Matt’s Favorite Finger Lickin’ Good Sweet & Sour Ribs
Steaming these sweet and sour ribs in the slow cooker ensures they’re super tender, and a quick trip under the broiler gives them the perfect char.
By Yankee Magazine|Jun 25 2025|
Matt’s Favorite Finger Lickin’ Good Sweet & Sour Ribs
Photo Credit: Dane TashimaIn her new cookbook, Every Day with Babs, Babs Costello writes: “Ribs present one of the greatest effort-to-reward ratios I know! They are so fun to eat, and you have to do so little to prep them. Steaming the ribs with sauce in the slow cooker for 6 to 7 hours ensures they’re super tender. Then a quick trip under the broiler gives them the perfect char. These have a sweet-and-sour, Asian-inspired glaze of sweet chili sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and ginger.” She says she serves this dish with a quick cucumber pickle: “Dice your cucumbers, stir in a little rice wine vinegar, a pinch of salt, a pinch of sugar, a little toasted sesame oil, and some sesame seeds.”
This Sweet and Sour Ribs recipe from Barbara “Babs” Costello first appeared in the July/August 2025 issue of Yankee Magazine.
Yield:
4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
½ cup Thai sweet chili sauce
¼ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons unseasoned rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
4–5 pounds St. Louis–style pork spareribs, cut into individual ribs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Fresh cilantro leaves, thinly sliced scallions, and/or toasted sesame seeds, and steamed jasmine or sushi rice, for serving
Instructions
In a 5-to-8-quart slow cooker, combine the chili sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, and ginger.
Season the ribs with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Add them to the slow cooker and stir to combine. Cover and cook on low heat until they are tender and a fork can easily pierce the meat, 6 to 7 hours.
Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil. Transfer the ribs to the sheet pan and season all over with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Arrange the ribs in a single layer with the meaty side up.
Carefully spoon off and discard as much fat as possible from the top of the cooking liquid in the slow cooker. Transfer the cooking liquid to a saucepan and simmer uncovered over high heat until syrupy and reduced by half (to about 1 cup), 10 to 15 minutes.
Arrange a rack in the upper third of the oven and switch the oven to broil. Brush the ribs with half the sauce and broil on the top rack until charred in spots, 4 to 5 minutes. Top with the cilantro, scallions, and sesame seeds as you like, then serve with rice and extra sauce on the side.
