Honey-Garlic Braised Pork Riblets in Red Wine

27 comments
July 7, 2021

Fall off the bone, semi sweet and spicy braised short ribs that are done in one pan glazed with the most aromatic red wine sauce. I fell in love with this recipe from the first time i cooked it. I wrote it from scratch not knowing if it’s going to be a hit or miss, let me tell you, it made it to my cook book from day 1. After measuring and remeasuring every ingredient every time i made this recipe, it has finally made it’s way here. Over the past year these braised riblets have become one of our favorite meals and i hope it becomes your favorite too.

The recipe is quite simple and straightforward as well as flexible. You can make these ribs more spicy by adding more chili flakes or omit them for no spice kick at all. Though this recipe is very very mild. Besides chili flakes, the most important ingredient here is the wine. You need a good tasting wine!! (Don’t worry the alcohol cooks out)

The wine i use here is this concord grape (pictured below) it is the only red wine i ever have in my house so this recipe has NOT been tested with any other wines. I usually purchase this brand from Fred Meyer or Safeway stores.

I normally make these riblets stove-top in a 12 inch deep skillet or a wok. You may also make them in a dutch oven. I have not yet tested this recipe in the oven or a slow cooker but i do plan to test it out in the future as well as the instant pot. (If you get to it before i do, be sure to comment here and let me know how it turned out)

Ingredients:

3lb Pork bone in Riblets

1tsp Kosher Salt

1/2tsp Black Pepper

1tsp No salt seasoning (or NO SALT Universal seasoning)

1/2tsp ginger (dry or fresh minced)

2Tbsp Oil for frying

Sauce:

1/2 Cup Manischewitz Concord Grape red wine

1cup Chicken Stock

3 garlic cloves (Pressed or roughly chop)

1/3 cup of Honey

3TB Rice vinegar

1/2tsp Red Chili Pepper flakes (mild spiciness, add more if you like more spicy)

Instructions:

Prepare the ribs by removing the tough membrane that runs along the underside of the ribs. (use a paper towel to get a good grip) Wash thoroughly and dry with a paper towel, then slice between each bone/cartilage, creating individual riblets.

Season with salt, pepper, ginger and no-salt seasoning. Cover with plastic wrap and let it marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the red wine sauce. Into a separate bowl add red wine, chicken stock, honey, rice vinegar, garlic, and red chili flakes. Mix everything to incorporate the honey and set aside.

Preheat a deep skillet or a wok on high heat, add 1-2Tbsp of oil and brown the riblets on all sides. Do this in batches to avoid steaming the meat.

After all the riblets are browned, add them all back to the pan and add the red wine sauce. Reduce the sauce by half on high heat, stirring occasionally and then reduce the heat to low setting and simmer the riblets for about 30-40 minutes with a lid ON or until the sauce has perfectly glazed the ribs. (The sauce should slightly thicken, if it has not yet reached that point, continue to simmer on low heat.)

The riblets are then ready when most of the sauce has evaporated and the meat will draw back and expose about three quarters of the rib bone. (Some meat may even separate from the bone)

Note: When the sauce begins to thicken, you may open the lid and watch closely so that the honey doesn’t burn.

Garnish with fresh chopped scallions or parsley and Enjoy!

Did you make this recipe? I’d love to hear how it went in the comments below. Better still, snap a photo and tag it on Instagram with #alenashomecooking. I love seeing your creations.

5 from 6 votes