Pork ribs with honey and anise

Description

Sweet, slightly hot and absurdly sticky, these ribs will fill the kitchen with that warm, aniseed smell you so often encounter in Chinese restaurants.

Ingredients

6 tbsp set honey
3 heaped tbsp oyster sauce
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp dried chilli flakes
4 whole star anise
¼ tsp salt flakes
¼ tsp black peppercorns
1.5kg/3lb 5oz meaty pork ribs
steamed rice, to serve

Method

1. To make the marinade, spoon the honey and oyster sauce into a roasting tin or baking dish. Peel and chop the garlic and add it to the dish with the chilli flakes, star anise and salt. Grind the peppercorns roughly and add them to the marinade.
2. Toss the ribs in the marinade, then set aside for an hour or so. It won't hurt if they stay there overnight.
3. Roast the ribs at 180C/355F/Gas 4 for an hour and fifteen minutes, turning them in their sauce from time to time. Keep an eye on them, as sometimes they tend to burn easily. They are ready when the meat is tender, though far from falling off the bone, and the ribs are glossy with sauce.
4. Serve with steamed rice, spooning over the sauce from the pan.