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.
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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
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
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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
More Delicious Chinese Appetizers
- Chinese Scrambled Eggs with BBQ Pork – a healthy and delicious dish that combines the sweetness of the BBQ pork with soft and savory eggs.
- Spicy Lotus Roots – crunchy, spicy & sweet, a perfect appetizer for noodles or rice!
- Stir Fried Chinese Green Beans – easy and tasty Chinese green beans fried with ground pork.
Did you try this recipe? Leave a ⭐️ rating below and share it on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!
Sweet and Sour Chinese Spare Ribs
Ingredients
To roast ribs:
- 2 pounds pork ribs (bone-in)
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil to brush
- ½ tablespoon salt
Cooking
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- ½ cup sugar or rock sugar
- seared ribs
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup black vinegar cannot substitute with other vinegars
- ¼ cup regular soy sauce
- 3 tablespoon shaoxing cooking wine
- 4 slices ginger
- 3 green onions white parts only
- 3 bay leaves
- 3 garlic cloves
At end of cooking:
- ¼ cup black vinegar adjust on how sweet and sour you like it
- sesame seeds and green onions for garnish
Instructions
Roasting Pork Ribs
- Wash ribs with water and soak for at least 15 minutes, drain and pat until very dry. Place ribs on baking rack on top of a tray. Make sure they are evenly spaced out and not overcrowded.
- Add salt and oil on the ribs and mix together thoroughly. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Scrape off the black bits (blood) off the bones after baking. This method helps make the ribs less oily and removes the blood and impurities from the bones. Set aside ribs.
Cooking Chinese Ribs
- Start with adding sugar to cold oil in a pot on low-medium heat. Continue stirring until sugar has melted and caramelized (turned brown like soy sauce) on low-medium heat. This step 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.
- Add roasted pork ribs and coat the ribs in sugar.
- Then, add the following sauces: 1 cup water , ¼ cup black vinegar (can not substitute with other vinegars), ¼ cup regular soy sauce, 3 tablespoon shaoxing cooking wine, ginger, green onions (white parts only), garlic and bay leaves. Turn heat to medium and bring the sauce to a boil and boil for 5 minutes.
- Then, cover and turn heat to low for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, remove the lid and take out the green onions, and bay leaves. We don't eat those.
- Then, cook on high for 5-10 minutes until sauce has thickened. Once the sauce has thickened to your desired likeness, add ¼ cup of black vinegar. We add at the end of cooking because the flavor of the vinegar has changed while cooking. Give it a few stirs and you’re done! If the sauce has not thickened, look in 'If you sauce is not thick enough' section of the blog above.
- Garnish with sesame seeds and green onions and hope you enjoy!
Video
@cookwithdana I could eat 100 of these din tai fung inspired pork ribs 😍 #learnontiktok #tiktokrecipes #pork #dintaifung
♬ Ghibli-style nostalgic waltz(806744) – MaSssuguMusic
Notes
-
- 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.
T says
Looks amazing. Can we roast the ribs in the oven ahead of time like a day before?
Cook With Dana says
Hi! Yes you can do it advance. Be mindful that you will need to add additional cooking time because the ribs will be cold from the fridge ◡̈