Sweet and Sour Chinese Pork Ribs

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Sweet and sour Chinese pork ribs, an appetizer in Chinese or Taiwanese restaurants, are always a fan favorite! Not only are the ribs pull apart tender, the tangy and sweet flavor is very addicting. The sauce coating the ribs is sticky and very fragrant from the Chinese black vinegar.

Golden roasted Chinese spare ribs with green onions and sesame seeds on top.

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Why You Will Love This Chinese Pork Ribs Recipe
Ingredients for Sweet and Sour Ribs
How to Make Chinese Spare Ribs
Expert Tips
Recipe FAQs
More Delicious Chinese Appetizers
Sweet and Sour Chinese Spare Ribs

This sweet and sour Chinese spare ribs recipe was inspired by Din Tai Fung’s sweet and sour pork ribs. My mom and grandma are huge fans of the Din Tai Fung version so I had to make them mine at home.

The only difference is that Chinese pork ribs are baked instead of fried like theirs. Frying them makes them a bit more juicy and more fatty but when eating at home I want to be healthier. But feel free to fry them instead of roasting them if you want! 😀

If you love the flavor combination of sweet and sour you might also enjoy this Hot and Sour Soup.

Why You Will Love This Chinese Pork Ribs Recipe

Popular Chinese Appetizer: These Chinese ribs are always a favorite whether you’re serving them up as a meal or a snack.
Amazing Flavor Combination: Juicy, tender pork is coated in a sticky sauce that’s both sweet and sour.
Versatile Dish: These Asian spare ribs work to serve in a variety of different ways. Enjoy them for dinner along with a few side dishes or serve them up to friends and family while you’re watching your favorite sports or other fun events.

Ingredients for Sweet and Sour Ribs

Pork spareribs with salt, oil, sugar, shaoxing cooking wine, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, water, ginger, garlic, bay leaves and green onions on the table with text labels.

Here’s a look at the simple ingredients needed to make this Chinese spare ribs recipe.

Pork ribs: Choose bone-in ribs that are cut smaller ranging from 2-4 inches pieces. They are often called “Bone-In Pork Rib Tips”. If you are having difficulties ask the butcher in the store.
Oil: You can use any neutral flavored vegetable oil you prefer for cooking.
Rock sugar: This type of sugar is commonly used in Chinese cooking and highly recommended as it gives the sauce the deep red color that’s classic for Chinese spare ribs. You can buy this as most Asian markets. If you don’t have rock sugar, substitute with white sugar.
Black vinegar: Specifically you want to use Zhenjiang black vinegar. It’s a dark black rice vinegar that’s been aged giving it a flavor that’s malty and a bit smoky. Unfortunately there are no substitutes for this ingredient when making Chinese pork ribs.
Salt: Essential for seasoning the Chinese-style ribs as they cook.
Soy sauce: Added for color as well as its salty and savory flavors.
Shaoxing cooking wine: With its slightly sweet and nutty flavor, it’s purpose here in the recipe is to give the sauce depth and complexity while also removing more of the gaminess of the pork.
Ginger and green onions: Add pungent flavor the Asian pork ribs sauce.

How to Make Chinese Spare Ribs

Prepping the Ribs

Washing ribs in water and pat dry with a paper towel.

Step 1. Wash the ribs with water and soak them for at least 15 minutes.

Step 2. Drain off the water and pat them until they are very dry with a paper towel.

Pouring oil and salt on the ribs and placing in the air fryer.

Step 3. Add the salt and oil on the spare ribs and mix together.

Step 4. Place the ribs on the baking rack (or Air Fryer). Bake the ribs at 400 degrees for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

PRO TIP: Make sure the ribs are spread out on the tray and not overcrowded so the ribs cook evenly on the top and sides as they cook.

Sauteing rock sugar in pot until it turns a caramel color.

Step 5. Add the rock sugar to cold oil in a pot on low-medium heat.

Step 6. Stir until the sugar has melted and caramelized. You want the color to look brown similar to soy sauce.

PRO TIP: The step of caramelizing the sugar is crucial and takes a lot of patience but is worth it! Cook slowly until the sugar melts and turns golden like a soy sauce color.

Stir in cooked spare ribs in the caramel sauce until well coated.

Step 7. Add the roasted pork ribs and turn the pieces around to coat the ribs in sugar.

Step 8. After coating the ribs in the caramelized sugar, get ready to add your sauces!

Adding vinegar in a pot of spareribs with green onions, garlic and ginger.

Step 9. Add the water, black vinegar, soy sauce, shaoxing cooking wine, sliced ginger, garlic, bay leaves, and green onions.

Step 10. Turn the heat up to medium and bring the sauce to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes.

Pot covered with a lid and adding vinegar sauce on the spareribs.

Step 11. After cooking for 5 minutes on medium heat, turn the heat down to low and cook for 30 minutes to tenderize the spare ribs. Cover the pot with a lid.

Step 12. After 30 minutes of cooking on low heat, remove the lid. Then, take out the bay leaves, ginger and green onions. Cook on high for 5-10 minutes until the sauce has thickened. When it’s at the consistency you prefer, add a ¼ cup of black vinegar and give it a few stirs.

Expert Tips

Avoid Substitutions. If you don’t use the rock sugar and the Zhenjiang black vinegar, the flavor and cooking methods will vary. I highly recommend the Zhenjiang black vinegar as it is less sour and it gives the ribs a darker color as well. If you really can’t use rock sugar, you can use white sugar but no subs for the vinegar ◡̈
Be Patient. The sweet and sour sauce for this recipe requires patience when it comes to melting the sugar and thickening the sauce at the end. The rock sugar provides a red tint to the ribs due to the caramelization of the sugars. In addition, the sugar and collagen from the pork ribs will help thicken the sauce when the heat is on high so there’s no need for cornstarch in this recipe.
Wash and Pat Dry the Ribs. Washing the ribs removes some of the strong meat flavors of the pork. After they’re washed make sure to dry them so they cook up better.
Scraping the Bones. After cooking the spareribs in the oven, scrape off the black bits off the bone, this is actually dried blood. This method helps make the ribs less oily while removing the blood and impurities from the bones.
Cooking in the Air Fryer: If you decide to use your air fryer instead of the oven, reduce the cooking time to 15 minutes.

Recipe FAQs

Why do you wash the pork ribs?

In Chinese cooking, we prefer to have a cleaner taste when its comes to pork. Washing the pork gets rid of any gaminess and smell. Soaking the ribs in water for 15-30 minutes really helps remove some bone shards and blood from the bones. After soaking, you will see blood coming from the bones. For this sweet and sour pork ribs recipe, you will need to make the ribs extra dry with a paper towel. If they are wet, they will not roast as well in the oven.

My sauce isn’t thickening. How can I fix it?

After cooking on high for 10 minutes if you don’t see the sauce thickening to your likeness, take the ribs out. Continue cooking the sauce down to thicken it for about 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. This additional step will evaporate the water from the sauce the sugars and allow the collagen of the pork to thicken it up.

What do you serve with Chinese sweet and sour ribs?

You can eat along with rice or noodles and some green vegetables for a meal or enjoy them with other appetizers, like these green onion pancakes, Chinese Congee with Pork and Century Egg. Some favorite side dishes include my golden fried rice or cold sesame noodles. If you prefer some vegetables this stir fried cabbage or Chinese green beans go great.