To celebrate Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, I’m excited to share this slow-cooked short ribs recipe. You can start it on the stove and then either bake it in the oven for 3.5 hours or transfer it and cook it in a slow cooker on low for 8 hours. I generally hate the crockpot because I think it’s a cop out and, not as good but in this particular case it’s just as good.
Ingredients (serves 4):
- 4 beef short ribs (about 1kg)
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 knob of fresh root ginger, grated
- 3 star anise, whole
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp Chinese five spice
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 tbsp Chinese rice wine (optional)
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar (or sushi vinegar is even better
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 can of coke
- Fresh mint, coriander leaves, and sliced red chili, to garnish
- Cooked, fresh wide asian noodles or rice, to serve
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Or get out your crockpot.
- Season the short ribs and coat them in flour.
- Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a large flameproof casserole dish over medium-high heat. Brown the ribs on all sides, then set aside.
- In the same dish, add the remaining 1 tbsp of oil and the onion with a pinch of salt. Sauté for about 10 minutes until softened.
- Boil 1 cup water.
- Add the garlic and ginger to the onions, cooking for another 2 minutes. Stir in the spices and stir-fry for 1 minute.
- Pour in 1 cup of boiling hot water, scraping the bottom of the dish to deglaze and release any browned bits.
- Stir in the soy sauce, rice wine or regular white wine (if using), vinegar, and beef stock. Return the short ribs to the pot or transfer to slow cooker, ensuring they are well coated in the sauce. Use the coke to bring up to just about covering. Cover the lid and cook in the oven for around 4 hours until the meat is tender and falls off the bone or low on slow cooker.
- Garnish with fresh mint, coriander, and sliced red chili. Remove the anise pods. Serve over cooked, fresh wide asian noodles.