Recipe - Classic Barbecued Spareribs

2 pound Spareribs, in one piece
(have the butcher trim the
Fat and discard the
Breastbone)
4 cup Plum sauce

MARINADE
4 tablespoon Chicken broth
One fourth cup Soy sauce
3 tablespoon Honey or corn syrup
3 tablespoon Hoisin sauce
2 tablespoon Wine vinegar
2 tablespoon Dry sherry or
Shaoshing wine
1 teaspoon Sugar
2 cl (medium) garlic,
Chopped fine
One half teaspoon Cinnamon
pn (tiny) 5spice powder
(optional)

DIPPING SAUCE
Plum sauce
Scallion, chopped

Preheat the oven 10 375 degree F. Trim any excess fat from the ribs and
place them in a long shallow dish. In a mixing bowl, combine the marinade
ingredients; if you are using 5spice powder, add it to the mixture by
putting it through a tea strainer so it spreads out over the mixture. Mix
well, and pour over the ribs and leave for 3 hours at room temperature or
about 6 hours in the refrigerator. Baste the ribs every hours or so,
turning them over. TO ROAST THE RIBS: Remove the ribs from the marinade.
Add the One fourth cup plum sauce to the marinade; reserve it for basting. Hook
metal drapery hooks through both ends of each rack of ribs, at the top, and
hang each one as if you were hanging a hammock, suspended from the bars of
one of the oven racks. Set the oven rack in the highest position in the
oven. On the floor of the oven or on another oven rack set at the lowest
position in the oven, place a baking pan half filled with water, to collect
drippings and prevent smoking. You may want to line the baking pan with
aluminum foil before putting the water in, to make it easier to clean.
Roast the spareribs for 45 minutes in the preheated oven. Then baste them
with the reserved basting sauce, using a small pastery brush and carefully
pulling out the oven rack to facilitate the basting process. Turn the oven
up to 450 degrees F and roast for another 15 minutes. By this time the
spareribs should be a rich golden brown with crisp edges. Baste again, then
take them out of the oven. Place the ribs on a cutting board and remove the
drapery hooks. Separate the individual ribs with a cleaver or sharp knife.
Serve at room temperature, with dipping sauce. Makes 6 to 8 appetizer
servings. NOTE: You will need about 12 drapery hooks. Recipe: "Chinese
Appetizers" by Verdi
Published by Irene Chalmers Cookbooks, 1981