Friday Recipe: Chinese-Style Roasted Beef Shortribs

It's been a while since I posted a recipe, and last week, I came up
with a real winner, so I thought I'd share it.

I absolutely love beef short ribs. They're one of the nicest cuts
of beef - they've got lots of meat, but they're well marbled with fat, and they're up against the bone, which gives them extra flavor. When cooked well, they've got an amazing flavor and a wonderful texture.

i-a775555cb77d4c7a5825f65a66c7cfa3-260px-Shacha_sauce.jpg

This recipe produces the best short ribs I've ever had. It's based,
loosely, on a chinese recipe, but it's cooked more in a western style.
There's one unusual ingredient, which is a chinese sauce that I've mentioned before on the blog, called sha cha sauce. It's made from brill shrimp,
garlic, and chili peppers. You can get it in a chinese grocery store. The english label is, unfortunately, "barbeque sauce", but you can identify it
by the ingredients, and by the picture of the jar over to the side.

xia cha.

Ingredients

  • 4 lbs shortribs, bone in, cut flanken style. (That means
    cut perpendicular to the bone, in chunks about 2 inches long.)
  • One large onion.
  • 4 cloves garlic. (more if you really like garlic)
  • 1 cup soy sauce.
  • 1 cup beef stock.
  • 1 cup dry gin.
  • 4 tablespoons sugar.
  • One teaspoon xia cha sauce.
    • Instructions

  1. Put the garlic and onion into a food processor, and
    run it until they're nicely chopped. Then add the liquids to
    the processor, and run it until the garlic and onions are a puree
    mixed into the liquids.
  2. Put the short ribs into an oven-safe deep dish, and cover them with
    the liquid. Put this into the fridge for a few hours to marinate.
  3. Heat the oven to 350, and put the marinated shortribs into the
    oven - marinade and all. Cook for 3 hours, taking it out and basting it every 30 minutes.
  4. By now, you've got some very well-cooked shortribs, sitting in the marinade, along with a huge amount of fat that cooked out of them. Take them out of the liquid, and set them aside.
  5. Strain the liquid, and skim the fat. What's left is a very strong, but very flavorful sauce.
  6. Put the shortribs back into the now empty pan. Give them a light baste
    with the sauce. Heat the oven up to broil, and when it's hot, put the
    short ribs back in, just long enough to brown and crisp the outside.

And they're ready to eat. Serve it with the sauce on the side, along
with rice and some stir-fried vegetables.

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Mark, eating meat is cruel for animals

Why do you think we eat it? Animal suffering is scrumptious. It's like a marinade made of delicious.

Re #1:

Who asked you?

I know that sounds snide, but seriously - why do you assume that (A) a blog post containing a recipe is an appropriate place to try to promote your preferred diet, and (B) that I'm completely unaware of the arguments in favor of that diet?

I was actually a vegetarian for about 4 years, and I didn't even beef for close to 20. So I am aware of the arguments.

Eating beef is evil! The Hindus won't be happy with you at all. And the Jews and Muslims won't be happy because you almost certainly didn't use meet that was Kosher or Halal. You horrible person! For all I know you've even eaten beef on Friday, which would infuriate the Catholics. You've probably been evil according to every single religious group possibly excepting the Episcopalians. Wait, never mind, you are the meat with a salad fork didn't you?

I'll have my wife try it. Thanks.

By William Wallace (not verified) on 22 Mar 2009 #permalink

btw it still makes you sign in ...
Regarding the animal cruelty, after seeing the cape buffalo on National Geographic being ripped apart by hyenas alive (from the rear)while stuck in the mud, I have the strong feeling he'd preferred that bolt through the head in the slaughter house. In case you missed it in biology class, your average herbivore doesn't get to live a life of joy and free food with retirement benefits in nature either.

I stopped by the Asian market and found the same sauce as you have in the pic. The sauce also goes by Satay Paste, I checked the lables and it's pretty much the same.

I have my ribs marinading in the fridge as I type this :)

Also couldn't resist picking up Pork Buns to go with tonights ribs.

Thanks, if not for this recipe I might not have gone into that market. Found lots of other great stuff too.