Please Get More Sauce on the Spare Ribs Now!
![Chinese braised spare ribs](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Chinese_braised_spare_ribs.jpg)
I found a recipe for spare ribs that not only resulted in flavorful and soft meat, but a nicely sweetened sauce. If only the sauce consistently stuck to the ribs!
Below are some links to more details, including photos:
My Story
When I made sweet and sour spare ribs from a recipe for the first time, I enjoyed the sauce, but wanted to find another recipe that provided steps on marinating the ribs before cooking them. As a result, I went online.
Inspiring Recipe
The recipe that appeared to accomplish my goal was Chinese Braised Spare Ribs from Kwokspots, a food blog.
First Try
After saving the recipe for over a year, I finally decided to try it when spare ribs were on sale.
Ingredients to Use
With 3.24 pounds of ribs, I had to increase the remaining ingredients listed on the recipe. In regards to the sesame seeds, I decided to forgo them, since I didn’t want to buy something that I hardly used.
Here are the amounts that I included for the remaining ingredients:
- 5 1/2 tablespoons + 1 1/8 teaspoons of brown sugar
- 2 1/2 tablespoons + 1 1/3 teaspoons of water (to melt the sugar)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons + 1 1/3 teaspoons of soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon + 1 1/3 teaspoons + 1/8 teaspoon of dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons + 2/3 teaspoon of Shaoxing (Shaohsing) rice wine
- 2 tablespoons + 2/3 teaspoon of rice vinegar
- 5 ounces + 1 1/2 tablespoons + 3/4 teaspoon of water
- 3 scallions
- 3 slices of ginger
- 6 cloves of crushed garlic
- 2 scallions* (for the garnish)
*Not only did I use the green parts, I also added the white parts to avoid waste.
![Brown sugar, soy sauce, Shaoxing (Shaohsing) rice wine, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, scallion, spare ribs, garlic, and ginger](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Chinese_braised_spare_ribs_ingredients.jpg)
Steps to Prepare
Aside from the modifications already mentioned above and the omission of the first step, I followed the remaining six steps in the instructions as written. For Step 1, since the ribs were individually pre-cut, I left them as they were. Also, in Step 6, I followed the recommendation of waiting 10 minutes for the sauce to thicken.
![Sauce, scallion, ginger, and garlic in a measuring cup](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sauce_scallions_ginger_garlic.jpg)
![Scallion for garnish in a shot glass](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Scallion_garnish.jpg)
![Boiling ribs in a saucepan](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Boiling_ribs.jpg)
![Melting sugar in a wok](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Melting_sugar.jpg)
![Ribs coated with sugar in a wok](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ribs_with_sugar.jpg)
![Ingredients stirred together in a wok before simmering](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Ingredients_stirred.jpg)
Time to Eat
Here’s a plate of ribs ready to be served!
![Chinese braised spare ribs on a white plate](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Plate_of_Chinese_braised_spare_ribs.jpg)
Recipe Rating
Below were the results of the recipe after the first try:
Number of Ingredients | Effort (Low🤏, Medium🤏🤏, High🤏🤏🤏) | Cost per Serving (<$2💰, $2-5💰💰, >$5💰💰💰) | Taste (Not for me🤔, Trying Again🙂, Eating Regularly😋) |
---|---|---|---|
1️⃣0️⃣* | 🤏 | 💰💰** | 🙂 |
The spare ribs were lightly sweetened with no trace of sourness. In addition, the meat was tender.
Second Try
For the second attempt, I wanted to repeat the outcome that I had during the first try.
Ingredients to Use
For the second round, I had a slightly heavier tray of spare ribs, weighing 3.58 pounds, so I used the following for the rest of the ingredients:
- 6 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons + 3/4 teaspoon + 1/8 teaspoon of water (to melt the sugar)
- 3 tablespoons + 3/4 teaspoon + 1/8 teaspoon of soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons + 1/3 teaspoon of dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons + 1 1/3 teaspoons of Shaoxing (Shaohsing) rice wine
- 2 tablespoons + 1 1/3 teaspoons of rice vinegar
- 6 ounces + 1/2 tablespoon + 1 1/3 teaspoons + 1/8 teaspoon of water
- 4 scallions
- 4 slices of ginger
- 7 cloves of crushed garlic
- 2 scallions (for the garnish)
Steps to Prepare
For the process, I kept it the same as the first round.
Time to Eat
I couldn’t wait to sink my teeth into the ribs!
![Chinese braised spare ribs on a white plate (Try 2)](https://undumbing.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Plate_of_Chinese_braised_spare_ribs2.jpg)
Recipe Rating
Below are the results of the recipe from the second attempt:
Number of Ingredients | Effort (Low🤏, Medium🤏🤏, High🤏🤏🤏) | Cost per Serving (<$2💰, $2-5💰💰, >$5💰💰💰) | Taste (Not for me🤔, Trying Again🙂, Eating Regularly😋) |
---|---|---|---|
1️⃣0️⃣* | 🤏 | 💰💰** | 🙂 |
Although the tender ribs still tasted good, the sauce was not as sticky as before, so less flavor stayed on the meat.
I would like to braise some spare ribs again, but will try to thicken the sauce by doing the following:
Continuous Improvement
- Remove the ribs in Step 6.
- Add corn starch to the sauce using the method highlighted in the article, 13 Ways How to Thicken BBQ Sauce, from website, BBQ Hero.
- Return the ribs to the wok and coat them in the thickened sauce.
Because the sauce didn’t come out as expected during the second try, I learned the following that I would like to share with my younger self:
Lesson for Dumber Self
- Piece together the information that you have, so you can figure out what questions to ask next.
What will you do now?
Next Step for You
- Try the recipe, Chinese Braised Spare Ribs, from Kwokspots, a food blog?
- Share your favorite sweet braised spare rib recipe?
- Read another post on this site? (Go to the menu at the top of the page.)