Bite-size red braised pork ribs (Hong Shao Pai Gu) can be good food for parties because they can be finished in a larger batch. And more importantly, it is not so fatty as red braised pork belly and everyone can have 6 to 9 pieces. This red braised pork rib has a sweet, savory flavor with a naughty taste from spices.

The method of red braising

Red braising (also called red cooking "红烧")in Chinese cooking can be slightly different based on the ingredients and cuisine. This red braised pork rib is developed based on Chairman Mao's red braised pork belly, meaning that spices are added in addition to regular sugar and soy sauce. Basically, this method is super easy to go through simple steps of blanching the ingredients, frying the sugar, frying the seasonings, stewing, and thickening the sauce. Other vegetables like carrots, potatoes, and winter melon can be also added based on this version. There are lots of red braised dishes on my blog, also check the following.

1. Red braised pork belly
2. Chairman's Red Braised Pork Belly
3. Red Braised Pig Trotter
4. Red braised chicken wings

How to get the bright red color

Carefully read the ingredient list, you may find that there is no dark soy sauce added. Red braised dishes use dark soy sauce usually has a much darker color. The original lovely amber color of this red braised rib is coming from caramelized sugar other than dark soy sauce. We call this type of coloring sugar coloring (糖色). Sugar color can be made with either water or oil. Caramelized sugar not only brings color but also great unique flavors.

Prepare the ribs

One of the key steps of cooking pork ribs is to remove the impurities and odd taste. Soaking in clean water or blanching are the most commonly used methods. You can choose to soak the ribs for 30 minutes or simply blanch them before cooking to shorten preparation time.

Other Chinese Ribs Recipe

We have lots of delicious ribs recipes, check them out for inspiration.

1. Sweet and Sour Ribs
2. Chinese steamed ribs with fermented black beans
3. Peking ribs
4. Roasted Mala ribs -- a very easy roasted rib based on Sichuan flavors
5. Pan-fried cumin ribs
6. Chinese sticky rice with ribs

Instructions

Blanch the ribs
Add ribs in a pot or wok with clean water, and add a chunk of smashed ginger, cooking wine, and scallion. Bring to a boil and then cook for 5 minutes. Pick the ribs out. Or if you prefer to strain, remember to rinse under warm water to remove the attached impurities. Then drain completely.

Fry sugar and ribs- get everything aromatic
Add around 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok and then add sugar. Keep fire to the middle and stir the sugar continuously. The sugar melts at first, but a moment later turns yellow and bubbles. Don't overcook sugar at this time because we will need to continue frying ribs for a while.

Add ribs in to fry until the ribs get colored and slightly seared. Add star anise (for flavoring), chili pepper, ginger, and scallion, and fry until aromatic.

Simmer -make the ribs soft
Pour in hot water to cover the ribs. Cover the lid and simmer for 30 minutes. Or add another 10 minutes for a softer texture.

Thick the sauce- attach the flavors and color
Open the lid, and pick the scallion and ginger out. Keep fire in the middle to thicken the sauce. At this stage, keep stirring the ribs to get an evenly coated flavor. The ribs are ready when the sauce is almost attached. Serve hot!