Baby Back Pork Rib Rubbed with Chinese Five Spice & Slathered in Hoisin Sauce

Makes 18 ribs

Ingredients:

Ribs:

• 2 slabs baby back pork ribs (about 4 lbs)
• 1 t. Chinese five-spice powder (see notes below)
• 1 t. onion powder

Sauce:

• 1 cup hoisin sauce
• ½ c. bottled chili sauce or ketchup
• ¼ c. Sherry
• 4 t. chili-garlic sauce
• 1 T. minced peeled fresh ginger
• 1 T. chopped garlic
• 1 t. prepared horseradish

Directions:

• I find that commercially-available five-spice powder varies widely from brand to brand, so I make my own:  Combine 1 t. Sichuan peppercorns, 1 t. fennel seeds, 1 t. whole cloves, 3 star anise, and a 2-3 inch piece of cinnamon bark, broken into pieces, and grind finely in a spice grinder.  Tweak the ratio of ingredients to suit your taste.
• Place ribs on a large baking sheet with a shallow rim lined with foil. Pierce meat with fork. Sprinkle with Chinese five-spice powder and onion powder; rub mixture into meat.
• Whisk remaining ingredients in small bowl to blend. Pour sauce over ribs, turning to coat. Turn ribs meat side down; cover pan with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat oven to 300°F.
• Bake ribs, covered, until tender, about 90 minutes.
• Turn on the broiler.
• Uncover and turn ribs meat side up and broil to slightly caramelize the sauce.  Keep an eye on them – they’ll burn quickly.
• Cut meat between bones to separate ribs and serve.

Kathy Fruchterman, Executive Chef