for the short ribs:
4 short ribs bone-in (if you don't know what they are, ask your butcher)
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon grated ginger
2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon brown sugar
juice of 1/2 of a lime
2 and 1/2 cups of apple juice
1 teaspoon siracha (or any hot sauce will do. Add more if you want it spicier)
3 scallions
salt and pepper
for the sides:
1 cup of jasmine rice
1 small can of light coconut milk
juice from 1/2 of a lime
a small handful of cilantro chopped
2 baby bok choy chopped and rinsed really well
1 red pepper (diced)
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 teaspoon ginger
red pepper flakes (how hot? you decide)
Short ribs take time, And the only way you will get them right is if you cook them in the oven for a few hours. They need lots of love so I generally cook them on the weekend when I can give them the attention they deserve (because I know that they will make me a very happy woman if I treat them right). Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
While your oven is heating, get a large pan that has a lid *Important* this pan needs to be able to transfer into the oven! A small dutch oven will do beautifully. I use my wok sized Calphalon with it's tight fitting lid for this recipe.
put a little canola oil in your pan and put on stovetop burner over medium high heat. Salt and pepper all sides of your short ribs and pan sear them on each side to achieve a gorgeous crust. once they are browned you will add your braising liquid. (I assemble my braising liquid while the short ribs are searing)
For the braising liquid, in a bowl stir together your 2 cloves of garlic, applesauce, soy sauce, ginger, 1/2 of a lime juiced, brown sugar, 1.5 cups of apple juice (reserve the rest for later) & siracha sauce. lower the heat of the pan that the short ribs are searing in (you don't want the liquid to jump out at you when it hits a pan that's too hot!) Add your awesome braising liquid to the pan and bring it up to a LOW simmer. (its ok if the short ribs aren't completely covered. you'll be turning them every 30 minutes while they cook in the oven).
Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and transfer to your oven. Cook the ribs at 350 degrees for about 2-2.5 hours.
You need to turn them with tongs in the liquid every 30 minutes. As you cook them, your liquid is going to reduce to basically the best stinking korean style bbq sauce you've ever had. Mine reduced really fast (too fast) and I added the rest of my apple juice to the pan at about an hour so my short ribs wouldn't dry out. just feel it out. If you're ribs aren't fork tender yet and the liquid is looking like it's going down to nothing, add more juice and stir it together. It's important to do this BEFORE your bbq sauce reduces so much that it burns. No good. No good at all. At the 1.5 hour mark, I knew my ribs would be finished soon so I started my sides. Things tend to cook very differently in Denver though so it may take you longer to cook them. *IMPORTANT* You know they are done when they are so tender that they are falling apart! Your liquid needs to be at a thick consistency and your meat needs to be SUPER tender!
For the rice:
The golden rule for rice: 1 part rice. 2 parts liquid. Not Just Water. ANY liquid will do. For this dish, I use coconut milk and water as my liquid to cook my jasmine rice and it is phenomenal. In a saucepan, put a pat of butter on medium high heat along with 1 cup of rice (more if you are cooking for a crowd). And then I added 2 cups of a coconut milk/water combo. Bring rice to a boil. Give a stir. Drop the heat to a LOW simmer. Cover TIGHT and LEAVE IT ALONE. Shake the pan every 5 or 10 minutes to make sure your rice doesn't stick. Follow time instructions on the package of rice that you bought. My rice takes about 20 minutes.
After it's tender, turn off the heat and add some lime juice and chopped cilantro. Fluff with a fork.
For Veggies:
In a pan on medium heat, cook a clove of garlic in a bit of canola oil along with the grated ginger and chili flake. Add your chopped vegetables and salt them to taste. Cook until just tender.
ASSEMBLY!!
about 10 minutes before you pull the short ribs from the oven, give them one last turn and throw in some chopped scallions. Re-cover and wait a few minutes.
I always serve this family style. Heap your rice on a platter and throw the veggies on either side of the rice. And THEN Nestle those perfect little short ribs on the bed of rice and spoon extra bbq sauce from the pan onto each one (Don't drool on the food). Eat them and thank ME for blessing you with such greatness.
