Season the spare ribs with the salt, pepper, and 5 spice.
Place in the slow cooker, along with the garlic, ginger, onion, hoisin sauce, and chicken broth. Mix with your hands to combine.
Cook on high for 3 hours, or low for 6 hours.
Preheat the oven to 325°F (170°C).
Once the ribs are cooked, carefully remove them and place onto a tin foil-lined baking tray.
To prepare the BBQ sauce, take the remaining cooking juices from the slow cooker and pour into a frying pan set over a medium heat.
In a small bowl combine the water and corn flour, stir into the cooking juices. Add remaining BBQ sauce ingredients and reduce until a sticky BBQ sauce is achieved.
Brush onto the ribs on both sides and bake for 15 minutes.
Chop up the ribs and garnish with spring onion and red chili.