These Honey Garlic Spare Ribs are juicy, savory, and bursting with honey garlic flavor! Spareribs are seared in a smoking hot wok before being simmered in a honey garlic sauce until the ribs are tender, sticky, and finger-licking good. Ready in under an hour!
Can't get enough of pork ribs? Try my Chinese Dry Fried Ribs next!
I first had Honey Garlic Spare Ribs at a Chinese American restaurant in Vancouver. They were so delicious! The pork ribs were juicy and tender but still had a nice bite. Personally, I'm not a fan of ribs that completely fall apart, so these were right up my alley.
And the sauce was out of this world. It was sweet, sticky, and bursting with flavor. The garlic flavor was strong, but the honey's sweetness balanced it. The sauce's consistency was perfect, and each piece of pork was generously coated. If you love sweet and sticky sauces, you'll love my Honey Butter Chicken Wings and Sweet And Sour Wings.
My recipe comes together in less than one hour and is done in a single pot! It's perfect for those days when you're a little tired, and the last thing you want is a sink full of dirty dishes.
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🥩 What ribs to use?
For this recipe, you'll want to use spare ribs, also known as side ribs, preferably chopped into 1-2 inch long pieces.
Spare ribs are obtained from the ends of baby back ribs and tend to have more meat and marbling than their baby counterparts. Spare ribs are preferred in Chinese cooking since they're generally considered more flavorful.
🍯 The best honey garlic sauce
My honey garlic sauce has only four ingredients, but it's better than any other I've tried! Here's why you'll love this sauce:
- Minimal Ingredients - In my recipe, I keep it to the essentials: honey, garlic, and only a couple of other seasonings, so that the main flavors come through.
- Bright and Acidic - Most people don't think of honey garlic sauce as being sour, but it actually requires a good amount of acid to pop. The sauce is bland and dull without it. In my recipe, I add two types of vinegar. More on this below.
- Sticky - The ultimate texture for saucy wings and ribs. We reduce the sauce for about 5 minutes after cooking to get the perfect consistency.
🧂 Ingredients
- Oil - Oil serves two purposes: it helps brown the meat in the wok and extracts fat-soluble flavors from the garlic.
- Spare Ribs (also known as side ribs) - Spare ribs are my first choice for this recipe, but you can use any rib you like. If it's frozen, make sure it's completely defrosted before using it.
- Honey and Garlic - I mean, it wouldn't be a honey garlic ribs without them. Use the best honey you can find; freshly minced garlic is a must.
- Rice Wine Vinegar - A good amount of vinegar is required for the sauce's flavor to come out. If needed, you can substitute it with white or apple cider vinegar.
- Chinkiang Vinegar (also known as Chinese black vinegar) - Has a fruity and smoky flavor that adds so much depth to the sauce. Too much, and it can be overpowering. I add a small amount at the end of cooking to coat the ribs with their fragrance.
- Soy Sauce - Just a little bit to add saltiness and savory depth.
- Water - We add water to our sauce because the ribs must simmer to become tender. Without water, the sauce will not have enough moisture to simmer properly.
🔪 Instructions
Step 1. Prepare ribs
Choose meaty ribs or ask a butcher to cut the meaty ribs into 1.5" to 2" long pieces. Alternatively, you could do it yourself if you have a Chinese cleaver. A regular chef's knife should not be used for this, as it's not strong enough to cut through bone and is likely to chip. Rinse the ribs under cold tap water and then pat dry with paper towels.
Step 2. Sear ribs
Preheat a wok over high heat until it lightly smokes, then add 2 tablespoons oil. Brown both sides of the ribs for a few minutes. The ribs will initially stick to the metal but should release after about 1 minute.
Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic, and cook for 45 seconds or until the garlic is fragrant.
Step 3. Simmer
Add honey, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and water. Stir everything together thoroughly. Bring it to a boil over high heat.
When the water begins to boil, cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Gently simmer for 20 minutes. Check halfway through the process to ensure the liquid isn't drying out. If so, add a little more water.
Step 4. Reduce the sauce
After 20 minutes, a good amount of sauce should still be left in the wok. Remove the ribs to a bowl. Increase the heat to high and boil the sauce, stirring occasionally, until it reduces to about ¾ a cup and thickens into a glaze, about 5 minutes.
