Slow Cooker Chinese BBQ Spare Ribs
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TheseĀ Slow Cooker Chinese BBQ Spare RibsĀ are fall-off-the-bone tender, coated in a sticky, sweet, and savory glaze, and incredibly easy to make. Perfect for busy weeknights, game day, or whenever you're craving takeout-style ribs at home. If you love easy slow cooker meals, be sure to try myĀ Slow Cooker Shredded Beef TacosĀ for another family favorite.
If you've never made Chinese BBQ spare ribs in the slow cooker, you're going to love how simple they are. The slow cooker does all the work, creating tender, flavorful ribs with minimal effort, while a quick brush of extra sauce at the end gives them that irresistible sticky finish.
If you love Chinese flavors as much as we do, you'll have to check out my Chinese BBQ Pork and Spicy Hunan Chicken!
Quick Look: Slow Cooker Chinese BBQ Spare Ribs
- ā±ļø Prep Time: 20 minutes
- š Total Time: 4 hours
- šØāš©āš§āš¦ Servings: 8
- š Calories: ~164 kcal per serving
- š„£ Ingredients: Spare ribs, soy sauce, honey, hoisin, Chinese five spice, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, garlic, ginger, cornstarch.
- ā Difficulty: Easy, great for an easy dinner, game day snacks.
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Why this Recipe Works
Fall-off-the-bone tender ā The slow cooker makes the ribs incredibly juicy and tender every time.
Perfect for entertaining ā Great for game day, family dinners, or potlucks since the slow cooker does most of the work.
Better than takeout ā Homemade Chinese BBQ ribs are fresher, more flavorful, and easy to customize.
For even more tax out options, try my Black Pepper Chicken or my Chicken Fried Rice!
Ingredients Needed
- Ribs: I use St Loius style ribs, and I have the butcher cut my ribs into riblets, but baby back ribs will also work.
- Soy Sauce: Low-sodium soy sauce can also be used.
- Brown sugar: I use dark, but light brown sugar will also work.
- Hoisin Sauce: Adds a unique layer of flavor that cannot be replaced.
How To Make This Recipe
- Step 1: Add all the sauce ingredients to a small bowl and mix.
- Step 2: Cut the ribs up into riblets.
- Step 3: Toss the ribs and the sauce together.
- Step 4: Place the riblets into the crockpot.
- Step 5: Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high 4-5 hours.
- Step 6: Place the riblets onto a foil lined baking sheet and brush sauce over each one and broil.
Recipe tips
- Red food coloring is optional, but adding the red food coloring gives the sauce a deep, rich color like what you would get at your local Chinese takeout.
- Remove the membrane from the back of the ribs for the most tender texture.
- You can leave the ribs whole; I just prefer to have them cut, especially if serving for an appetizer.
- Broiling them for the last few minutes helps the sauce caramelize just a tad, giving them the perfect texture.
- Add a little of your favorite barbecue sauce if you prefer before broiling.
Recipe FAQ's
Yes! Baby back ribs work well in this recipe and cook just as tender. They may cook a little faster since they're smaller and leaner.
Made up of cinnamon, fennel, star anise, and cloves. It adds a depth of flavor to any dish. Here is a recipe to make your own.
Yes! Cook the ribs a day in advance, refrigerate them in the sauce, then reheat and broil just before serving for the best texture.
These ribs pair well with steamed jasmine rice, Pork Fried Rice, lo mein, roasted broccoli, stir-fried vegetables, or Asian Cucumber Salad.
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Slow Cooker Chinese Spare Ribs
Ingredients
- 3 lb St. Louis-style spare ribs see notes
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice powder
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
- 5-6 gloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger or 1 teaspoon ground
- 1 teaspoon red food coloring optional
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- sesame seeds
- green onions
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Instructions
- In a small bowl mix soy, honey, hoisin, five-spice, brown sugar, sweet chili sauce, garlic, ginger, and red food coloring. Set aside
- Cut the ribs between the bones to give individual ribs and place them in a large bowl or freezer bag. Pour the marinade over ribs and marinate for 12 hours or 24 hours for the best flavor.
- Place ribs and marinade in the slow cooker and cook on low 6 hours or high 4 hours.
- Remove ribs from the slow cooker and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet.
- Remove the top layer of fat from the juice in the slow cooker. Pour liquid into a small saucepan and whisk in 2 teaspoon cornstarch. Let come to a low boil to thicken.
- Brush thickened sauce over ribs and broil 5-6 minutes to caramelize on top.
- Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds if desired.
The green onions and sesame seeds are just for a garnish on top š
When do the green onions go in?
Either 6 hours on low or 4 hours on high.
Is this on low or high setting in the slow cooker?
This is a yummy recipe!! Since I didn't have hoisin sauce, I looked up a recipe for it and added those ingredients--mainly peanut butter, rice vinegar, sesame oil and black pepper, There were some repeats such as garlic and soy sauce so I increased those. I did not have time to marinate the ribs which I do not think was needed with the ribs cooking so slowing. I was trying to reduce the amount of sugar, so I only used brown sugar and they were plenty sweet. Not sure I would have been able to taste the honey with all the other spices and I saved money using the sugar instead of my raw honey. The chinese five spice does give these the traditional flavor, but, next time, I will try leaving it out or reducing it for more of a teriyaki flavor. Definitely use fresh ginger. It's so much better. I break off little pieces at the grocery store and it only costs about 50 cents. I had plenty for this recipe and a veggie stir fry ( and I still have some in the fridge).
At the end of cooking, I removed the ribs, removed about 1/2 c of liquid and allowed to cool a few minutes. I added the cornstarch to the cooled broth so it didn't become lumpy and returned to the broth and whisked well. Turned slow cooker on high and returned ribs to the broth. I also added about 2 T soy sauce and 2 garlic cloves minced 1/2 hour before serving. I am sure broiling the ribs would have been great but I chose to keep it simple and the yummy was there anyway.
Served with brown basmati rice and veggie stir fry. This really was a fabulous recipe! Thanks for sharing.
I imagine it would change the flavor drastically.
Can you leave out the housing sauce.
I've never made these in the oven only the slow cooker. š
If like to know how many degrees to set a regular oven to, if I don't have a slow cooker. Please and thanks
I have made both mashed potatoes or pork fried rice as a side to these ribs. Hope that helps charlie š