So when I saw the beef short ribs at the butcher's, I couldn't resist and I knew exactly what to do with them. I wanted that sweet/sour combination with hints of ginger, garlic, soy and lemon grass. Oh my word, my mouth is watering just thinking about it. One has to be careful when using soy though, especially in such big quantities, because your end result might be too salty, so I thought that pomegranate juice will do the trick.
The little red pomegranate rubies will also be a fresh element to the dish in the end. Well, I wasn't disappointed - the end result was exactly as I had planned it. Packed with flavour, the meat literally fell off the bone and certainly ticked all the right Easter binge boxes for me. So, next time you see short ribs, don’t walk past - grab some.
• 8 pieces beef short rib (mine was about 1.3kg)
• 30ml olive or coconut oil
• 4 cloves garlic – peeled and kept whole
• A thumb-length piece of ginger – peeled and cut in pieces
• 1 star anise
• 2 sticks lemon grass
• 250 to 300ml pomegranate juice
• 100ml thick soy sauce
• 1 red chilli – keep whole
• 1T grated ginger
• 15 to 30ml brown sugar
Heat a pan on the stove or, if you have one, a cast iron oven casserole and brown the meat in the oil. If you are using a pan, transfer the browned meat to a oven casserole or just keep the meat in the cast iron pot. Add the pomegranate juice, soy, ginger, garlic, lemon grass and star anise. Place the lid on and cook in the oven for two to three hours. The meat must be very soft and come off the bone easily.
Gently remove the meat from the sauce in the pot and keep warm. Add the sugar and grated ginger to the sauce and reduce to a light syrupy consistency. Place the meat back in the sauce and gently warm through. Serve on fluffy Jasmin rice with fresh pomegranate, chopped spring onion, and chopped chilli.
