Recipe: Crunchy Ribs, BBQ Pork Ribs, and Fried Spareribs - Well Martin, you are absolutely right! I enjoy Filipinos &

their culture & I think that women had progressed greatly in their environment, achieving great success & opportunities in their jobs & in their social & family life. Latin influenced cultures are mostly like that. I still had not researched the Adobo Filipino vis-a vis Adobo de Puerto Rico, but that is my next project.

Yesterday night I had the opportunity to look at several of my Chinese cookbooks. It is not too extensive (only about 10 books) but I think the representation is good. The thruth is that now I am more confused as before. There is quite a variety of methods for cooking ribs. I am going to copy some of those recipies (classic recipes), but I think that restaurant cooking is different. Remenber they have to consider lack of sufficient time, economy of products & sometimes, even lack of the proper method or recipe.

I still think that the only way in which you are going to grill the perfect Chinese ribs is by trial & error. Here are the recipes:

CRUNCHY RIBS
Source: "the Key to Chinese Cooking" by Irene Kuo, 1977, Pp. 348, 349.
(...Simmered, coated with a thick batter, & then deep fried, these ribs are wonderfully crunchy & subtly aromatic by the sprinkling of roasted salt-pepper.")

1 lb meaty spare ribs
2 quarter sized slices peeled ginger
1 large whole scallionBATTER:
1/4 tsp salt
2 heaping tbs breadcrumbs
3/4 tsp baking powder
2 tb flour
2 tb cornstarch
5 tb water

2 cups oil
Roasted Salt Pepper

Separate the ribs, then chop each, meat side down, into 3 pieces. Place them in a small saucepan with the ginger & scallion, pour boiling water to come 1 inch above the ribs. Bring it to a boil over high heat, adjust heat to maintain a gentle, steady simmer, cover, & simer for about 30 minutes, until the meat is tender but a bit on the firm side. Drain the ribs, reserving the liquid for stock.

Make the batter by combining all the dry ingredients in a large bowl & then adding the water slowly. Mix until smooth. Add the ribs, stir to coat them well, then give the batter a few moments to thicken & adhere to the meat. Heat a WOK or heavy skillet over high heat until hot; add the oil 7 heat until it foams a drop of batter instantly, about 375 degrees.

Dip a small spoon in the oil to grease it, then spoon up the coated ribs, without too much excess batter, & slip them in quick succession into the hot oil. Flip them over quickly & fry until both sides are dark brown & crunchy. It takes only about 1 minute since the batter browns easily. Scoop them out with a skimmer & drain on paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with the salt-pepper.

BBQ Pork Ribs
Source: The All American Chinese Cookbook by Lucy Chee McHale, P. 52
Servings: 4

3 lbs pork ribs

Sauce:
3 tb ketchup
2 tb sherry wine
3 tb soy sauce
1 tb sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt

Cut strips of ribs into individual ribs. Mix sauce ingredients in a bowl. Put ribs in large bowl & add sauce over them. Rub the sauce over the ribs. Marinate at least 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 325. Put the ribs in a cookie sheet. Bake for 45 minutes. Turn ribs over. Continue baking 45 minutes longer. Turn ribs again. Increase oven temperature to 350. Bake 15 minutes longer. Transfer to serving plate rib by rib so that the grease will remain in the pan. Serve hot or warm.

Fried Spareribs
"An Encyclopedia of Chinese Food & Cooking" by Chang & Kutscher, 1983

A. peanut oil for deep frying
B. 1 1/2 lbs spareribs
C. 1 tb chopped scallion
D. 2 ginger slices chopped
E. 1 tb light soy sauce
F. 1/4 tsp salt
G. 1 tsp sherry wine
H. 1 egg white
I. 2 1/2 tb cornstarch

Cut B into bite- sized pieces. Cook 10 minutes in boiling water, drain & save stock for other uses. Mix C, D, E, F, G. Let B stand in the mixture for 15 minutes, turning several times so that the meat is well mixed & soaks up most of the sauce. Beat H & I and make a smooth paste. Pour over B & mix well. Heat A to 325. Deep fry marinated B for 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Serve with oyster sauce, or sweet & sour sauce.