Marianne Martinez
Chinese spare ribs are a popular dish, often enjoyed as takeout, and can be cooked in a variety of ways, including grilling, baking, and pan-frying. While the most common method appears to be grilling, pan-frying is a viable option, with several recipes available online. This article will explore the different methods of cooking Chinese spare ribs, focusing on pan-frying, and provide an overview of the ingredients and techniques required to create this dish.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Cooking Method | Pan-frying |
| Cuisine | Chinese |
| Dish | Spare Ribs |
| Marinade | Hoisin Sauce, Soy Sauce, Honey, Brown Sugar, Garlic, Ginger, Five-Spice Powder, Red Food Colouring |
| Meat | Pork |
| Cut | St. Louis-style ribs, Boneless Spare Ribs, Boneless Pork Loin |
| Cooking Time | Overnight marination, 10 minutes of boiling, 10 minutes of soaking, 10 minutes of resting, 15 minutes of pan-frying |
| Serving Suggestions | Steamed Rice, Fried Rice, Noodles, Stir-fried Vegetables, Salads |
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What You'll Learn
Marinade ingredients and preparation
Marinating your Chinese spare ribs is a crucial step in achieving that authentic takeout flavour. The longer you can leave your ribs to soak up all that flavour, the better—but even a short marinade will make a difference. Ideally, you should leave your ribs to marinate overnight, but if you're short on time, four hours or so will do.
For a classic Chinese flavour profile, you'll want to use a combination of sweet and savoury ingredients. A good base for your marinade is hoisin sauce, a sweet-savoury barbecue sauce made with fermented soybeans. To this, you can add soy sauce for savoury depth, brown sugar and honey for sweetness, and aromatic spices including granulated garlic, fresh ginger, and five-spice powder. If you want to achieve the signature red-tinged meat of Cantonese-style barbecue, you can also add a small amount of red food colouring.
To prepare your marinade, simply whisk all of your ingredients together in a large bowl. Then, place your ribs in a large zip-top bag and pour in the marinade, tossing to coat the ribs evenly. Open and reseal the bag, removing as much air as possible before placing it in the refrigerator to marinate.
If you're looking for a simpler marinade, you can try a combination of light soy sauce, cooking wine, rice vinegar, and dark soy sauce. Light soy sauce will add a salty umami flavour to your dish, while dark soy sauce will give your ribs a deep caramel colour and a slightly thicker consistency. Sugar can be added to balance the salty flavours and provide a touch of sweetness.
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Cooking methods
Chinese spare ribs can be cooked in a variety of ways, including grilling, baking, and pan-frying. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to pan-fry Chinese spare ribs:
Preparation:
Before cooking, it is important to prepare the spare ribs. You can use any cut of pork ribs, such as baby back ribs, spareribs, St. Louis ribs, or country ribs. St. Louis-style ribs are recommended by some as they are trimmed of cartilage and breastbone, allowing them to lie flatter and brown more evenly during cooking. Cut the ribs into bite-size pieces or individual ribs.
Parboiling:
Parboiling the ribs helps remove any impurities and tiny bone fragments. Place the ribs in a pot with enough cold water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil and continue boiling until scum floats to the top, which should take around 12 minutes. Drain the ribs in a colander and rinse them thoroughly.
Marinade:
While the ribs are parboiling, prepare the marinade. A typical Chinese spare rib marinade includes hoisin sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, honey, garlic, ginger, and five-spice powder. You can also add red food colouring to achieve the signature red-tinged meat of Cantonese-style barbecue. Mix the marinade ingredients in a non-reactive bowl or a zip-top bag. Once the ribs are parboiled and rinsed, add them to the marinade and coat them evenly. Refrigerate the marinated ribs for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight, to allow the flavours to penetrate the meat.
Pan-Frying:
After marinating, remove the ribs from the refrigerator and bring them to room temperature. Heat a tablespoon of cooking oil in a pan until hot. Place the ribs in the pan and fry over a slow to medium fire until golden brown and crispy on both sides. You can also add other ingredients to the pan, such as garlic, ginger, and chilli pepper, for additional flavour and aroma.
