This is a cheerful, optimistic recipe well suited to any time of year.
It looks ahead to summer, but its warmth and spice are equally welcome in the depths of February.
After all, there’s rarely a wrong moment for pork.
This quick barbecue glaze comes together in minutes: smash a few garlic cloves and stir with a handful of pantry staples.
So, get smashing.
Start by finely chopping three garlic cloves and mix them with a teaspoon of salt.
Transfer the garlic to a bowl and add one tablespoon each of English mustard and dark soy sauce, plus two tablespoons each of soft brown sugar and tomato ketchup. Grind in plenty of black pepper — roughly two teaspoons — and stir in two tablespoons of vinegar. A good wine vinegar or a brown rice vinegar work particularly well.
Combine everything until you form a dark, thick glaze with a bold, confident flavour.
If the mixture isn’t assertive enough for your taste, add a little more mustard and pepper until the flavour has some bite.
Brush the glaze liberally over a rack of pork ribs — don’t be shy, the sauce benefits from full coverage — then refrigerate the ribs for several hours so the glaze can penetrate the meat and develop flavour.
Roast the ribs in a hot oven until they are dark and crisp at the edges. Depending on the thickness of the ribs, this could take around eleven to twelve minutes or a little longer. In warm weather, cook them on a barbecue for a smoky finish.
Serve with a fresh salad, some bread, and encourage eating with your fingers for the full experience.
This recipe is adapted from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s book, The River Cottage Meat Book.