Steamed Ribs with Pickled Mustard Greens and Chili – Sybaritica

I have posted quite a few recipes using pickled mustard greens, both my own homemade variety and commercial products, and, today, I am going to use the Thai Fermented Mustard Greens I featured yesterday. Steamed pork ribs with a little chili sounded like a nice way to try it out, so here it is…

The Ingredients

• ½ lb. Pork spareribs, lightly pre-browned in a little oil;
• ½ cup Pickled Mustard Greens;
• ¼ cup thinly sliced Onion;
• ¼ cup Flour;
• 1 tbsp. Light Soy Sauce;
• 1 tbsp. Rice Wine;
• ¼ tsp. Salt;
• 1 ½ tbsp. Chopped Red Chili;

The Method

First, toss the ribs with the flour, rubbing the flour into each rib really well so that as much as possible gets absorbed by the meat.

Transfer the ribs to a fresh bowl, shaking off the excess flour and toss them with the salt and sugar. Add the onions, then the chili, soy sauce and rice wine. Stir well to coast the ribs evenly and then allow to sit and marinate for at least 30 minutes.

When you are ready to cook, stir in the pickled mustard greens and transfer the ribs to a steaming dish. Sprinkle with about a ¼ cup of water (or juice from the pickles if not too salty), and then steam for about 30 – 45 minutes. Sprinkle with a little extra soy sauce if desired and then serve.

The Verdict

This was nice and homey if not wildly exciting. The chili heat was nice but a little more sweet and a tad more sour might have jazzed this to a more interesting level. The Thai mustard greens didn’t pack the punch that the Chinese equivalents seem to do although, interestingly, the fish sauce, which wasn’t apparent in the pickle when cold, came through as a subtle background flavor in the finished dish.

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