Stewed pork ribs with taucheo (fermented bean paste) was one of my mother’s recipes, one that I am fortunate to learn. It brought back a lot of sweet memories as I was preparing it today.
It was my father’s favorite dish–one that garnered special attention as my mother would spend hours slowly stewing the pork ribs until the meat falls off the bones. As humble as it looks, Nyonya stewed pork ribs is a very delicious dish, one that would certainly stimulate your appetite with its tangy and savory taste.
I made this very dish for my parents once. My mother instructed me in the kitchen and taught me the step-by-step, and my father gave me his thumbs up when I served it to him. He told me it was “ho chiak” (delicious)…
Nyonya loves pork and there are many dishes that are made of pork, and this stewed pork ribs dish is one of them. One of the very common ingredients used by Penang Nyonya is bean paste or taucheo; it’s an ingredient that I can’t do without.
In Penang hokkien dialect, we refer “stewing” as “khong,” so locally, stewed pork ribs is called “Khong Bak Kut” (Bak Kut means pork ribs).
There are other flavorful and mouthwatering stew dishes such as tau eu bak (pork with soy sauce), khong assam, etc, which I plan to share with you over time.
This stewed pork ribs is best served with steamed rice and eat with sambal belacan.
A Nyonya meal is incomplete without sambal belacan.
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 377 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
5 Secrets to 20 Min Dinners
Get tricks for quick & easy meals!
Nyonya Stewed Pork Ribs
Nyonya stewed pork ribs is a very delicious dish, one that would certainly stimulate your appetite with its tangy and savory taste.
Ingredients
- 450 g pork spare ribs
- 100 g shallots, skin peeled
- 100 g fresh red chilies, seeded and sliced lengthwise
- 4 cups water
- 3 tablespoons taucheo/bean paste smashed with a mortar and pestle
- 1 tablespoon tamarind pulp soaked in 1/4 cup water, extract the juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar to taste
- salt to taste
Directions
-
1Heat up a stew pot with 4 cups of water and bring it to boil.
-
2Add shallots, chilies, and pork ribs into the water.
-
3Add taucheo (bean paste) and bring it to boil.
-
4Lower heat to medium or low and cover with a lid and slowly stew the ribs for 1 hour or so, or until the meat becomes really tender.
-
5Add tamarind juice, sugar, and salt to taste.
-
6If it's not sour enough, add more water to the tamarind pulp and extract more juice.
Recipe Notes
Nyonya stewed pork ribs should taste salty (from the bean paste), sour (from the tamarind juice), and sweet (from the sweet taste of pork ribs and shallots). It should also taste a little spicy from the red chilies. The taste develops overnight and it's even better the next day.
Sandra
Hi Bee, is this called Bai Kut Sui (sour in Hokkien) as well? I’ve been hearing the name of the dish from my grandma but have never tried, the dish you made definitely resembles it ?
Isobel Higa
Hi Bee, Is there a particular brand of taucheo/bean paste you use. Would you buy it from somewhere like Ranch 99 and is it in a jar? I really miss Penang and the food so I can’t wait to try some of your Nyonya dishes. thanks for wonderful recipes.
Rasa Malaysia
It doesn’t matter.
Laslo Veci
Delicous. I will make it often.
Thanks for the recipe.
Laslo
Fred
Dear Bee,
I made this delicous dish yesterday. It is simple to prepare and it has a wonderful taste. I will certainly make this more often. One question remains though. What is the right way to eat this dish? Since this stew comes with a very abundant and really delicious ‘broth’, should I eat it like a rich soup in a soup bowl? Or do you ladle it over white rice on a plate/bowl? Forgive me for my ignorance.
Fred
Rasa Malaysia
Eat with steamed rice and ladle the soup on the rice, slurp and eat. :)
Belinda
Would frying the minced shallots with tau cheo enhance the flavour ?
Rasa Malaysia
Yes!
Kay Lee
Is there an alternative for the taucheo and tamarind juice?
Rasa Malaysia
No.
Joyce Perera
I tried this dish yesterday, and my fussy eaters loved it. Unbelievably easy dish. Thanks so much.
Sueann
The bean paste you mentioned in the recipe are which type? As I am confused with the 2 type – brown and black. Some are in bean form some are in smashed type , for this dish which one should I use? Or any particular brand you would recommend?
Rasa Malaysia
Brown bean, smashed