Add back the pork, 1 tablespoon of Chinkiang vinegar, and stir to coat evenly.
The sauce should be thick enough to glaze each piece of pork but run off slowly when lifted. Note that as the sauce cools down, the sauce will get thicker. If you reduce it too much, add more water to loosen it up.
💭 Top Tips
- Ensure you pat the ribs dry otherwise, they won't brown appropriately in the wok.
- Preheat the wok until it smokes slightly. This will ensure the wok is hot enough to get a good sear on the meat.
- Monitor the ribs closely as they're simmering. If the liquid levels deplete too quickly, add more water and reduce the heat. The water should gently simmer and bubble for at least 20 minutes of cooking time.
- Thicken the sauce to the consistency of a glaze. It should be thick enough to coat each piece of pork but run off slowly when lifted. If the sauce is too thin, boil it longer. On the other hand, if the sauce is too thick, add more water.
👩🏻🍳 Substitutions & Variations
- Spare ribs can be substituted with any rib you like, for example, back ribs or St. Louis ribs. If you don't have ribs, this recipe will taste good with a fatty cut of pork like pork shoulder/butt.
- Rice wine vinegar can be substituted with a similar-tasting vinegar like apple cider or white vinegar.
- Soy sauce can be substituted with tamari, coconut Aminos, or plain salt.
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
Storing: Allow leftover Honey Garlic Spare Ribs to come to room temperature before storing them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Freezing: Ribs freeze exceptionally well. Allow to cool before storing in plastic bags or freezer-safe containers for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, defrost them in the fridge overnight, then reheat according to the instructions below.
Reheating: Reheat leftovers in the microwave or gently cook in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cover the pan with 1 or 2 tablespoons of water to create steam and loosen the sauce.
📖 Recipe FAQs
Marinating is optional. Marinating will add flavor and tenderness to the ribs. If desired, marinate them in 1 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine for 4 hours and up to 3 days. The Shaoxing wine helps eliminate any gaminess or off flavors in the meat.
Yup! You can add vegetables along with the sauce. I like adding harder vegetables like carrots, potatoes, or daikon. Chop them into ½-inch thick pieces so they can cook within 25 minutes. Remove them from the pot before reducing the sauce, then recombine them with the ribs at the end.
🍽 More recipes you'll love
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📋 Recipe
Honey Garlic Spare Ribs
Equipment
- 1 wok (optional)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon neutral oil
- 2 lb spare ribs (also known as side ribs)
- ⅓ cup honey
- 6 cloves garlic (minced)
- 3 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Chinkiang vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- Rinse the ribs under cold tap water and then pat dry with paper towels.
- Preheat a wok over high heat until it lightly smokes, then add 2 tablespoons oil. Brown both sides of the ribs for a few minutes. The ribs will initially stick to the metal but should release after about 1 minute.
- Reduce the heat to medium, add the garlic, and cook for 45 seconds or until the garlic is fragrant.
- Add honey, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and water. Stir everything together thoroughly. Bring it to a boil over high heat. Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Gently simmer for 20 minutes. Check halfway through the process to ensure the liquid isn't drying out. If so, add a little more water.
- After 20 minutes, a good amount of sauce should still be left in the wok. Remove the ribs to a bowl. Increase the heat to high and boil the sauce, stirring occasionally, until it reduces to about ¾ a cup and thickens into a glaze, about 5 minutes.
- Add back the pork, 1 tablespoon of Chinkiang vinegar, and stir to coat evenly. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Ensure you pat the ribs dry otherwise, they won't brown appropriately in the wok.
- Preheat the wok until it smokes slightly. This will ensure the wok is hot enough to get a good sear on the meat.
- Monitor the ribs closely as they're simmering. If the liquid levels deplete too quickly, add more water and reduce the heat. The water should gently simmer and bubble for at least 20 minutes of cooking time.
- Thicken the sauce to the consistency of a glaze. It should be thick enough to coat each piece of pork but run off slowly when lifted. If the sauce is too thin, boil it longer. On the other hand, if the sauce is too thick, add more water.
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