Chinese Noodles with Baked Sriracha Ribs

I was cruising Serious Eats via Flipboard last Friday night & came across a recipe for sriracha ribs.  A) John & I love sriracha.  B) We've never made ribs.  This is one of Serious Eats' Sunday Supper recipes (because the ribs take 3+ hours to cook).  I showed it to John & we decided to try it on Sunday.

We decided 2 racks of ribs is insane for two people, so John was only supposed to buy 1 rack of ribs, but the 1 rack of ribs was like 3 feet long, so who knows what we bought.  We went ahead & made the whole recipe.

These ribs are kind of best thing we've ever made.  Aside from the weird tin foil rib hat you have to make in Step Three, this is a pretty easy recipe.  It just takes about 4 hours to make.  Even if you just makes the ribs portion of this recipe, I highly recommend it.  We'll be making this again.

CHINESE NOODLES WITH BAKED SRIRACHA RIBS

Adapted from Serious Eats

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

For the Ribs:
2 racks of baby back ribs
1/2 tsp ginger powder
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp ground chili
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup packed brown sugar, divided
1 cup apple juice
1 (12-ounce) bottle of light-flavored beer

For the Glaze:
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup sriracha
2 1/2 tbsp Asian chili sauce, divided

For the Noodles:
1tbsp chili oil
1/4 cup sliced mixed mushrooms
1 small fresh red chili, thinly sliced
2 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
5 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken broth
12 ounces fresh (8 ounces dried) Chinese egg noodles
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS

1.  Adjust oven rack to middle position & preheat oven to 275 degrees.  Combine ginger, black pepper, onion powder, chili powder, salt, & 1/4 cup brown sugar in a small bowl.  Mix thoroughly with fingertips.

2.  Place ribs on a large, foil-lined baking sheet & coat with rub on all surfaces.  Place in the oven to roast until fat is beginning to render & ribs are softened, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  Meanwhile, lay two 12- by 24-inch sheets of heavy duty aluminium foil out on the countertop & fold their edges tightly together to form one large sheet.

3.  Remove ribs from oven & set them on top of the foil.  Return them to the rimmed baking sheet with the foil.  Pour apple juice & beer on top of the ribs, then fold up foil & seal tightly to create an enclosed package.  Return to oven & continue cooking until ribs are completely tender, about 1 hour longer.

4.  While the ribs are cooking, prepare the glaze by mixing honey, Sriracha, 1 1/2 tbsp chili sauce & remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar in a small bowl.  Remove ribs from oven & raise oven temperature to 375 degrees.  Discard liquid, return ribs to baking sheet & generously brush with glaze.  Return to oven until glaze is burnished & sticky, 15 to 20 minutes longer.  Remove from oven & set aside, loosely tented with foil.

5.  Heat chili oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Add mushrooms & cook, stirring, until tender, about 3 minutes.  Add sliced fresh chili & garlic & cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute longer.  Transfer to a bowl & set aside.

6.  Bring chicken broth to a boil over high heat.  Add egg noodles & cook according to package directions (fresh noodles will be ready in 2 to 3 minutes).  Transfer to a large bowl.  Add mushroom mixture to noodles, along with remaining 1 tbsp chili sauce.  Toss to combine.

7.  Divide noodles among four deep-sided bowls.  Slice ribs & place a few in each bowl of noodles.  Garnish with scallions & cilantro & serve immediately.