Tag Archives: pork

Sticky Sweet Asian Spareribs

These are easy and delicious. Sticky sweet Spare ribs are first simmered to tenderize and then grilled or barbequed to get crispy and sticky. So delicious, you won’t be able to stop eating them.

Serves: 4

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 65 minutes approx.

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds meaty spare ribs, sliced into individual ribs
4 tablespoon dry white wine or Shaoxing
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar* See note below
4 tablespoons honey
1/2-1 teaspoon chili paste/sauce such as Gochujang or Sambal Oelek
2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
1 “/2.5 cm peeled and grated ginger
3/4 tsp. Chinese five spice
6 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon corn starch + 1/2 cup water
Sesame seeds, optional

INSTRUCTIONS:

Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Season spareribs with salt and pepper. Add enough of the sparerib pieces to the pan, fat sides down, to fit in a single layer. Cook 10 minutes or until browned, turning once. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining pieces. Discard fat.
Meanwhile, in a large pot stir together wine, soy sauce, hoisin, vinegar, honey, chili paste, garlic, ginger, five spice and water until mixed.

Return all ribs to the pot with any juices. Bring to a simmer, stirring to coat ribs. Reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 45 minutes or until ribs are just tender, stirring once or twice, adding a little water if necessary.

Pre heat oven to 450 F / 200 C . Remove ribs onto a oven safe rack/baking tray and bake for 20 minutes until dark , crunchy and sticky. Brush with additional marinade half way.

Meanwhile make a slurry with the cornstarch and water, add this to the pot and simmer for a few minutes to thicken the sauce. Serve alongside the spare ribs. Sprinkle with sesame seeds if desired. I like to serve this with some stir fried broccoli, with some chili and garlic. Enjoy!

*Vinegar is essential, as it tenderizes the meat and also renders out excessive fat.

Quick and Easy Pulled Pork Sandwiches

5 Replies

This is a super easy, no fail slow cooker recipe, put together in an instant.

Pulled Pork is one of my favourites to make and eat, since it’s packed with flavour and made with minimal effort. The Pork comes out very tender and juicy and stuffed into a sandwich, it’s scrumptious .

Once you’ve placed the ingredients in your slow cooker, you can pretty much forget about it until you’re ready to eat.

This is also great for crowds and parties since you can leave the finished pulled Pork in the slow cooker on the “keep warm” setting for at least an other two hours.

Alternatively, you can freeze half and eat the the remainder some other day. It will keep in the freezer for about two months.

⏰ Prep time : 15 minutes
🍴 Cooking time : 4 hours.
🍝 Serves : 6 – 8

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoons chili powder
3 tbsp smoked paprika
2 to 3 sprigs thyme, leaves only
2 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
2 teaspoons salt
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
3 1/2 – 4 lbs. boneless pork shoulder, trimmed of excess fat
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1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup barbecue sauce

INSTRUCTIONS:

• In small bowl, mix brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, thyme, garlic, salt, cayenne, ground pepper and olive oil to form a paste.
Rub mixture all over pork.
• Marinate for a few hours if you have the time, it will taste great either way.
• Place in slow cooker.
• Pour broth and 1/4 cup of the vinegar over pork. Cover and cook on High heat setting 3 hours.
• Add a little water if the sauce evaporates to quickly.
• Add the Bbq sauce and cook for about an other hour until completely tender. Check by pulling away some meat with a fork.
• Remove pork to cutting board, and shred using 2 forks. Return to slow cooker and cook on low heat setting for about 20 minutes or until warmed.
• To serve, split buns open, and scoop out s big ladle of pulled pork with sauce onto the bun, top with pickles and/or coleslaw and cover with top halves of buns, eat immediately.
• Have plenty of napkins ready!

Enjoy!
Myra XO

Five Spice Slow roasted Pork Belly

11 Replies

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I Couldn’t wait to share this with you. A great change from all things turkey.
I think Asian is pretty much the opposite of turkey and I really needed that. I love the holidays and everything about them, but it’s time for something completely different.
This five spice slow roasted pork belly is going to drive you mad with delight once you’ve tasted it.
Tender as can be with and a super crispy skin, aka crackling!
And best of all, this piece cost me around € 6, 50 is weighs around 1.3 kg. / 2.8 lbs and you could easily serve six people from this piece. Hallelujah to that.
It’s important that you dry the skin very very well, then make cuts in it with a Stanley knife but not all the way thru to the meat, just the fat.
I’ve marinated it overnight in a plastic zip lock bag, skin side facing up so that that part is not in the marinade.
Then the next day, bake in a hot oven for 20 minutes, then on slow for 2 1/2 hours. This may seem like a long time and it is, but you want to render away as much fat as possible.

