Visitors watch Sanfengqiao’s chef cook sauced spare ribs. [Photo from chinadaily.com.cn]

The time-honored flavors of Wuxi's Sanfengqiao captured a group of expats when they visited its kitchen on May 21.

Sanfengqiao, set up in 1927, is a China time-honored brand, approved by the Ministry of Commerce. Its specialty is sauced spare ribs, which might well rank first among the many things Wuxi can boast about.

Wuxi spareribs are tender and juicy, rich but not greasy. [Photo from chinadaily.com.cn]

Only top-quality spareribs, with sternum bones, cartilage and surrounding meat removed, are used for the dish. Tender and juicy, rich but not greasy, these ribs coated with an irresistible sauce have diners licking their fingers and yearning for more.

Rich ingredients and a precise recipe contribute to Sanfengqiao's unique savor, a chef explained.

The ingredients of its sauced spare ribs include fennel, cinnamon, clove, myrcia, cardamun, amomum, red yeast rice, rock candy, soy sauce, yellow rice wine, chive and ginger.

Red yeast rice, for example, is rice on which yeast has been nurtured, a method invented more than a thousand years ago in China. In Chinese cuisine, it's used as a natural coloring to give dishes such as Peking duck a bright red color.

The ingredients of Sanfengqiao’s sauced spare ribs include fennel, cinnamon, clove, myrcia, cardamun, amomum, red yeast rice, rock candy, soy sauce, yellow rice wine, chive and ginger. [Photo from chinadaily.com.cn]

"We emphasize our food's quality," said Zhang Ximing, deputy director of the Planning Department, adding that Sanfengqiao cooperates with well-known meat processing factories such as Shuanghui to ensure food safety.

"We tasted Wuxi's history from the sauced spare ribs as the sauce has been going since 1927," said American Beth Overby and Zimbabwean Bridget Mutasa, two teachers from Taihu International School.

The visit was one of a series of activities called "Love in Wuxi," which is sponsored by the Wuxi government to help expatriates explore more of the city.

A Wuxi Rib Cook-off, where you can taste ribs cooked from 12 international teams and help decide which team wins, is scheduled for this Sunday.