Ribs: 2 slabs of baby back ribs, cut into individual bones
or
Pork: 4 pounds pork loin cut into strips across the grain, about 1″ wide, 2″ tall

1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1/2 cup brandy (or rum or bourbon)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons hot sauce such as Tabasco
2 tablespoons powdered ginger
2 tablespoons powdered onion
1 tablespoon powdered garlic
1 tablespoon five spice powder
1 teaspoon red food coloring

About the ribs. Many Chinese restaurants use spareribs that are chopped into 3-4″ riblets with a cleaver. If you want, your butcher can make you riblets with her band saw. If not, you can do them whole. I like baby backs for this recipe because they are meatier on top of the bone.

About the Chinese ingredients. There are no substitutes for hoisin sauce, five spice powder, or sesame oil. They are responsible for most of what we think of as the flavor of Chinese food in the US. Five spice powder is easy to make at home (click the link above for my recipe), but the others are not easily made. Click on the links for more info on these ingredients. If you have trouble finding them in your grocery store, try Amazon.com.

About the hot sauce. If you have an Asian-style chili sauce you can use it, but any old hot sauce will work fine in this marinade since it provides more heat than flavor. The recipe above produces mild heat. Add more if you love pain.

About the food coloring. Food coloring is necessary for the authentic color. I am told by readers that you can substitute beet root powder for the red food coloring or fermented bean red curd, but I’ve never tried them. There is very little used in this recipe and most is discarded with the unused marinade. There are natural food colorings made from achiote and its seeds annato, or cochineal (a.k.a. carmine), an insect. If you want to leave it out, the food will still be great, but it won’t have the traditional festive color.

Optional. After about 2 1/2 hours, paint the meat with a glaze of honey and roast an additional 30 minutes. Then garnish with sesame seeds or chopped chives or chopped green onions.

Mix the marinade thoroughly in a bowl. Don’t skip the booze. It helps penetrate, and even if you’re a teetotaler, don’t worry, there isn’t any measurable alcohol in the meat. Yes, I know alcohol can dry meat out, but I just think it works well in this case. If you must skip it, use apple juice or water, but booze is better. You can substitute fresh ginger and garlic for powdered ginger and garlic if you wish. Marinate the meat for at least 1 hour in a metal bowl or zipper bags. Overnight is better. Discard the used marinade. It is contaminated with meat juice. Don’t marinate in a plastic bowl. The coloring might stain it. As much as I am a fan of outdoor cooking, this meat also tastes great cooked in an indoor oven. Either way, heat your grill or oven to about 225°F. If you are grilling, set up in a 2-zone or Indirect system. Make sure the meat is not directly over the flame on a grill. If necessary, put a pan of water with a rack on top of it under the meat. Indoors, this is important or drippings will burn in the pan. Roast ribs for about 3 hours without wood (I think it is cleaner and brighter sans lumber), loin strips for about 1 1/2 hours.