How to Make Melt-in-Your-Mouth Chinese Boneless Pork Tips

Chinese boneless pork tips, also known as rib tips, are a lesser known but absolutely delicious cut of meat. When cooked properly, these meaty bits of pork are fall-apart tender with a lip-smacking sweet and sticky glaze. The keys are finding the right cut, marinating, and slow roasting until tender. Follow my simple process to make restaurant-worthy boneless pork tips at home.

What Exactly Are Pork Tips?

Pork tips also called riblets or rib tips are small pieces of meat cut from the ends of pork spare ribs. This section contains more cartilage than bone, giving the tips their melt-in-your-mouth texture when cooked.

The rib tip is removed by butchers when trimming spare ribs to create the familiar rectangular rack shape. Fresh pork tips may still have small soft bones attached For completely boneless tips, purchase country style pork ribs and slice them into 1-2 inch pieces.

Compared to ribs, pork tips have more inherent fat, are less expensive, and effortless to eat off the bone. Their versatility makes them ideal for Chinese dishes.

Benefits of Chinese Boneless Pork Tips

Cooking pork tips in the Chinese style has several advantages:

Infuses the meat with sweet and savory Chinese flavors
Produces fall-apart tender, juicy meat
Adds sticky caramelized glaze with rice wine, hoisin, maltose
Imparts subtle smokiness when roasted
Saves money over ribs with more meat per pound
Easier to eat than ribs with no or soft edible bones
Endless recipe flexibility – from appetizers to mains

How to Make Boneless Chinese Pork Tips

Follow these simple steps for fork-tender boneless pork tips with an irresistible Chinese glaze:

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless pork tips or country style ribs
1⁄4 cup hoisin sauce
3 tbsp maltose or honey
3 tbsp rice wine
3 tsp five spice powder
2 tsp sesame oil
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Cut pork into 1-2 inch pieces if using country style ribs.
Make glaze by mixing hoisin, maltose, rice wine, five spice, and sesame oil.
Toss pork pieces with glaze until fully coated. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
Arrange pork tips on sheet. Roast 25 minutes, flip, then roast 25 more minutes.
Reduce heat to 300°F. Roast 30 more minutes until tender.
Broil 2-3 minutes to caramelize glaze.
Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions:

Rice or lo mein noodles
Steamed broccoli
Egg rolls
Fried rice (pork or vegetable)
Wonton or egg drop soup

The sweet and savory glazed pork tips are also delicious in:

Lettuce wraps
Stir fries
Egg foo young
Pad thai
Ramen bowls
Tacos or sandwiches

Tips for Perfect Boneless Pork Tips

Choose meaty pork with marbling for flavor and moisture
Cut country ribs into uniform pieces to cook evenly
Refrigerate overnight to let marinade penetrate
Use maltose for authentic restaurant glaze or sub honey
Flip halfway during roasting to prevent burning
Finish under broiler to caramelize and crisp glaze
Check often to avoid overcooking
Let rest before serving so juices redistribute
Add to fried rice or noodle dishes
Freeze extras to reheat later

Make Them Your Own

Let your tastebuds decide how to season and sauce these boneless pork morsels.

Rubs: Five spice, garlic, onion, ginger, sesame, salt, Szechuan peppercorn

Glazes: Soy sauce, oyster sauce, plum sauce, sweet chili sauce, sriracha

Toppings: Scallions, cilantro, toasted sesame seeds

With a stellar marinade and the right roasting technique, you can achieve restaurant-quality boneless Chinese pork tips easily at home. Just remember to marinate sufficiently and roast low and slow until fall-apart tender.

These meltingly tender pork bites will be your new secret weapon for exciting appetizers and Asian-inspired meals any night of the week.

How to Make Chinese Boneless Spare Ribs

FAQ

What is boneless spare rib tips?

Boneless spareribs are not actually deboned spareribs. They’re made from a boneless pork butt (which is actually from the shoulder of the pig). The pork is cut into thick slices, roasted, and then cut into long thin lengths. Chinese takeout restaurants popularized this method years ago.

How to cook bianco & sons Chinese style boneless pork strips?

Pre-heat oven to 400 °F – 425 °F. Bake for roughly 15 minutes. Turn oven to broil for 3-5 minutes or until chop reaches an internal temperature of 145 °F.

What is Chinese boneless spare ribs sauce made of?

Mix hoisin sauce, ketchup, honey, soy sauce, sake, rice vinegar, lemon juice, ginger, garlic, and five-spice powder together in a shallow glass dish. Place ribs in the dish and turn to coat.

What are Chinese rib tips made of?

They are cut from spare ribs to create St. Louis cut ribs. Since they are the part closest to the belly, rib tips are full of flavor, like a combination between spare ribs and pork belly. They do have cartilage pieces that you have to eat around, but that’s a small price to pay for the flavor they impart.

How do you cook boneless pork in the oven?

Preheat the oven to 425°F. (Use an oven thermometer to ensure an accurate temperature.) Line a sheet pan or roasting pan with heavy duty foil (for quick clean-up) and place a metal rack on top. Place the boneless pork on the metal rack, ideally with 1/2-inch of room between the pieces.

Can one eat pork?

A cooked, medium pork cutlet or steak provides 239 calories, 34 grams protein, 10 grams fat, 4 grams saturated fat, 697 milligrams sodium, and 0 grams carbohydrate, if you eat only the lean part of the steak. Pork contains many of the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) found in beef and it is high in protein, but can be lower in fat than beef—depending on cut and preparation. Meat from any kind of mammal, including pork, can cause an allergic reaction (and some people who are allergic to mammalian meat also react to poultry).

Can I use boneless pork ribs?

First, start with the pork. You can use either boneless pork spare ribs if you can find them (boneless pork country ribs are likely easier to locate) or, boneless pork loin like I did here. Using pork loin will also keep the fat content a bit lower in the recipe.

Do Chinese takeout restaurants have pork rib tips with fried rice?

Many Chinese takeout restaurants have pork rib tips on the menu with a choice of rice––fried or plain, naturally. I remember my parents’ restaurant had Chinese BBQ rib tips with fried rice at the very top of the takeout menu, and it was no coincidence, because people would order this dish every night without fail.