Our International Dinner Club country this month was China in honor of Chinese New Year (Gong Hay Faat Choy! by the way). We prepared dim sum which was such a treat. I discovered this dim sum fave at Steamy Kitchen's website and my mouth was watering. Last summer I was a recipe tester for Steamy Kitchen's new cookbook...everything that woman makes is gold. She hadsn't let me down yet, so I was pretty sure this dish was going to be no exception.
Recipe by Jaden @ Steamy Kitchen
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Serves 4 as part of multi-course meal
1-1/2 lbs pork sparerib, cut into 1" ribs by the butcher (or sweet n' sour style pork spareribs)
2 tbsp black bean sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp cooking oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp sugar
Cut the ribs between each bone so that they are separated into individual ribs. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and add spareribs, tossing to coat. Let marinate for at least 1/2 an hour (I let mine marinate for 4 hours).
Using a large stove-top steamer (or a bamboo steamer basket), place the marinated ribs into the basket and set over boiling water. Steam on medium high heat for 18-20 minutes or until no longer pink. My steamer is small, so I steamed half of the ribs at a time so they could be arranged in the basket in a single layer. After the first batch finished I placed them in the oven at 200 degrees and steamed the second batch.
Click here for printable version of Chinese Steamed Spareribs in Black Bean Sauce.
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THE RESULTS?
WOW. The sauce on these ribs is incredible. I've never had a steamed rib before, and it's amazing how moist and tender they become. I have another 1 1/2 lbs of pork ribs in the freezer that I was going to try a different recipe with, but I'm really tempted just to make these again. So good. Jaden has done it again.