Vietnamese Caramelized Pork Spare Ribs- aka “Suon Ram Man” Recipe

Simply translated Suon Ram Man means salty pork ribs. These pork spare ribs are pan seared in a marinade that’s equally savory, salty, and a little sweet all at the same time! It is a classic Vietnamese dish that is traditionally served with a side of hot jasmine rice and some fresh sweet vegetables like cucumber and tomatoes to offset the saltiness of this dish.

It’s one of my childhood favorites (yes, I have quite a few since my dad was quite the chef) and these are literally finger licking, bone gnawing good!

There’s many recipes out there and many have them braised in coconut juice where the meat is super soft and basically falls off the bone.

My dad makes these 2 different ways and in this recipe his technique of frying them in a little oil then tossing them in a marinade sauce makes the ribs super tacky, glossy and sticky but the ribs are nice and chewy with a slight crisp on the edges.

It also reduces the cooking time significantly since braising them in a caramel sauce can take almost 45+ min to cook. These took half the time to cook then the other method.

As a kid I would love chewing and pulling the meat off the bones so it was all about this slight chew factor for me! We also didn’t use coconut juice, my dad’s recipe was definitely on the saltier and more savory side especially with the use of Squid Fish Sauce which adds all that salty umami flavor to this dish! Mmmm

Who else likes these ribs a little on the chewy side :)

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs pork spare ribs (have your butcher cut them in long 1” crosswise lengths)

PORK WASH

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 tbs vinegar

MARINADE

• 1/2 tsp vegetable powder

• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

• 1 medium size shallot (peeled and mince)

• 3 cloves garlic (peeled and mince)

• 1 green onion (thinly sliced)

• 1 lemongrass stalks thinly minced in chopper (about 1/3 cup)

• 1 long red chili pepper (remove seeds to reduce heat)

• 1 tbs tapioca starch

2-3 tbs cooking oil

Reserved marinade

3/4 cup water

1 tablespoons fish sauce

GARNISH

Scallions

Sliced red chili peppers

1 Sliced small cucumber

1 Sliced medium ripe tomato

PREPARATION

1. Cut pork ribs into individual single small ribs (cut between each bones).

2. Rinse pork ribs in a bowl of water. Then refill the bowl with cold water and add salt and water, squish water & ribs around and then let soak for 10 min. Drain, rinse, and pat dry.

3. Marinate the pork with shallot, garlic, lemongrass, brown sugar, veggie powder and rest of herby marinade ingredients (lemongrass, onion, gralic). Let the pork marinate at least 15-20 minutes at room temp (or for maximum flavor let marinate in fridge overnight).

4. Lightly scrape off marinade herbs off ribs and reserve the marinade on the side (do not throw out). Add 2-3 tbs cooking oil to wok until fully heated on high and let fry for about 10 min over med-high heat. Flip occasionally to make sure all ribs are cooked evenly.

5. When ribs are browned and cooked through, remove ribs onto a bowl or plate and dump out oil from wok and wipe clean.

6. Add ribs back into wok, turn heat up to medium high, and add some of the reserved marinade into the wok and toss with a little water (add a couple tbs at a time until you have the right consistency, it should be tacky and thick, not runny).

7. Then add a tbs or two of squid fish sauce to your liking and toss until you have a nice tacky and glossy marinade.

8. Transfer to serving plate and garnish with fresh scallions or peppers and a side of fresh veggies like cucumber or tomatoes.

9. Garnish with fresh chili or scallions if preferred and serve with a side of hot jasmine rice and a little saucer of plain fish sauce with some sliced chili peppers to dip the ribs in.