Slow-braised Korean Short Ribs

 
30 MINS 

4.5 HOURS

Serves 4

METHOD

1. Heat your slow cooker on the sear/fry setting, if available, and brown the short ribs in batches, ensuring they develop a deep color and as much fat renders out as possible. Spoon out any excess fat between batches.

2. Add the chopped spring onions, garlic, and ginger to the slow cooker, layering them with the browned ribs. In a bowl, mix the rice wine vinegar, lime juice, gochujang, soy sauce, soft brown sugar, sesame oil, and ground sesame seeds. Pour this mixture over the ribs.

3. Set the slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours, or until the ribs are tender and the meat is falling off the bone.

4. While the ribs are cooking, make the pickles. In a small bowl, combine the rice vinegar, sesame oil, caster sugar, diced chili, and halved garlic clove.

5. Use a peeler to create stripes of skin on the cucumbers, then slice them into discs. Toss the cucumber slices in the pickling liquid and refrigerate for at least an hour (remove the garlic before serving).

6. Once the ribs are cooked, carefully remove them and let them cool. If possible, chill the cooking liquid until the fat hardens on top, then scoop off and discard the fat. 

7. Once the fat has been removed, return the ribs and sauce to the slow cooker and set it to simmer or reduce until the sauce thickens slightly.

8. Serve the ribs over a bed of cooked basmati rice with the pickled cucumbers on the side.

TIP

Reduce the sauce in a pan if your slow cooker doesn’t have a simmer function for a more intense flavour.

Use 8 short ribs, depending on your slow cooker size, to ensure they cook evenly in the sauce.