This is a perfect recipe for a lazy Sunday afternoon – serving two or with guests serving four! The short ribs need about 3 hours to cook – so start around 2 PM and you’ll be ready for a great dinner about 5:30 or 6 PM.
The inspiration for this recipe came from chef Marcus Samuelsson’s Obama’s Short Ribs recipe as described in the New York Times – and it’s also in the chef’s Red Rooster Cookbook – The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem.
I’ve made several modifications – basically to make it simpler and easier. I usually try to rework recipes that use amounts of ingredients that result in wasting portions that you might buy in standard size packages. So, I adjusted – and simplified – and the result was great!
[First posted: February 26, 2018]
Ingredients
- 1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed, smashed and minced
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped – or about 1-1/2 tbs of already minced garlic
- 1 Optional (1-inch) piece ginger, peeled and minced
- ½ cup red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon or Zinfandel)
- 3 cups beef broth (2 cups if only 4 ribs)
- ½ cup plum sauce (¼ cup if only 4 ribs)
- ½ cup soy sauce (¼ cup if only 4 ribs)
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
- 2 bay leaves
Directions
- Heat oven to 325 degrees. Pat meat dry with paper towels. Season ribs all over with salt and pepper.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When oil shimmers, add short ribs and brown on all four sides, about 2 minutes per side; transfer to a plate.
- Add mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery), lemongrass, garlic and ginger to the pot. Season with salt and cook, stirring often, until onion softens, about 5 minutes.
- Add in wine, beef broth, plum sauce, soy sauce, thyme, parsley and bay leaves and bring to a simmer.
- Return short ribs to pot, along with any juices, cover and slide pot into oven. Braise until meat is fork-tender, about 3 hours.
- Transfer meat to a plate. Use a ladle to skim the fat off the top of the braising liquid. Discard bay leaves and thyme stems. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Add short ribs and turn to coat in the sauce; set aside until you’re ready to serve.
- Serve short ribs in shallow bowls and top with a spoonful of sauce. Put remaining sauce in a bowl for the table. Enjoy!
- Serve with the rest of the red wine – and, likely, a second bottle! If there are leftovers, congratulations – as the ribs are even better warmed up tomorrow!