Sous Vide Vietnamese Caramelized Pork Spare Ribs

Sous Vide is the ideal cooking approach for spare ribs. It creates the perfect tenderness and satisfaction you crave, without becoming too tender. These are delicious, lightly spicy, flavor-packed, and perfectly sticky.

Author

Christina Wylie

Christina Wylie is an award-winning writer, author, editor, food stylist, recipe creator, entrepreneur and radio host whose work has been featured in The Times & The Sunday Times, Time Out (Melbourne, Sydney, Hong Kong and Dubai), Traveler’s Digest, Fah Thai Magazine, Broadsheet, Wining & Dining and many other internationally renowned publications. In 2013, after almost a decade of working as an international journalist, Christina founded the online lifestyle magazine The GAB Magazine, for which she now leads a team of 60 writers based all across Australia. She then founded Samui Life Magazine in 2016. After working as a recipe creator for Anova Culinary for over a year, she signed a cookbook contract with the American-based, international publishing company Quarto. Her cookbook, titled The Sous Vide Kitchen: Techniques, Ideas, and More Than 100 Recipes to Cook at Home, was published worldwide in 2017. She wrote, styled, and photographed everything that you see within that book. In 2017 she opened her first restaurant, Bootlegger, in Koh Samui, Thailand. She is currently in the initial stages of launching Bootlegger 2 in Phuket in 2018, and is looking to open Bootlegger 3 in Bangkok in 2019. She is currently working towards stepping into the world of food and travel presenting. As an entrepreneur herself, Christina co-founded the charity initiative Project Gen Z in 2015 to teach orphaned Cambodian children entrepreneurial skills. A British expat born and raised in Hong Kong, Christina has worked across the globe, and has lived in Thailand, London, Hong Kong, Australia and South Africa over the years.

Prep Time: 00:15

Recipe Time: 12:00

Temperature : 141.8F / 61C

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 pounds (about 1 kg) pork spare ribs, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 4 tablespoons (59 ml) soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) fish sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons (44 ml) sweet chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) light brown sugar
• 2 small Thai red chiles, chopped
• Pinch ground white pepper
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup (59 ml) fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

1. Set the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 141.8ºF (61ºC).
2. Combine ribs, shallot, 2 tablespoons (30 ml) soy sauce, fish sauce, and garlic in a large zipper lock bag. Seal the bag using the water immersion technique and place in the water bath. Set the timer for 12 hours. Cover the water bath with plastic wrap to minimize water evaporation. Add water intermittently to keep the ribs submerged.
3. A few minutes before the ribs are finished, mix together chili sauce, brown sugar, 1 chopped chile, white pepper, and remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce in a large bowl. Set aside.

Finishing Steps

1. When the timer goes off, remove the bag from the water bath. Remove the ribs from the bag and transfer to the bowl with the chili sauce mixture. Toss to coat. Discard cooking liquid.
2. Heat oil in a large wok or skillet over high heat. When the oil is just beginning to smoke, add the ribs and any remaining chili sauce mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until ribs are caramelized, about 2 minutes.
3. Transfer ribs to a serving platter and garnish with cilantro and remaining chile. Serve.