Slow Braised Chinese-Style Pork Ribs

Chinese-Style Pork Ribs Slowly Braised

When we were in the Philippines on our lockdown I cooked a fair bit. And one recipe I completely messed up. Beef short ribs.

I had tried to low and slow them in our little oven and then to batter and fry them off to be all like the AMAZING deep-fried beef ribs we get from Gerarda’s Restaurant. They came out looking quite amazing. But you could have tiled your roof with the meat, and it would still be tough in thirty years.

What did I do wrong? How to rectify this?

Job done, and a major lesson learnt. Brining. I trialled this with pork ribs as you will see, and next time will. be going for the full-on Beef Short-Ribs – watch this space!!!

So for today, it was Slow Braised Chinese-Style Pork Ribs. It was a process test run for me though. Ignore the meat type. This became part of a dinner and ChillaxBBQ Stay@Home Recipes #26. But just wait for the Beef Short-Ribs.

Daddy-Pedia time; Brining is treating food with salt which will preserve and season whilst enhancing the tenderness.

This is what I did NOT do with the Beef Short-Ribs in the Philippines. IDIOT!!! You can also enhance the flavour with the addition of herbs, spices, sugar etc. Brining is sort of similar to curing, which usually involves drying the food, and is done over a much longer time period.

I don’t have that time with these mouths to feed at home. So this is a great and quite quick brining methodology.

Brining;

• SCANPAN on the gas and fill with water;
• In with the ribs;
• Add in;
  • 250g of salt – hence it is called brining – you could so easily float in this stuff;
  • 5 smashed garlic cloves;
  • 4 Star Anise;
• Bring this to a boil and let it keep going until the salt has all dissolved;
• When that is done take it off the heat and set it aside and let the brine cool – with the ribs still inside;
• Once cool pour everything into a baking tray like the one below, cover and put in the fridge for another hour;
• That is your brining – next up = low and slow.

The approach above can be used for meat, fish, poultry and even vegetables. Now there’s a thought for some more recipes to follow. It’s a bit of a pain but if this fixes my tough rib issue, the pain is worth it.

If you want to see “was worth it” you could skim down now and click the link to watch the little video of me pulling my pork.

Low and Slow;

• I used my French cast iron pot for this next engagement with my ribs;
• Take the ribs from the brine and rinse in cold fresh water and then pat dry with some kitchen towel;
• Pop them in the pot;
• Add;
  • 2Litres of chicken stock;
  • 4 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar;
  • 300 ml Soya Sauce;
  • 6 dried chillies;
  • 5 Star Anise;
  • 2 Cinnamon Sticks;
• Bring to a boil on the hob, and then turn down the heat to a simmer;
• Pop the lid on and leave this for 3 hours – this is your low and slow folks;
• When finished take out and drain the ribs – save the liquor for an intense sauce and/or soup stock.

As I said for me this was a process dry-run. You could now take the ribs and BBQ them, as we did, to get a char. You could egg-wash and seasoned flour/corn-starch them to then shallow fry to give a superb crunch (my next recipe). Or, or, or…

CLICK HERE for some #videofoodheaven as I pull some of my pork!!!

ChillaxBBQ Stay@Home Recipes #26 was a great success for me. I proved to myself that brining is a great way to go, like our reverse-searing technique. And the outcomes are just quality. I have so many new ideas now for future recipes with different cuts of meat, fish and poultry. I can’t wait to try them and share the outcomes with you. But for today I did Slow Braised Chinese Style Pork Ribs. It is a belter. Hawker-style. I hope my mate #DougPeris tries this as this is right up his food street, and I know he is currently bored. It’s amazing folks, have a go and – ENJOY!!!