Have you ever tasted something so delicious that it feels like a culinary revelation? That's exactly how it feels to bite into a perfectly cooked beef short rib. I’m deeply in love with them, the rich slow cooked meat practically falls off the bone, leaving you craving for more. No wonder I’ve fallen head over heels for this underrated cut of meat. Gone are the days when you had to visit a specialty butcher to get your hands on beef short ribs as well, thanks to supermarkets like Sainsbury's and Waitrose they are far more easily available. (Note. Waitrose also sell beef back ribs, not suitable for this recipe as relatively little meat and better on a bbq.) Another plus is that not only are beef short ribs deliciously flavoursome, but they are also incredibly economical. This not a difficult dish to cook and has minimal prep time and don’t let the amount of images deter you, it’s just me covering it in detail! I'm doing this as a slow cooker recipe for now but it could be adapted for a casserole as well.
The ribs in the image below weigh 1.2 kilos and came from Sainsbury's. These are whole ribs, I've noticed in some supermarkets they are cut differently into shorter portions, That might be more suitable depending on the size of the slow cooker or casserole dish you are using. The cooking method is the same and these ribs will serve 4 people. I'm using Panang Curry paste but you could really cook this with another paste like Massaman or Green if that is more to your taste. I'm serving this with Paratha flatbread which is like a flaky Roti and you can buy them in the freezer cabinets of most supermarkets, the ones I am using came from Sainsbury's. 1 can ofCoconut milk, as always the choice of coconut milk used is important and there is more information on the link. I will also be covering it in more detail below. I'm also using a few chopped chillies and some Thai sweet basil, I normally find Waitrose or M&S the best source for that.
Add a little oil to a pan and sear the ribs until you have a dark carmelised coating.
If you have read the earlier link on coconut milk you now know the reasons why quality coconut milk is so important in curry. It becomes even more important when you are using a slow cooker as coconut milk does not lend itself to long slow cooking. If you are using a quality coconut milk like the ones mentioned, then this is less of a problem as if it separated it can easily be whisked back together again. The problem comes if you are using low quality coconut milk that depends on emulsifiers and stabilisers & various other additives to keep it together, under long cooking it will break down and leave you with an unpleasant tasting chemical soup. The method used below is the best way to avoid coconut milk splitting. A can of Chaokoh or Aroy-D is left to stand upright for 30 minutes or more and the coconut milk will rise to the top where it can be scooped off leaving the coconut water behind. We will be using this first so refrigerate the coconut milk and reserve for later. This can be made even easier if you can leave the can of coconut milk in the fridge for a few hours or overnight until you are ready to use it. You then proceed as in the images below. Now if you can’t obtain a quality milk like those brands you are better off either cooking another recipe or just using water at this stage because you can’t separate a milk that contains lots of additives in this way.
Spoon off the coconut milk at the top of the can leaving the water behind.
Add separated Coconut water to the pot.
Add 1 can of water (400ml)
Add curry paste.
Stir through the paste coating the ribs.
Slow cookers can vary considerably and the ribs in the image below were cooked 4hrs 30 minutes on a low setting where the meat was coming away from the bone easily at that stage. Your cooker may take longer so check and continue to cook if you need to.
Remove ribs and set aside.
Transfer the sauce to a saucepan. You may want to remove excess fat and oil from the sauce at this stage. Add the reserved coconut milk. Boil for 10 minutes to reduce the sauce and then add the ribs and cook for a further 10 minutes. Depending on the type of slow cooker you have you might want to serve it from that, or direct from the pan. Another factor is whether you are cooking the long ribs as I have here or the the shorter cut ribs.
Cook the roti or paratha and keep warm. You could also use Naan bread and it works with nice flaky croissants too :-)
Garnish & serve from the pan, or separate the meat and garnish as in the image at the top of the recipe.
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Enjoy:-)
If you like this recipe please click the star rating or add a comment below! Kop Khun Kha, Nitsa.x
This is a slow cooker
recipe where cooking beef short ribs on the bone in this way allows so much goodness
to flow into the dish. It could also be adapted for a casserole but I haven't
got around to doing that yet! This is quite a simple dish to do but the most
important thing about it is how the coconut milk is used in the recipe as
coconut milk does not work well with long slow cooking. It's best to read the
advice in the full recipe above the coconut milk images. How it is served
also depends on whether you want to serve on the bone or off.
Add a little oil to a pan and sear ribs until carmelised.
Put ribs in slow cooker and add separated coconut water (refer to detailed instructions and images above.) plus 400 ml water.
Add curry paste and stir through
Cook in slow cooker on low setting, check after 4 hours 30 minutes, the meat needs to be coming off the bone.
Remove ribs and reserve. Add the separated coconut milk and reduce the sauce for 10 minutes, add the ribs to the sauce and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Pan fry roti according to pack instructions
Garnish & serve.
Recipe Video
Recipe Note
How this is served depends on the cut of ribs you have refer to the notes in the main recipe.
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If you have read the earlier link on coconut milk you now know the reasons why quality coconut milk is so important in curry. It becomes even more important when you are using a slow cooker as coconut milk does not lend itself to long slow cooking. If you are using a quality coconut milk like the ones mentioned, then this is less of a problem as if it separated it can easily be whisked back together again. The problem comes if you are using low quality coconut milk that depends on emulsifiers and stabilisers & various other additives to keep it together, under long cooking it will break down and leave you with an unpleasant tasting chemical soup. The method used below is the best way to avoid coconut milk splitting. A can of Chaokoh or Aroy-D is left to stand upright for 30 minutes or more and the coconut milk will rise to the top where it can be scooped off leaving the coconut water behind. We will be using this first so refrigerate the coconut milk and reserve for later. This can be made even easier if you can leave the can of coconut milk in the fridge for a few hours or overnight until you are ready to use it. You then proceed as in the images below. Now if you can’t obtain a quality milk like those brands you are better off either cooking another recipe or just using water at this stage because you can’t separate a milk that contains lots of additives in this way.
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Sue Franey
November 17, 2024
I’m saving this recipe to try later on this week.
I can’t wait to try it.