Cooking: Dinner without dishes

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Have you noticed the variety of dining china there is around these days? If we were to follow the example of restaurants, we would own stacks of shallow white dishes with wide brims designated for pieces of fish or fowl balanced upon a pillow of purée. We should need cupboards full of rectangular Asian dishes for the days we eat dumplings and things on skewers or strands of curious noodles. And enormous circular bowls for braises and soups.

Could it be the style of the container sometimes helps distract attention from the quality of the content? The whole contemporary dining experience often has more to do with surviving with aplomb the aloofness of the woman in the severe black Mao suit who leads you to your table, the cutting-edge design of the restaurant, the minimalist symmetry of its table settings, than with rejoicing in the food on your perfect plate. No displays of delight at the dish are encouraged in these superior establishments.

But are you even sure the food is delightful? It's so important to comport yourself correctly, you probably haven't noticed what you're eating.

I like food you can get stuck into. Food that doesn't need a dish at all is better still. When it's perishing cold outside, sometimes you don't even want to eat at a table, but hunker down in front of the television with the sports channel on full blast, gnawing things with your fingers straight from the cooking container.

My mother has a recipe for Chinese Spare Ribs of the sort you don't want to reveal to foodies. It doesn't quite slump into the same class as casseroles contrived with cans of mushroom soup or dips with dried onion sauce mix, but almost. Nevertheless, foodies love it, especially when served on an exquisitely translucent, celadon-green rectangular dish. It never fails. Just be sure to make it ahead to get rid of the fat, and reheat.

Throw together in a saucepan 1 tablespoon of sugar, 3 of honey, 4 of cider vinegar, 3 of soy sauce, 2 cloves of grated garlic, 1 inch of peeled and grated fresh ginger, 2 star anise, and half a pint of water. (My mother runs to beef stock, but I don't find it necessary.) You can add a squirt of tomato ketchup, if you have a mind to.

Bring to the boil, pour over separated pork short back ribs you've laid like storing spoons, curving on their sides in a Pyrex dish or roasting pan, and roast in a 375F oven for about 40 minutes, turning once. Let cool, then stick in the refrigerator. The fat will rise to the top and solidify.

Peel it off, then return to an oven preheated to 375F and roast for another 30 to 40 minutes, turning during the cooking and allowing the ribs to catch and blacken a little here and there. Then serve with plenty of napkins and cold beer. You can turn them into a full meal by serving a bowl of boiled rice and some sweet-and-sour 1-2-3 Cabbage alongside (so named for its measures).

For 6 people, thinly slice 1 1/2 pounds of white cabbage. In a mug, mix together 1 teaspoon salt, 2 tablespoons vinegar, 3 teaspoons sugar. Pour 2 tablespoons cooking oil into a hot wok or large frying pan. As soon as it's hot, throw in the cabbage and keep turning it around to coat and wilt just a little. Then stir the mixture in the mug and fling it over the cabbage. Keep tossing it for a minute or two, then serve while still slightly crisp.