TAMPA, Fla. — From Melting Pot Social in downtown Tampa, Chef Jason Miller offers his take on a traditional Korean sticky rib dish, along with a macaroni and cheese.

You’ll see from the recipe below, half a dozen cheeses make up the sauce.

Chef Miller also offers advice on how to store the recipe and what not to freeze.

6 Cheese Sauce & Mac

Ingredients:

  • 7 oz Heavy Cream
  • 1 oz Whole Milk
  • 4 oz Mascarpone Cheese
  • 2.5 oz Parmesan Cheese, grated
  • 2.5 oz Smoked gouda, shredded
  • 2 oz Fontina, shredded
  • 2 oz Sharp Cheddar, shredded
  • 1 oz Swiss Cheese, shredded
  • 1/4 tsp Sea Salt, fine
  • 16 oz Elbow Pasta, cooked al dente
  • 3 oz Panko breadcrumbs
  • 1 oz Parmesan Cheese, grated
  • 1 oz Butter, melted

Makes 16 oz

Directions:

  1. Place a large, heavy bottom pot onto a cooktop and set to medium high heat.
  2. Pour the heavy cream and milk into the pot and bring to a simmer.
  3. Whisk the mixture intermittently to ensure nothing is starting to scorch at the bottom of the pot.
  4. Once the mixture has come to a simmer, add in all the remaining ingredients, except the cheddar and Swiss and the second listing of grated parmesan.
  5. Whisk the mixture to allow the ingredients to incorporate evenly.
  6. Continue to whisk every minute or two to ensure nothing is scorching or burning at the bottom of the pot.
  7. Separately, in a mixing bowl, toss the melted butter, second listing of grated parmesan and Panko, and mix well.
  8. Spread out onto a sheet tray and bake in a 350°F oven for 5-7 minutes or until golden all over. Once cooked, remove from oven and cool down at room temperature.
  9. Store cooled breadcrumb mixture at room temperature for up to 5 days.
  10. Allow the mixture to come back to a simmer.
  11. Once simmering again, whisk again and allow to simmer for 10 minutes, whisking intermittently.
  12. After 10 minutes, turn off the cooktop and remove the pot from the cooktop.
  13. Use a hand immersion blender to puree the sauce or carefully transfer the sauce to a blender and puree until smooth.
  14. Use immediately or cool down and hold refrigerated for up to 7 days.
  15. Freezing is not recommended due to the inconsistency in the sauce once defrosted.
  16. Use 3 oz of sauce for every 4 oz of pasta.
  17. Once the sauce is heated through, add in the pasta and 1 oz of shredded cheddar and ½ oz of shredded Swiss.
  18. Toss and mix altogether and transfer to serving dish.
  19. Garnish with a sprinkle of the parmesan Panko crumbs over top.

NOTE: The shredded cheddar and Swiss are added afterwards to prevent the cheeses from separating under the heat of cooking and yielding oily results. Adding them in at the very end prevents this.

Poached Ribs Prep

  • 5 lb Pork Ribs, trimmed, raw
  • 6 cloves Fresh Garlic
  • 4 oz Fresh Onion
  • 1 tsp Ground Black Pepper
  • 3 tsp Salt
  • 1 Bay Leaf

Directions:

  1. In a large pot, add in all the ingredients.
  2. There should be some space in between the pork ribs so that the ribs are not pressed against each other, preventing even cooking.
  3. Fill the pot with cool water until the ribs are fully submerged with about an inch or so extra water on top.
  4. The water on top compensates for any evaporation during cooking.
  5. Turn the heat up to high, and as soon as the pot comes to a boil, immediately turn the heat down. Allow the ribs to simmer until the meat starts to pull back from the ends of the bones slightly and its fork tender.
  6. Once cooked, place the cooked ribs on a tray and cool down in the fridge until the ribs cool.
  7. Slice through the rack to yield individual ribs.
  8. The ribs can be kept refrigerated up to 3 days before using or freeze up to 6 months.
  9. Freezing them as individual ribs offers flexibility in serving sizes.

Crispy BBQ Ribs

Directions:

  1. Drain ribs well and blot dry if overly wet, but you do not need to fully dry off each of the ribs.
  2. Heat a large pot with canola or vegetable oil to 350° F.
  3. Alternatively, you can shallow fry the ribs instead of deep frying them.
  4. Once the oil is up to temp for shallow frying, carefully place the ribs into the oil and allow to cook for 2 minutes undisturbed.
  5. Then flip the ribs over for an additional 1 minute.
  6. For deep frying, just place the ribs into the oil and allow a solid 3 minutes to cook.
  7. Once cooked, carefully remove the ribs from the oil and allow the excess oil to drain off.
  8. Then, in a large mixing bowl, add the ribs, your favorite BBQ sauce and toss well to coat.
  9. Chef uses a Korean Gochujang barbecue sauce made in house.