Sweet and sour pork is a famous Cantonese dish that has made its way into mainstream America. This tomato braised spare ribs recipe is the lighter, more homey cousin to that dish. Cantonese home cooking is different from restaurant-style food. There is less deep frying and much more braising and steaming. My family only made sweet and sour pork for special occasions, but this tomato braised spare rib recipe was a staple for dinner.
This dish reminds me of my maternal grandpa, whom I called “gong gong.” He was a quiet and reserved man with high intellect and empathy. He was also the cook of the house. I remember that my grandpa would cook most of our family’s meals until he became much older, when aunties and my mom would take over. His garlic tomato spare ribs were one of my favorites. I don’t know exactly how he prepared the dish, but whenever I make this garlic tomato spare rib recipe, I am always reminded of him and the flavor of his own dish. When he had a glass of wine or two he would let loose and have this infectious laughter and silly personality.
Tomato Braised Spare Ribs
Ingredients
- 2.5 lbs pork spare ribs cut into 2 inch pieces
- 1 gallon water
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp neutral oil
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 inch piece ginger sliced
- 1/4 cup xiaoxing wine
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 cup dark soy sauce
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tbsp oyster sauce
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 5 tomatoes cut into wedges
Instructions
- Soak pork spare ribs in water for at least an hour to drain out blood and impurities from the meat. Then remove spare ribs from the water, pat dry, then season pork spareribs with salt.
- Then heat a large skillet on high heat. Put in 1 tbsp oil. When oil is shimmery and hot, add in spare ribs in batches to brown. Do not overcrowd pan because that will prevent browning. Allow all sides to brown (3 minutes each side), then remove from the pan. Repeat until all the spare ribs are browned. Then remove from the pan.
- Put in another 1 tbsp oil in the pan and saute ginger and garlic until aromatic, about 3 minutes. Do not let the garlic burn. Then add in pork spare ribs and xiaoxing wine to deglaze the pan.
- Then add in tomato paste, tomato ketchup, sugar, dark soy sauce, low sodium soy sauce, oyster sauce, and water. Mix well with the pork spare ribs. Place a lid on top of the skillet and simmer the pork spare ribs for 40-45 minutes, or until the meat is softened.
- Then add in tomato wedges, place the lid back on the skillet and turn heat to high. When the sauce is boiling again, turn heat to medium and simmer with lid on for another 15 minutes until tomatoes are softened. Take the lid off for the last 5 minutes of cooking to allow sauce to thicken.
- Taste for seasoning and add salt, sugar, or water to taste. Serve with hot steamed white rice.
