Whenever pork ribs are on sale, The Hubby and I like to pick up a rack (or two) because…well ribs! There are so many ways to cook them and we stole this recipe directly from my mother-in-law’s kitchen. Savoury, spicy ribs with sweet kabocha squash, aka Japanese pumpkin. My mom and mother in-law have always refereed to this squash as pumpkin, and now it’s been ingrained. I have to be honest, between the ribs and pumpkin, I actually enjoy the pumpkin more. Incredibly soft, the pumpkin is perfect for soaking up all the delicious rib juices and sauce. This dish is also a good make-ahead meal to pack for weekday lunches. In this version, we used spicy bean paste (dou ban jian) so we skipped the chilli pepper. If you’re using regular dou ban jian, a dash of chilli pepper, or a couple of dried peppers add a good kick.
Step by Step Photos
Assemble ingredients
Spices
Cut up ribs
Dunk ribs in boiling water and boil ribs for 3-5 mins
Drain ribs and rinse with cold water
Add in spices, salt, soy sauce and doubanjian, bring to a boil and simmer for 2-3 hours or until ribs are tender
Cut pumpkin into cubes and microwave for 2-3 minutes
Add pumpkin to ribs, bring to a boil again and serve
[…] of sleep, I’m refreshed but still quite low on energy. Luckily, The Hubs made a huge batch of braised ribs and pumpkin last weekend for me to enjoy while he’s out of town so I haven’t had to worry about […]