Three-Ingredient Honey-Hoisin

Pork Ribs

January-February: Asian Lunar New Year

Kung hee fat choy! Happy New Year—again! We made a simple but flavorful Chinese dish called hoy tsin pai gwat to be included in our family’s celebratory dinner. We had to prepare other foods, like vegetables and noodles, that were more time consuming. So baking this three-ingredient pork ribs recipe was a tasty time saver.

Instead of chicken, pork is the preferred meat for the new year, as pigs hoof forward and chickens scratch backward—an auspicious representation for the upcoming 12 months ahead. We got our pork spareribs on sale and just brushed hoisin sauce on it and finished it off with a generous basting of honey. That is all there is to it!

The sweet and sticky sauce can be interpreted that the new year can bring sweetness and ensure that luck sticks around. Try this easy entrée for a happy Asian Lunar New Year meal!

Recipe

(Adapted from Yum Yum Cha: Let’s Eat Dim Sum in Hawai’i by Muriel Miura with Lynette Lo Tom)

Ingredients

  • 1 rack of pork spareribs, defrosted if frozen
  • ½ jar of hoisin sauce
  • 1 cup honey

Directions

Line a baking pan with foil for easier cleanup. Put a rack on top to lay the ribs. Wash and pat dry the ribs. Trim the fat and tissues. Brush hoisin sauce on both sides of the ribs. Place in the refrigerate uncovered to marinate for 30 minutes to an hour. Brush the ribs with honey on one side. Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F for 30-45 minutes.

MRemove ribs from the oven and brush the other side with more honey. Put it back in the oven and bake for another 30 minutes or until cooked and tender. Remove from the oven. Brush with a little more honey on both sides. Let the meat sit for 5 minutes before cutting between the bones. Brush with honey-hoisin drippings. Serve hot on a platter. 

Notes

  • Xiexie 谢谢 (thanks) to Nan N. for giving us the Chinese cookbook for Christmas. We go out with her and our other BFFs for a holiday dim sum get-together and gift exchange.
  • Search our blog for other Chinese recipes for the lunar new year.