Once the ribs are cooked to your desired level of doneness, transfer them to a plate and serve immediately. Chinese spare ribs go well with sides such as steamed rice, fried rice, noodles, and stir-fried vegetables.
You can also try different variations of the recipe, such as adding cumin powder or using a different combination of spices and seasonings.
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Meat types and cuts
Chinese-style spare ribs are usually made with pork ribs. Pork spare ribs are taken from the belly side of the pig's rib cage, specifically the lower portion of the ribcage, where it meets the sternum, or breastbone. They are distinguished by having longer bones and less meat than baby back ribs, but some consider them to have a richer flavour. Spare ribs are also flatter than back ribs and contain more bone than meat, with a higher fat content. This fat can make the ribs more tender than baby back ribs.
There are four common cuts of pork ribs: baby back ribs, spare ribs, St. Louis ribs, and country ribs. These differ depending on where they originate on the pig. St. Louis-style spare ribs are a special cut of spare ribs, formally recognised by the USDA. They are cut in a particular way, with the sternum bone, cartilage and rib tips removed, creating a well-formed, rectangular-shaped rack.
When preparing spare ribs, it is common to cut them into bite-size pieces or sections of around 7-10 centimetres (3-4 inches) in length. This is a typical preparation method in Chinese cuisine, where the ribs are often fried, steamed, or braised.
Beef ribs are also available and are cut from the same area of the cow as pork spare ribs. They are generally quite meaty and contain a lot of connective tissue.
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Starch coating
To start the starch coating process, you'll need to prepare the ribs by cutting them into bite-sized pieces. Parboiling is then recommended to ensure the ribs are clean and free of any unwanted bone fragments. To do this, add the ribs to a pot of water and bring it to a boil until scum rises to the top. Drain and rinse the ribs thoroughly.
Next comes the marinade, which is key to infusing the ribs with flavor. A typical Chinese marinade includes ingredients like soy sauce, cooking wine, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, sugar, and spices like five-spice powder or cumin. Mix your desired marinade ingredients and coat the ribs evenly. Let the ribs sit in this marinade for at least a few hours, but preferably overnight in the refrigerator, to allow the flavors to truly penetrate the meat.
Finally, before pan-frying, it's time to apply the starch coating. You can use sweet potato starch, cornstarch, or all-purpose flour for this step. Simply coat the marinated ribs with your chosen starch just before placing them in the pan. This coating will give the ribs a delightful crumbly texture.
Heat some oil in a pan until it's nice and hot. Then, fry the ribs over a slow to medium fire until they're golden brown and crispy on both sides. Move the ribs to one side of the pan and fry your choice of aromatics, such as garlic, ginger, and chili pepper. Place the ribs back in the center of the pan, sprinkle with salt and any desired spices, and you're ready to serve!
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Serving suggestions
Chinese-style spare ribs can be served with a variety of side dishes. Here are some serving suggestions:
Rice
Steamed rice, fried rice, or egg fried rice are all great options to accompany the ribs. Fried rice can be made with ingredients such as cauliflower, and garnished with sliced green onions for a pop of colour and freshness.
Noodles
Noodles are another popular choice, including cold peanut-sesame noodles.
Vegetables
Stir-fried, roasted, or steamed vegetables are a healthy option to serve alongside Chinese spare ribs. Some specific suggestions include Chinese broccoli (Gai Lan) with oyster sauce, healthy spicy steamed baby bok choy, or a simple side of broccoli.
Salads
Cold salads like a quick pickled Asian slaw or crispy Asian Brussels sprouts salad can provide a refreshing contrast to the hearty ribs.
Other Sides
For an authentic Cantonese-style barbecue experience, serve the ribs with some chilli paste on the side, such as Sambal Oelek.
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Frequently asked questions
Chinese spare ribs can be cooked in a variety of ways, including grilling, baking, and pan-frying.
You will need spare ribs, scallions, ginger, cooking wine, salt, sugar, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, starch, and cooking oil.
To make Chinese spare ribs crispy, it is recommended to soak the ribs in water until cooled after boiling or grilling. When pan-frying, use sweet potato starch for a crumbly texture.
