Thai Glazed Ribs

Thai Glazed Ribs
4.5 (2 ratings)
Thai-style ribs are deep-fried rather than grilled or smoked. With this recipe, enjoy a sweet sticky sauce made up of fish sauce and tamarind to cover your pork ribs in. You can choose to eat the whole rack or chop up the meat into riblets for a tasty bite-sized dish.Reprinted from The Pepper Thai Cookbook. Copyright © 2021 by Vilailuck Teigen with Garrett Snyder. Photographs copyright © 2021 by Jenny Huang. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House.
Prep Time
25
minutes
Cook Time
20
minutes
Servings
4
Thai Glazed Ribs
Total time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoon tamarind paste
  • 3 tablespoon light brown sugar or honey
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon roasted chile powder
  • 1 tablespoon toasted rice powder, store-bought or homemade
  • 1 teaspoon finely minced cilantro stems
  • 12 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1 rack baby back pork ribs (12 to 14 ribs), cut into individual ribs
  • 1/4 cup light soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
  • vegetable oil, for deep-frying
  • fresh cilantro leaves, for serving
Directions
  1. Step 1: In a small bowl, whisk together the fish sauce, tamarind paste, brown sugar, lime juice, chile powder, rice powder and cilantro stems until the sugar is dissolved.
  2. Step 2: Squeeze in the pulp of the tomatoes (discard the skins) and stir together.
  3. Step 1: Place the ribs in a large bowl and add 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1 tablespoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon white pepper. Toss to coat. Let stand at room temperature until you’re ready to deep-fry.
  4. Step 2: Fill a wok, large heavy pot, or deep skillet with at least 2 inches of oil, making sure to leave a few inches of clearance from the rim. Heat the oil over medium heat to 370°F (use a deep-fry thermometer or test the oil by throwing in a little piece of bread or a grain of rice; if it sizzles immediately but doesn’t burn, the oil is ready).
  5. Step3: Set a rack in a sheet pan or line a plate with paper towels and have them near the stove. When the oil is hot, fry the ribs in batches of 4 or 5 until they’re just cooked and well browned on all sides, using a frying spider or slotted spoon to turn them occasionally, 3 to 4 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed to keep the oil at 370°F as you’re frying. Transfer the ribs to the wire rack or paper towels to drain and cool (slightly not too much, though).
  6. Step 4: Place the warm ribs in a large bowl, spoon on as much of the tamarind glaze as you’d like, and toss to coat. Transfer to a plate, garnish with cilantro leaves and serve immediately.