Search
Close this search box.

Bun Bo Hue Pork Ribs

Hybrid Recipes

Bun Bo Hue Pork Ribs
Bun Bo Hue Pork Ribs

Intro:

The idea behind these roasted ribs was to take all of those key Bun Bo Hue flavours and apply them to these ribs. The key flavours of Bun Bo Hue are slightly sweet, slightly spicy, savoury and aromatic coming from various spices and lemongrass. All of these key flavours work perfectly with pork giving these ribs a unique but delicious lift. With all that said let’s get straight into it!

Method:

Ribs and Dry Rub:

  1. Let’s start off by making up the dry rub and base glaze. The purpose of a base glaze is used for additional flavour and to give the dry rub something to stick to. Begin by placing a small pan onto a high heat then add 2 tbsps of honey, 2 star anise and 2 tbsp of apple cider vinegar. Bring this up to a boil then reduce until thickened and to a glaze. When ready place into a small container to cool.

Dry Rub:

 
2. Now onto the dry rub, I wanted to mimic the spices that are used in the satay for bun bo hue for this. Place a small dry saucepan onto a high heat then add 1 1/2 tbsp of fennel seed, 2 tsp coriander seed, 1 tsp black peppercorns and 1 finely sliced lemongrass. Toast for 60 seconds until fragrant then add the toasted spices to a mortar and pestle and grind the spices until fine. To the ground toasted spices we now want to add 4 tbsp fine korean chilli flakes, 3 tbsp smoked paprika, 1 tbsp onion salt, 1 tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp ginger powder and 1 tsp of salt. Mix all of the spices well then place to one side for now.
Ribs:
3. All that’s needed to be done on the ribs is to remove any excess fat on the top side and carefully remove the membrane on the inner side. Remove the thin membrane by making a small incision on the bone then when exposed pull off the membrane. This can be tricky sometimes, therefore, using some kitchen paper will help assist.

Sauce and Glaze:

4. Next to make up the all important sauce and glaze for the ribs, start by peeling 1/2 pineapple then cut into a rough dice. Add the diced pineapple to a food processor along with 10g peeled sliced ginger and 2 roughly chopped lemongrass then pulse until liquidised. When ready pass through a fine sieve into a mixing bowl.
 

5. This infused pineapple juice will form the base to the sauce/glaze, to the pineapple liquid we now want to add 2 tbsps of the dry rub made earlier, the juice of 2 limes, 3 tbsp of palm sugar, 5 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 5 tbsp of ketchup, 2 tbsp of siracha, 1 tbsp of dark soy and 1 tbsp of light soy. Mix the sauce well to enable the palm sugar to dissolve then adjust the seasoning if needed by adding additional citrus or palm sugar. When ready we can now move onto preparing the ribs for roasting.

6. The 3 stages to prepare the ribs are a pre glaze, dry rub then finally glaze and by doing this you will create a deep depth of flavour within the ribs when cooked. Start by placing each rib onto a sheet of tinfoil then brush the honey glaze on both sides of the ribs. Next, generously season the ribs with the dry rub ensuring to completely coat all of the ribs. Finally brush the ribs on both sides using half of the pineapple glaze ensuring to completely cover the ribs. Save the remaining half of the glaze as we will use this to baste during cooking.

7. Just before we roast the ribs place another sheet of tinfoil over the top and tightly close together to make a parcel. Add a touch of water into the parcel to add a little extra moisture and to prevent the ribs from drying out. Place the parcels onto a baking tray and roast low and slow in an oven set at 150°c for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Pickles and Herbs:

8. Whilst we wait for the ribs to cook we can make up a few various pickles that will help balance out the ribs. To make the pickle liquid, in a mixing bowl add 150ml of rice vinegar and 50g of white sugar. Whisk well until all of the sugar dissolves then divide the pickle liquid in half then place into 2 separate small bowls. To one of the pickling liquids add sliced cucumber and finely sliced red chillies then to the other add 1/4 finely sliced red cabbage and 1 finely sliced red onion. Mix each pickle well ensuring that all the vegetables are well coated. Finally pick 1/4 bunch of thai basil and 1/4 bunch of coriander then wash and store these in ice cold water to help keep them fresh.

9. Now back to the ribs, after 1 1/2 hours of roasting the ribs should be cooked and tender. Remove from the oven and also remove the top sheet of tinfoil. Baste the ribs in the roasting juices then generously coat and baste some of the remaining glaze saved from earlier. Turn the heat in the oven up to 190°c and roast again for 10-20 minutes uncovered until nicely charred basting again if needed. When the ribs are cooked remove from the oven and we are ready to serve.

10. Just before we serve, baste the ribs one final time with the glaze then when ready squeeze some fresh lime over the top. Add some fresh coriander, Thai basil and pickled chillies over the ribs and serve with the pickled vegetables on the side! Hope you like this super simple yet delicious bun bo hue inspired bbq!
 

Additional notes

To take these ribs to an even higher level instead of 1st roasting stage then you could add the ribs to a smoker or bbq if that’s possible. Another step you could also add to these ribs is to brine them in a salt and pineapple solution to make them even more tender. Regardless of how you cook the ribs I’m sure you will love them! Have fun with this one and as always peace!

Ingredients

Cook Time 2 hrs / Prep Time 30 minutes
 
To serve 3-4
 
Ribs and dry rub:
2 large pork rib racks
2 lemongrass
4 tbsp fine Korean chilli flakes
3 tbsp smoked paprika
1 1/2 tbsp fennel seed
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tbsp onion salt
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp apple vinegar or rice vinegar
2 star anise
 
Sauce and glaze:
1/2 pineapple
2 lemongrass
10g ginger
2 limes
3 tbsp palm sugar
5 tbsp apple vinegar
5 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp siracha
1 tbsp dark soy
1 tbsp light soy
2 tbsp of the dry rub from above
 
Pickles and herbs:
1 cucumber
1/4 red cabbage
1 red onion
2 long red chillies
150ml rice vinegar
50g white sugar
1/4 bunch coriander
1/4 bunch Thai basil

Related posts