Momofuku-Style Short Ribs
Also called kalbi-style short ribs, 48-hour short ribs without sous vide
Short ribs in a pear, apple and soy marinade, braised overnight in a very low oven, chilled, then deep-fried and served over scallop congee.
- Makes
- about 7 servings
Adapted from David Chang's Momofuku 48-hour sous vide short ribs
Ingredients
Amounts are for the recipe. Sizes, times and temperatures in the method are not scaled.
Marinade and braise
Fry and finish
To serve
Amounts worked out from the other system are rounded.
Method
Make the marinade. Combine the water (1005 g4¼ cups), soy sauce (190 g¾ cup), sugar (400 g2 cups), pear juice (75 ml5 tbsp), apple juice (75 ml5 tbsp), mirin (60 ml4 tbsp), sesame oil (20 g1½ tbsp), black pepper (¾ tsp), onion, carrots, scallion whites (5) and garlic cloves (3) in a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook 10 minutes. Strain out the solids and cool the marinade completely in the fridge.
Marinate overnight. Put the short ribs (2270 g5 lb) in a deep container or large zip-top bag. Pour the cooled marinade over them, making sure they are submerged. Refrigerate at least 12 hours, up to 24.
Braise very low overnight. Heat the oven to 180°F (82°C). Put the ribs and all their marinade in a Dutch oven; there is no sear. Bring to a bare simmer on the stovetop. Cover tightly with foil and then the lid. The double seal matters at this temperature, to stop evaporation. Braise in the oven for 9 to 12 hours, until the meat pulls easily from the bone but still holds its shape.
Chill overnight. Carefully move the ribs to a sheet tray or container. Strain the braising liquid into a separate container. Refrigerate both overnight.
Prepare for frying. Lift off and discard the solid fat from the braising liquid. Slide the bones out of the chilled ribs. Trim any obvious fat and cut the meat into neat rectangles or cubes of about 3 oz (85 g) each.
Reduce the sauce. Boil the defatted braising liquid in a saucepan over high heat until reduced to about 2½ cups of glossy, slightly syrupy sauce. It should coat a spoon but still pour.
Blanch the scallion greens. Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch the scallion greens (5) for 10 seconds, then plunge them into ice water. Drain.
Deep-fry. Heat the neutral oil (865 g4 cups) to 365°F (185°C) in a deep, heavy pot. Fry the pieces in batches, without crowding, for 3 to 4 minutes, until mahogany brown outside and warmed through. Drain on paper towels. Expect 4 or 5 rounds.
Serve. Ladle Scallop Congee into deep bowls. Cut each piece of short rib against the grain into 3 or 4 slices about ⅜ inch thick and shingle them over the congee. Spoon the sauce over the meat, drape a blanched scallion green across it, and drizzle with Scallion-Ginger Oil. Add a small dollop of the mustard and a pinch of the flaky salt. Serve at once.
Notes
- Beef. Use grain-finished short ribs. Grass-fed ribs can turn gamey in a braise this long and low.
- Doneness. Wiggle a bone: it should slide out, or nearly, with the meat staying intact around it. If you have to tug, it needs more time. A skewer through the thickest part should meet almost no resistance; if it grabs, give it another hour. At 180°F start checking at 9 hours; at 200°F, at 7 to 8 hours.
- Oven. Check with an oven thermometer that yours can hold 180°F before committing the ribs. Many home ovens bottom out at 200°F or cycle erratically that low. At 200°F, braise 8 to 10 hours.
- Pot. 5 lb of bone-in ribs is a lot of volume. Use a big Dutch oven or two pots, don't stack more than two layers deep, and keep the ribs mostly submerged or they won't braise evenly.
- The overnight chill and the deep fry make the dish. Cold, firm meat cuts cleanly and fries properly, where warm braised ribs fall apart in the oil. A broiler is no substitute for the fry.
- The sugar looks alarming, but it is the original ratio. Most of it stays in the braising liquid and is concentrated in the reduction.
- Soy sauce. Usukuchi is saltier and thinner than regular soy sauce. With regular soy the color will be darker, and you may want slightly less.
- Juice. Fresh pear and apple juice, from a juicer or grated and squeezed through cheesecloth, are best. Bottled works; avoid anything with added sugar or citric acid.
- Sauce. For more depth, add 1 tbsp doenjang or red miso, 1 tsp gochugaru or 1 tbsp fish sauce as it starts to reduce, and a splash of rice vinegar at the very end.
- Pickles. Quick-pickle daikon and carrot in rice vinegar with a pinch of sugar and salt while the ribs braise.
- Freezing. After the chill, bone, trim and cut the ribs. Freeze in a single layer on a sheet tray, then bag; freeze the reduced sauce separately. Keeps 1 to 2 months. Thaw fully in the fridge overnight and go straight to the fry.