Asian beef short ribs recipe is a show-stopping dish that's very simple to prepare. The beef short ribs are tender, and the sauce is incredible. This dish is a labor of love. Perfect for this cold weather.
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This dish can be cooked the day before, chilled overnight, and served the next day so you can remove the fat that solidified overnight. It's a beautiful and simple dinner! Serve these braised Asian Beef Short Ribs with steamed white rice or with noodles, as you see in the picture.
Ingredients and Substitutions for Asian Beef Short Ribs
- English cut beef short ribs - bone-in or boneless. Bone-in will provide more flavor and more fat. The boneless will have less fat. You could also use different cuts of beef for this recipe, such as beef ribs, ox tail, chuck roast, and brisket. Any tough cuts will work perfectly.
- Sake (Japanese rice wine) - You can omit this. Not essential. However, I love the flavor it brings. Substitute with 1 cup of beef broth or just water.
- Brown sugar - this is the best sweetener to use in this recipe. White sugar will work too.
- Soy sauce - Low sodium soy sauce or tamari will work.
- Rice vinegar
- Mirin
- Sesame oil
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Dried Chilis
Equipment
- Dutch oven
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Crock Pot or Slow cooker (optional)
- Instant Pot (optional)
Method
Brown the ribs - this is a crucial step. Browning ensures flavor and locks in the juices in the ribs. You cannot skip this step.
Prep the sauce and aromatics - prep the rest of the ingredients for the braising cooking liquid.
Deglaze with sake or broth. Add the aromatics and the braising liquid. Add back the beef ribs and braise for the appropriate time until it is tender.
Chill Overnight and remove fat. For best results, chill overnight as the fat rises and solidifies, which makes it easier to remove the fat.
How to cook in dutch oven
- Brown the short ribs. Do not crowd, do it in batches.
- While the beef short ribs are browning, prep the rest of your ingredients. Ginger, garlic, and sauce.
- Set the beef aside and remove excess fat using a paper towel.
- Add the ginger, garlic, and dried chilis. Saute until fragrant for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sauce to the dutch oven.
- Add back the beef short ribs, and juices.
- Bring it to a boil, and bring the temperature down to a low simmer for 2 hours or until the short ribs are tender.
- Skim the fat from the top and reduce the sauce.
- Add a little cornstarch slurry (mixture of cornstarch and water) into the sauce to let it thicken.
- Serve it with white rice or noodles.
How to cook in the Instant Pot AsianShort Ribs (pressure cooker)
- In saute mode, brown the short ribs. Do not crowd, do it in batches.
- While the beef short ribs are browning, prep the rest of your ingredients. Ginger, garlic, and sauce.
- Set the beef aside and remove excess oil using a paper towel.
- Add the ginger, garlic, and dried chilis. Saute until fragrant for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sauce to the instant pot.
- Add back the beef short ribs, and juices.
- Bring it to a boil, and set the Instant Pot pressure cooker on Manual for 40 minutes.
- When it is done, feel free to do a quick release or let it come to a natural release.
- Skim the fat from the top. Use a strainer and remove the ginger, garlic, and chilis. Squeeze out all the juices.
- Go back to saute mode. Put the remaining braising juices back in the pot and reduce the sauce.
- Add a little cornstarch slurry (mixture of cornstarch and water) into the sauce to let it thicken.
- Serve it with white rice or noodles.
Garnish Ideas
- Sesame seeds
- Cilantro
- Green Onions
- Chili Oil
- Shiitake mushrooms - sauteed with garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil and rice vinegar
What to serve with your Asian Beef Short Ribs
- White rice and steamed vegetables for an easy meal.
- Noodles with sauteed shiitake mushrooms (see picture)
Other recipes to try with this are:
- Shiitake Mushroom Fried Rice
- The Ultimate Garlic Chili Oil
- Cauliflower Fried Rice - for a low-carb option
- Garlic Braised Kale
How to reheat and store
Store your short ribs in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge. After 3 days, freeze it for up to 3 months. I love making a big batch so that I can freeze half for future meals.
Reheat in a pan or microwave.
Asian Beef Short Ribs - FAQS
The easiest way to cook beef short ribs is by braising them. Braising is a combined cooking method in which the food is initially seared before being gently cooked in a sauce, generally a braising liquid with a covering to hold in the heat. Braising is ideal for challenging types of meat that require extensive cooking time to get a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
After cooking, it is a great idea to refrigerate overnight. It makes removing the large amount of additional fat that solidifies during the chilling process much easier to remove. Also, the ribs soak up the flavor of the stock overnight.
Short ribs are sliced near the breast bone from the chuck section of the meat. Because the flesh on these bones is too thin to make steaks, they are transformed into short ribs. There are many ways to cook short ribs: Dutch oven on the stovetop or oven, slow cooker (crock pot), or my favorite—the Instant Pot pressure cooker. Instant pot braised short ribs are a fantastic choice for braising, which helps tenderize them much faster.
You may technically opt out of the sake, but the taste will be considerably different. The flavor won’t be as good as it would be if you used sake, but it’ll still be worth it.
Asian Beef Short Ribs
Ingredients
Method
- In medium-high heat, brown the short ribs. Do not crowd, do it in batches.
- While the beef short ribs are browning, prep the rest of your ingredients. Ginger, garlic, and sauce.
- Set the beef aside and remove excess fat using a paper towel.
- Add the ginger, garlic, and dried chilis. Saute until fragrant for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the sauce to the dutch oven.
- Add back the beef short ribs, and juices.
- Bring it to a boil, and bring the temperature down to a low simmer for 2 hours or until the short ribs are tender.
- Skim the fat from the top. Use a strainer and remove the ginger, garlic, and chilis. Squeeze out all the juices.
- Put the remaining braising juices back in the pot and reduce the sauce.
- Add a little cornstarch slurry (mixture of cornstarch and water) into the sauce to let it thicken.
- Serve it with white rice or noodles.
Angela says
Flavors are really complementing to each other, i also liked the sauted shiitake mushroom helps the dish complete.
Lydia says
Love the umami, tomorrow ill try it with rice not noodles😅