Spareribs Stew with Lemongrass & Chili (Sườn Ram Sả ớt)

Sườn Ram Sả ớt is one of my favorite dishes from my childhood. The one reason that I seldom prepare this dish is that I stopped consuming red meats for quite sometime. Since hosting my family recently, the uneaten spare-ribs reminded me of the childhood dish that my mom used to prepare for us. The traditional way to create this dish uses caramel sauce, which is brown sugar cooked slowly. I now use blackstrap molasses, which is healthier than sugar and saves time. The spices used to marinate the ribs are lemongrass, garlic, and hot chilies, dry or fresh. Depending on each individual’s taste for more sweet or spicy, add more or less sugar and hot chili. This is an easy recipe and is the best choice for a cold winter season.

Ingredients:
2 lbs. spare ribs
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 tbs chopped fresh lemongrass, minced
2 shallots, minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fish sauce
Stew sauce ingredients:
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tbs blackstrap molasses
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
3 tbs soy sauce
1/2 tsp chili Cayenne or red hot chili
Garnish with green onions
1/4 cup oil for cooking

Directions:
Wash and cut spareribs into riblets (as shown in photo). Soaked in a water with salt and vinegar to clean the riblets. Drain and dry well.

Combine lemongrass, shallots, and garlic in a small bowl. Divide half of the lemongrass mixture and marinate the spareribs for a few hours.

Combine the stew sauce ingredients and mix well.
In a heavy saucepan, add oil. When the oil is hot, add the spareribs and brown on all sides (about 5 to 10 minutes).

Add the other half of the lemongrass and stir to cook for a few more minutes. Add the stew sauce. Bring to boil. Turn the heat down and cover the pan. Cook the spareribs for 40 minutes to 1 hour. Adjust the seasoning with more salt and fish sauce during the cooking time.

 Add some green onions before it is done cooking. Serve with hot cooked rice.