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Ingredients;
1 pork belly, without bone about 1.3 kg / 2.8 lbs.
1″grated fresh ginger, (don’t bother peeling it first)
1 garlic clove, peeled and grated
1 tsp. Chinese Five Spice
1 tbsp. Pure Sesame Oil
2 tbsp. Hoisin Sauce
1 tbsp. Honey
1 1/2 tbsp. Soy Sauce or tamari (gluten free)
1 tbsp. Conimex Ketjap Manis

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Method;

Mix the marinade in a bowl.

Place the pork in a zip lock bag, skin side down , pour and rub all the marinade over the meat, close the bag and carefully turn the skin side up.
Place the bag on a plate and leave to marinade for at least 8 hours or preferably overnight.

The next day, Pre heat the oven to 220°C / 430°F

Remove the pork from the fridge an hour before cooking.

Remove the meat from marinade and discard the bag and juices.
Dry thoroughly with kitchen paper.

Take a sharp Stanley knife and make cuts all over the skin side of the belly diagonally, a third of an inch apart if you can. All the way thru the fat but not yet touching the meat. This is important!

Rub with some salt and place in a roasting tin that has been lined with a double layer of foil.
Place in the hot oven and cook for about 20 minutes.
Lower the heat to 160°C / 320°F and cook for an other 2 1/2 hours. Cover loosely with some foil if the skin gets to dark, the foil does have to be tented to keep the crispyness.

Remove from oven. Let rest for 10 minutes. Slice and serve with rice noodles, Bok Choy and some hoisin sauce. Or any other vegetable of choice. Leftovers are heavenly and it also freezes well, but you do have to remove the skin because this can get a little chewy after freezing.

If you try this recipe let me know! Leave a comment below and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #thecookingspoonblog on instagram! You’ll make my day.

Not quite what you’re looking for? How about Sticky Shrimp & Pineapple with Jasmin Rice.

Stuffed Pork Tenderloin over creamy Polenta with Sherry gravy and crispy fried Sage leafs.

7 Replies

Serves 2

This is a recipe that I have been making for years, at least 15 or so. I always make it for informal dinner parties for friends and family when you want something different but not too complicated or fancy.

To be honest with you, I don’t even remember how I came up with this recipe but I do know that guests have always loved it. It is an unusual combination of ingredients but that’s what makes it work. I guess you’ll just have to try for yourself.

You have to stuff the tenderloin first. Then you can cook the polenta and the prepared tenderloin at the same time, since the cooking time is about the same.

Ingredients Tenderloin;

1 Pork Tenderloin weighing about 12 – 14 oz

1 thin slice Serrano ham or Parma ham

1 tbsp. Ketjap Manis

1 tbsp. Apricot Jam

1 spring onion

Salt and Pepper

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 glass dry Sherry

Ingredients Polenta;

1 C. Polenta

2 C. milk

1 1/2 C. Chicken stock, good quality

3 tbsp. butter

1/3 C. Parmesan Cheese, grated

Method;

Start by preparing the tenderloin. Lay it out on a chopping board and make a deep cut lengthwise but not all the way thru, about halfway. Open up and flatten with the palm of your hand.

In a little bowl combine the apricot preserve and the ketjap and spread all of it in the middle of the tenderloin. Cover with the ham and put the spring onion on top. Now close the tenderloin and fasten with kitchen twine.

Meanwhile bring to a boil the milk with the chicken stock. Add the polenta and stirring now and then cook for about 18 to 20 minutes. Just before the end add the butter and half the parmesan cheese. Taste the polenta and add salt and pepper (if necessary). Reserve the other half for serving.

Heat a frying pan on the stove and add butter and olive oil. Cook the tenderloin, browning it all over and turning every few minutes. Give the polenta a stir now and then.

The tenderloin will take about 18 minutes, remove to cutting board and cover loosely with tin foil. Remove the twine and slice.

Add the sherry to the pan with the meat juices and scrape to loosen the crusty bits.

To serve, place a good amount of polenta on a plate, serve with a few slices of the tenderloin and the sherry gravy, Serve with more parmesan cheese on the side. Place a few crispy sage leafs on the polenta.

To make the crispy sage leafs, just fry them in the the pan alongside the tenderloin,frying a few leafs at a time just for two minutes or so, place them on kitchen paper until ready to use.

Enjoy

Myra Xo