Hawaii seems to have a love affair with beef short ribs. I found short ribs of one form or another on all of the Islands I traveled to. When cooked properly they are truly amazing, done wrong they are rubbery, greasy, gristle on a bone. I have made enough of the latter to save you from the trouble. These are over the top/help me I just can’t stop/good! They are sweet, tender crosscut ribs in a Korean style BBQ sauce called Galbi (or Kalbi), and thick meaty vertically cut ribs I use for my Korean Tacos. Using two different cuts of the short rib, we can create two delicious preparations. On the top of this photo you see the crosscut ribs, about 3/8” thick, below them are the vertically cut thick short ribs, about three inches long and two inches thick. A word of caution when buying these ribs; If you can’t find them with a solid 2 inches or more of meat, don’t bother buying them. There won’t be enough meat left after the long cook time.

 

Marinade:

½ cup soy sauce (I use gluten free Tamari)

½ cup Mirin, water or cooking wine

½ cup brown sugar

2 tsp white pepper

¼ cup sesame oil

¼ cup ground sesame seed (I

10 garlic cloves

2 tbls finely chopped ginger

2 cups of chopped Asian pear (or Bosc)

1 med chopped onion

Asian Slaw:

1 lb bag of shredded coleslaw mix (carrots and cabbage)

½ cup chopped green onion

½ cup chopped cilantro

1 Red Bell Pepper thinly sliced and sautéed until soft

½ Apple, julienned

¼ cup cider vinegar

1 tbls soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp canola oil

1 tbls brown sugar

1 tsp finely grated ginger

1 tbls Sriracha Chili Sauce *optional

Chopped peanuts for garnish

Combine the first five Asian Slaw ingredients in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together all but the peanuts, making sure the sugar is completely dissolved. Pour the liquid over the cabbage mixture, cover and refrigerate for one hour.

Korean Ribs (Galbi):

4 lbs crosscut ribs

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour half the marinade into a one-gallon Ziploc bag. Separate the ribs and add them individually to the bag making sure each is covered in marinade. Marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 hour up to overnight.

Remove the ribs from the marinade and shake off and reserve excess. Let them come to room temperature. In a sauce pan bring the reserved marinade to a low boil for 2 minutes then remove from the heat. Heat your grill to very hot, and then bbq the ribs until there are grill marks the meat is caramelized. About two minutes a side depending on your grill. They should have some black “char” on them. Serve with white rice, spooning the reserved liquid over the top.

Korean Short Rib Tacos:

Six vertically cut short ribs, about 4-5 lbs total

1 package small round wonton wrappers

Oil for frying

*Optional- use small corn tortillas

 

Heat enough oil to 350 degrees in a deep fryer or heavy pot to fry the wontons, Fry (or bake) them in the shape of a taco ad set on a paper towel lined plate to drain and cool

 

Using the BBQ Short Rib Marinade, place the ribs in a Ziplock bag or suitable marinade container and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the ribs from the marinade and shake off and reserve excess. Let them come to room temperature.

In a sauce pan bring the reserved marinade to a low boil for 2 minutes then remove from the heat. In a large skillet, heat two tablespoons of canola oil. Season the ribs with salt and pepper. Add them to the skillet and cook over moderate heat, turning once, until browned and crusty, about 18 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Transfer the ribs and marinade to a large heavy bottomed baking dish. Cover and cook in the lower third of the oven for 1 1/2 hours, until the meat is tender, but not falling apart. Uncover and braise for 45 minutes longer, turning the ribs once or twice, until the sauce is reduced by about half and the meat is very tender. Add hot water if the pan is drying out. Transfer the meat to a clean sheet pan, discarding the bones as they fall off. Strain the sauce into a heatproof measuring cup and skim off as much fat as possible. Pour the some of the sauce over the meat.

Preheat the grill to 450 degrees. Grill the meat, turning once or twice, until glazed and sizzling, about 10 minutes. Transfer the meat to a cutting board and chop into small pieces. Fill your taco shell halfway with the chopped rib meat. Spoon some sauce over it and top with some of the Asian slaw and garnish with the chopped peanuts.