Red Fermented Bean Curd Pork Spareribs (南乳排骨, Naam4 Jyu5 Paai4 Gwat1)

 

This recipe was updated on 07 Sep 2015. Some instructions and ingredient quantities were changed.

 

Pork sparerib dishes are some of my favorites. This particular sparerib dish uses red fermented bean curd together with Chinese long beans and shiitake mushrooms. Fermented bean curd is another Chinese ingredient that could be considered an acquired taste. I like its flavor since I grew up eating dishes with it. Red fermented bean curd is red because of the addition of red rice, which gives a distinctive color and taste to the dish. If this is the first time you’ve ever used this ingredient, you might want to reduce the amount used in this dish.

 

Enjoy!

Ingredients

 

1 lb.	500 g.	Pork spareribs (排骨, paai4 gwat1) already cut into 1- (2.5 cm.) to 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Baking soda (蘇打粉, sou1 daa2 fan2)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 lb.	500 g.	Long beans (豆角, dau6 gok3), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
10	10	Dried Shiitake mushrooms (冬菇, dung1 gu1), rehydrated and cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
1	1	Small carrot (紅蘿蔔, hung4 lo4 baak6), cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) matchsticks
3 stalks	3 stalks	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces on the diagonal
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

 

½+ cup	125+ ml.	Shiitake mushroom rehydration liquid, chicken stock (雞湯, gai1 tong1), or water
4-6 cubes	4-6 cubes	Chan Moon Kee brand Fermented Red Bean Curd (南乳, naam4 jyu5) or equivalent, crushed
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
½ Tbs.	7.5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Water

 

Equipment

 

		Garlic press
6 qt.	5.7 L.	Dutch oven

 

Chan Moon Kee Brand
Fermented Red Bean Curd
(南乳, naam4 jyu5)

Preparation Instructions

1. The pork spareribs can be purchased already cut into 1- (2.5 cm.) to 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces or have your butcher cut the spareribs into pieces for you. Wet with water and add the baking soda to the pork, allow to tenderize for 15 minutes, and then wash the baking soda from the meat. The baking soda can be omitted but results in the tender meat experienced in restaurant dishes.
2. Marinate the pork in a covered container for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. If marinating the pork overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
3. Pour boiling water over the dried Shiitake mushrooms in a heat proof bowl and rehydrate the mushrooms for at least one hour. Remove the Shiitake mushrooms from the rehydration liquid, remove the stems, and cut them into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces. Reserve the rehydration liquid for later use in the cooking process.
4. Wash and cut the long beans into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
5. Wash and cut the carrots into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) matchsticks.
6. Crush the ginger and garlic with a garlic press into a small bowl.
7. Wash and cut the green onions into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces on the diagonal.
8. The amount of red fermented bean curd to use in this dish depends upon personal taste. Since I happen to like the flavor, I add a good amount to this dish, but feel free to reduce or increase the amount. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: crush the Chan Moon Kee brand Fermented Red Bean Curd cubes, or equivalent, and then add the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, prepare the corn starch slurry by mixing the corn starch and water together.

Cooking Instructions

1. Remove as much of the marinade from the spareribs as possible to facilitate browning. Add oil and heat a Dutch oven or other covered pot over medium to medium-high heat. When the oil begins to shimmer, add the pork sparerib pieces to the Dutch oven in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside. You may have to cook the spareribs in batches, so be sure to reheat the Dutch oven before adding more oil. Transfer the spareribs to a bowl.
2. Reheat the Dutch oven over medium to medium to medium-high heat before adding oil. Add the Shiitake mushrooms and carrots, and brown them in the Dutch oven. Add the bowl with the ginger and garlic mixture, and then some oil to the mixture. Quickly stir fry all the ingredients until the ginger and garlic mixture becomes fragrant. Add the bowl with the browned pork spareribs into the Dutch oven and mix the ingredients together.
3. Add the sparerib marinade, sauce ingredients, and then the mushroom rehydration liquid, chicken stock, or water to the Dutch oven. Adjust the amount of liquid so that the contents of the Dutch oven are just covered. Mix the ingredients together and scrape any browned bits from the sides of the Dutch oven into the liquid. Cover the Dutch oven, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30-45 minutes.
4. Add the long beans, green onions, and corn starch slurry to the Dutch oven. Mix all the ingredients together, bring to a boil over high heat to thicken the sauce, and then lower the heat to simmer for another 5 minutes or until the long beans are just cooked through and still crunchy. Turn off the heat and transfer the contents to a serving bowl and serve with steamed rice.