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Sweet and Sticky Short Ribs

The ultimate sweet and sticky short ribs that are better than take out! Tender fall off the bone meat that only requires 30 minutes of simmering.

sticky short ribs plated with rice on a white plate

Ultimate Sticky Short Ribs

One of my favorite Chinese takeout dishes is sticky short ribs. After testing this recipe a number of times the seasoning and cooking time has been perfected for fall of the bone ribs.

These ribs are sticky, sweet, tender and fall off the bone. They won’t last long and your guests will be asking for this recipe again and again.

What is in this dish?

This recipe requires a few ingredients that can be found at a local Asian grocer or I have listed a few substitutes below.

ingredients to make sticky short ribs

Special Ingredients

  • Sweet and Sour Cut Spare Ribs can be found at most grocers (including Costco) but if you cannot find them locate Spare Ribs and ask the butcher if they can slice then into sweet and sour cut for you
  • Shaoxing Wine is a Chinese cooking wine that can be found at your local Asian grocer. If you cannot find this substitute for Dry Sherry. The wine in this dish helps tenderize the meat
  • Rice Vinegar adds a tang to the sauce and can be found at your local Asian grocer and is readily available at most grocery stores
  • Dark Soy Sauce is thicker and sweeter than regular soy sauce. In this dish it adds sweetness and adds a deep dark color to the dish. If you cannot find dark soy sauce, omit from the recipe and your final product will be slightly lighter in color.

How to Make Sticky Short Ribs

This is a one pot dish making it a great weeknight dinner or appetizer for a party.

steps to make sticky short ribs

Full printable recipe card below

1 Cut ribs into individual riblets

2 Parboil ribs for 10 minutes to draw out impurities. Drain and rinse each rib by hand

3 Melt brown sugar and oil in pan

4 Add ribs to pan and sauté until coated and lightly browned

5 Add garlic, ginger, chili flakes and sauté

6 Pour all remaining ingredients in and toss to combine

7 Cover and simmer for 30 minutes until tender

8 Simmer uncovered 10 minutes to reduce sauce. Serve as an appetizer or a main dish with a side of rice

sticky short ribs in a blue skillet

Video Tutorial

Check out my short video tutorial here

sticky short ribs plated with rice on a white plate

Looking for More Easy Appetizers?

Check out my Appetizer recipe section for more easy recipes here

  • Crazy Bread (Little Caesars Copycat) – the ultimate bread stick! Light and airy bread soaked in garlic butter, topped with parmesan cheese… I’m drooling just writing this. These are a must try!
  • Feta Roasted Red Pepper Dip – this quick and delicious appetizer is the creamiest feta roasted red pepper dip served with warm pitas. This appetizer can be on the table in just 5 minutes.
  • Jalapeno Cheddar Corn Bread – the perfect side dish to your summer BBQ. Not only is this recipe quick to put together, it is incredibly delicious and moist!

Enjoy!

– Sab

Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, may earn me a small commission.

sticky short ribs plated with rice on a white plate

Sticky Short Ribs

Ultimate sweet and sticky fall off the bone short ribs. Better than takeout and the perfect appetizer for your next get together!
4.86 from 7 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine Asian
Servings 6
Calories 563 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 4 pounds short spare ribs, sweet and sour cut
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 6 tbsp brown sugar
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp dark sweet soy sauce, optional
  • 6 tbsp rice vinegar, substitute with white vinegar
  • 5 tbsp Chinese Shaoxing wine, substitute with dry sherry
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 4 slices fresh ginger
  • 8 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 teaspoon chili flakes, optional

Instructions
 

  • Cut ribs into individual riblets
  • Parboil ribs 10 minutes to draw out impurities. Drain and rinse each rib by hand
  • Melt brown sugar and oil in pan
  • Add ribs to pan and sauté until coated and lightly browned
  • Add garlic, ginger, chili flakes and sauté
  • Pour all remaining ingredients in and toss to combine
  • Cover and simmer for 30 minutes until tender
  • Simmer uncovered 10 minutes to reduce sauce

Video

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NUTRITION

Calories: 563kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 25gFat: 40gSaturated Fat: 15gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 121mgSodium: 912mgPotassium: 439mgFiber: 1gSugar: 16gVitamin A: 99IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 45mgIron: 2mg
This nutrition information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. See our full nutrition disclosure here.

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