Cooking in Lockdown Series (5) : Black Bean Pork Ribs

Black bean pork ribs is a perfect warm meal for a cold day. I am not using pre-made black bean sauce from the supermarket, but fermented black beans. In my opinion, they taste better, with nice salty and unami flavour (an incredibly cheap too!) To use these little beans, rinse them under water and remove the initial strong saltiness and then mince them up.

I am going to braise my pork ribs with all seasonings in a slow cooker for 3-4 hours on high heat because I like meat off the bone (you could alternatively steam it for around 40-50 minutes or stir-fry it). Whatever way you use, do blanch the pork ribs to get rid of any impurities.

Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 clove of garlic

• 1 knob of ginger

• 2 tablespoons of fermented black beans

• 300g of pork ribs (cut into chunks)

• (Optional) 1 red chilli (for a spicy kick)

• (Optional) Spring Onion

Seasonings

• 2 teaspoons of light soy sauce

• 1 teaspoon of dark soy sauce

• A pinch of sugar (or rock sugar)

• A drizzle of sesame oil

• 1 teaspoon of cornstarch

• 250ml of hot water (adjust accordingly, the amount of water will decrease in the slow cooker)

Instructions

1. Prepare pork ribs. Chop pork ribs into chunks and rinse under water. Blanch pork ribs for a few minutes to remove impurities. Remove ribs from water and rinse thoroughly. Add ribs into slow cooker.

2. Prepare remaining ingredients. Rinse black beans and mince. Mince garlic and ginger. Add to slow cooker.

3. Add seasonings. Mix all seasonings and add to slow cooker.

4. Cook for 3-4 hours. Remove when meat is considered tender (for personal preference, not too tough, but meat easily comes off the bone).

5. Toss in diced red chilies and spring onion (optional) and serve with a hot bowl of rice (don't forget to serve yourself a generous amount of sauce!).

Here you have it! Tender, juicy. pork ribs packed with flavour (the power of slow cooker, highly recommend to get one!)

You might have noticed a cucumber side dish on the photo. I am a big fan of stir-fry cucumbers (I know many aren't), but the recipe is easy! All you need is diced/sliced cucumber + garlic + salt + dried anchovies (my personal favourite, also known as 'ikan bilis'). Start with heating up a small pan with some oil, when the oil is hot enough, add dried anchovies and fry until golden. Then add garlic and cucumber. In a few minutes, another side dish!