Wuxi ribs served on a decorative oval plate

Wuxi ribs

Name: Wuxi ribs
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Serves 4 to share alongside other dishes
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 650g pork spare ribs cut into 3-4cm lengths (you can also use baby back ribs), washed, rinsed and patted dry; a pinch of ground white pepper; 4 large garlic cloves finely minced; 2 tbsp yellow bean paste or red miso paste; 1 tbsp shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry; 1 tbsp dark soy sauce; groundnut oil for deep-frying; micro chives or chives to serve; 3 tbsp light soy sauce; 1 tbsp shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry; 2 tbsp chinkiang black rice vinegar; 2 tbsp soft brown sugar; 1 tbsp runny honey

Ching-He Huang

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Serves 4 to share alongside other dishes

Easy

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 20 mins

plus 20 mins marinating

A star rating of 5 out of 5.1 ratingRate

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Treat family and friends to a Chinese banquet with these wuxi ribs coated in a sweet and sour sauce. Serve with plain rice and steamed greens

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Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

650g pork spare ribs

cut into 3-4cm lengths (you can also use baby back ribs), washed, rinsed and patted dry
a pinch of ground white pepper
4 large garlic cloves

finely minced
2 tbsp yellow bean paste

or red miso paste
1 tbsp shaoxing rice wine

or dry sherry
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
groundnut oil

for deep-frying
micro chives

or chives to serve

For the sweet and sour sauce

3 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp shaoxing rice wine

or dry sherry
2 tbsp chinkiang black rice vinegar
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
1 tbsp runny honey

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Nutrition: Per serving

kcal501
fat32g
saturates10g
carbs20g
sugars17g
fibre1g
protein33g
salt3.6g

Method

step 1

Put the ribs in a large bowl, season with sea salt and the ground white pepper. Add the garlic, yellow bean paste, shaoxing rice wine and dark soy sauce to create a paste. Mix together well to combine, using your hands to work the marinade into the pork. Put it in the fridge, covered, for 20 mins to let the ribs marinate.
step 2

Heat a wok or heavy-based saucepan over high heat and fill just less than half-full with the groundnut oil. Heat to 180C or until a cube of bread dropped in turns golden brown in 30 secs. Drain the ribs of the marinade. Using a spider or slotted spoon, carefully lower the ribs and shallow fry for 7-8 mins or until browned. Gently turn them to ensure even cooking. Once cooked, remove them and drain on kitchen paper. Do this in batches until all the ribs are cooked.
step 3

In a small jug, combine all the ingredients for the sweet and sour sauce, mixing well with a fork or whisk and set aside.
step 4

Put the wok or a large frying pan over a high heat. Add the ribs and pour in the sauce, cooking on medium heat for 5-6 mins or until the sauce has reduced to a sticky consistency. Garnish with the micro chives and serve immediately, accompanied with some stir-fried greens and jasmine rice, if you like.

Recipe tip

You can also shallow-fry in a wok instead of deep-frying – it will take a bit longer but will use less oil.

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