover spice. Waste not, want not. And here it is, a spice-ly sweet pork rib dish? Because the measurements are only an estimate, adjust according to taste. Mix together the measurements, have a taste (yes, the dry mix) before marinading or mixing it together with the raw pork, and then dump it all together in the slow cooker and you're good to go. You can actually add carrots, root vegetables or capsicum/bell peppers into it.

Spice-ly Sweet Slow Cooker Pork Ribs

Ingredients

3 servings

1. [Marinade]
2. 1 tbsp oil
3. 10 pork ribs
4. 1.5 tsp paprika
5. 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
6. 1/2 tsp ground cumin
7. 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
8. 1 tsp ground cinnamon
9. 1/4 tsp ground cloves (optional - did not use it)
10. 1/2 tsp ground cardomom
11. 1 pinch saffron
12. 1/2 tsp ground ginger
13. 1 tsp garlic powder
14. 1 tsp ground coriander (optional - did not use it)
15. to taste salt, sugar and pepper
16. [To Cook]
17. 1 medium onion, sliced
18. 1/2 can tomato paste
19. 1 1/2 tbs soy sauce
20. 1 tbsp oyster sauce
21. 1 tsp mushroom/chicken seasoning (optional)
22. 1 cup water/vegetable broth
23. 2 tbs honey
24. 1 tbs corn starch + 2 tbsp water = slurry

25. Method

    1. MIX the spices above, taste-test and MARINADE pork ribs for 20 minutes or more
    2. Place marinated pork ribs into slow cooker, TOPPED with sliced onions and water
    3. ADD the rest of the ingredients from the 'To Cook' section, SLOW COOK on low for 4 to 5 hours.
    4. SERVE with rice and some vegetables or ready vegetables like sliced cucumbers or lettuce