True story: a few weeks ago, I discovered four pounds of short ribs hanging out in the back of my freezer. I won’t tell you how old they were, only that they just barely on the right side of “still good” and probably needed to be cooked soon. But somehow, spring had invaded February, so I found myself googling “light short rib recipes” which … spoiler alert: does not yield anything that is useful.
Somehow the weather gods became aware of my plight, and rewarded(? punished?) the East coast with two back-to-back Nor’easters in less than a week. Storm #1 yielded a plush banana bread, and on the morning of Storm #2, I finally had my “duh!” moment and defrosted those short ribs.
While there are a plethora of short rib recipes on this site already, I did a quick search to see if there was anything new or interesting happening in the short rib world. Stumbled upon this — not new but definitely interesting — a short rib recipe that Marcus Samuelsson served the Obamas when they visited Red Rooster in Harlem in 2011. Three of my favorite people in the world = instant yes, so I trudged out into the “thunder snow” to find lemongrass and plum sauce because yes, I actually am unhinged. (Luckily, I found them both in the first place I looked — Whole Foods.)
Marcus Samuelsson is Ethiopian-born and Swedish-raised, and the chef behind one of my favorite NYC spots, Red Rooster in Harlem, which has decidedly Southern influences. So I’m not 100% sure why his short rib recipe has such Asian flavors, but short ribs braised in a broth laced with ginger, lemongrass, soy sauce and plum sauce? Sign me up every time. I added a heaping tablespoon of chili-garlic paste, which is one of my fav things in the world. The spice is a nice balance for the sweetness of the plum sauce and the richness of the meat, so if you’re okay with a bit of a kick, I highly recommend it.
The aromas! OH EM GEE the aromas. Three hours of lemongrass and ginger wafting from the kitchen was somehow both a total tease and also weirdly soothing — this is the kind of aromatherapy I can get behind. And, it goes without saying, these short ribs were knock-your-coziest-winter-socks-off good.
I ended up taking the short ribs off the bone, trimming some of the fat and shredding the meat into the sauce. Because the sauce WAS. SO. FREAKING. GOOD. Sweet and slightly sour and spicy and savory, it tangles its way through every nook and cranny of the shredded short ribs, creating something rich and hearty and packed with flavor — everything one could want as one last storm blasts its way through March.
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PinIngredients
- 4 pounds English-cut short ribs
- kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 large yellow onion (or 3 small shallots), chopped
- 2 small carrots, trimmed and chopped
- 2 celery ribs, trimmed and chopped
- 1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed, smashed and minced
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 2-inch piece ginger, peeled and minced
- 2 teaspoons chili-garlic paste (I used one tablespoon because I like chilis … and garlic)
- 1/2 cup dry red wine
- 3 cups low-sodium beef or chicken broth
- 1/2 cup plum sauce
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 sprigs parsley
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Pat the short ribs dry with paper towels and season all over with salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the short ribs in batches and brown on all sides (at least 2 minutes per side — take your time here!). Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining short ribs.
- Add the shallots (or onion), carrots, celery, lemongrass, garlic and ginger. Season with salt and cook, stirring often, until the onions soften, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the wine and chili-garlic sauce, scraping up any brown bits that might still be sticking to the bottom of the pot. Add the broth, plum sauce, soy sauce, thyme, parsley and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer.
- Nestle the short ribs into the pot, along with any juices. Cover and carefully transfer the pot into the oven. Braise until meat is fork-tender, 2-1/2 to 3 hours.
- Transfer the meat to a plate. Use a ladle to skim the fat off the top of the braising liquid, then strain through a fine mesh sieve.
- Discard the bay leaves and transfer vegetables to a food processor or blender. Process the vegetables until smooth, then add 1-1/2 cups of the defatted braising liquid to the processor and pulse to combine.
- Return the sauce to the Dutch oven and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the short ribs and turn to coat in the sauce. (OR if desired, remove the bones and trim some of the fat off each short rib, then shred the meat and place it back in the sauce. Toss the mixture a few times so that the meat coats the short ribs.)
- Divide the short ribs between four bowls and top each with sauce. Put the remaining sauce in a bowl for passing at the table. (OR divide the shredded short rib mixture among four bowls.) Serve with rice.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
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