I had some friends visit a few weeks ago and wanted an easy but tasty dinner I could make while I studied. I had seen this recipe earlier that week, changed it into a crock pot thing, and it was a success!

Giant slab o' ribs!

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds pork spare ribs
• 4 sticks cinnamon
• 4 whole star anise
• 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup oyster sauce
• 3/4 cup black Chinese vinegar (I couldn’t be bothered to find this and just combined white vinegar with cider vinegar to kill off some bottles.)
• 1 cup water

Stir together all the ingredients except the ribs in a large bowl and set aside.

Cut the slab of ribs into smaller portions, about 3 ribs per piece. Put them in the spice mixture and turn to coat.

Pour into a crock pot.

Cook for 8 hours on low heat, cracking the cover for the last hour to let some of the extra moisture cook off. Remove from the pot, and serve with some veggies.

These are tender enough to fall off the bone, and there’s enough for 4 or 5 people. I wouldn’t have guessed it, but I’m actually making my way through my bottle of star anise and not hating it at all!

Sticky Asian Pork Ribs

Adapted from Bake for Happy Kids.

• 4 pounds pork spare ribs
• 4 sticks cinnamon
• 4 whole star anise
• 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup oyster sauce
• 3/4 cup black Chinese vinegar
• 1 cup water

Stir together all the ingredients except the ribs in a large bowl and set aside.

Cut the slab of ribs into smaller portions, about 3 ribs per piece. Put them in the spice mixture and turn to coat. Pour into a crock pot.

Cook for 8 hours on low heat, cracking the cover for the last hour to let some of the extra moisture cook off. Remove from the pot, and serve with some veggies.