Slow Cooker Korean Short Ribs

Chris went out and got us a Moose.  Such a provider!  I am new to moose meat, but am excited to learn how to cook with it and I hope that I like it!  Only problem, we still have an entire deep freeze full of beef.  Now, this may not seem like a problem to anyone "Oh you poor thing, you have two deep freezes full of meat.  Life must be hard" you may say.  I mean problem in the sense of "How the hell are we going to eat all this meat?!" Well, in organizing said deep freezes, I came across a pack of beef short ribs.  I had no idea we even had those!  Off to the internet to look for recipe ideas.  What I decided on was Korean style.  Delicious and super easy!

I'll take 6 please!

I knew I wanted to do a slow cooker recipe so I could have them ready after work and super flavorful from cooking all day.  One thing about slow cookers is that there is generally quite a bit of prep before you can toss it all in the crock.  I wake up with about an hour before I have to be at work, and that includes walking my dog, packing my lunch, and usually leaving the house late. I dont have time to brown meat or mix up sauces and chop vegetables in the morning!  In this case, no veg were needed, just a sauce that I decided to make the night before.  This sauce calls for soy sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, and fresh garlic and ginger.  I had most of those things... but I had to replace the fresh garlic and ginger with dry stuff and the red pepper flakes with Siracha (I know it is not the same thing, but some times you have to improvise)!  I think it would have been a lot more flavorful if fresh ingredients were used though, so buy your ingredients BEFORE you start cooking.  Mix all the goodies up and that's the sauce!

Check out my whisk! Thanks Chris!

Start with a package of thawed short ribs.  Mine were in ribs of three and I decided I wanted each done individually.  More sauce that way!  I ended up with 8 ribs, and the sauce seemed like just the right amount to cover them half way.  Place them in the slow cooker so that you have one layer of them.  I knew Chris would be home at lunch to flip them over so I started bone side down.

Pour your sauce! Make sure you coat all sides of the ribs.  No one wants to be left out of a good saucing.

Mmm

Cook on low for 8 hours!  My slow cooker has this great warm feature.  After the cooking time is done it switches itself to warm to keep the food at a safe temperature for 2 hours.  Always ready to eat after work, but I don't have to worry about rushing home to turn it off.

Look at the meat fall off the bone!

Once the cooking is done you want to thicken the sauce.  It is pretty much flavored water and fat at this point, doesn't coat very nicely.  Take the ribs out, put them in a dish, and cover with foil to keep warm.  I transferred my liquid to a saucepan and then put the container of ribs back in the hot slow cooker.

Has anyone seen my sauce?

I was not at all thinking at this point and I made a roue to thicken... I ended up with Korean gravy.  Don't do what I did.  If you need a thickening agent use corn starch which will be less gravy like, or you can just reduce the sauce without adding anything.  Once you have the sauce consistency you like, pour it back over those naked ribs!  To dress them up even more, top with sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds if you have them.  Serve over a bed of rice and enjoy! I know we did!

Ah, the sauce, it sticks!

The Rules!

Ingredients

- 1 package beef short ribs (about 8-10 ribs)

- 1-2 green onions (garnish)

- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds (garnish)

Sauce

- 1 cup soy sauce 

- 1 cup light brown sugar (I didn't have enough so I mixed half light with half dark)

- 4 tablespoons sesame oil

- 4 tablespoons rice vinegar

- 4 tablespoons minced fresh ginger

- 8 cloves minced fresh garlic

- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or a decent amount of Siracha... I didn't measure)

Directions

In a medium bowl combine all of your sauce ingredients.  Feel free to refrigerate if you are not cooking until the following day.  

Cut ribs into individual pieces and set in slow cooker in a single layer. If you have more ribs you will need more sauce! You want your cooking liquid (sauce) to come up the side of the ribs about half way.  Pour sauce over ribs and stir to coat.  If your ribs are thawed the night before, feel free to pour your sauce over the ribs and marinate in the fridge overnight!  Set slow cooker to cook for 8 hours on low and if possible, rotate in the middle of the cooking process.

When ribs are done, remove from cooking liquid and set aside in a covered dish.  Transfer liquid to a small saucepan and reduce to thicken.  Add cornstarch if necessary.  Pour sauce back over ribs and serve over a bed of rice.  Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Make sure to have plenty of napkins for these yummy, sticky ribs!

Love,

Jen