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Korean short ribs with spicy kimchi cucumbers
This is serious comfort food, with enough spice to shake up your comfort zone. It's slow food, but watch how fast it disappears!
Buy the best short ribs with the least fat and gristle. Rich, slow-cooked ribs, carrots and mushrooms meet spicy stuffed kimchi cucumbers — comfort with a kick.
Method
- 01
Bring a big pot of water to the boil and cook the ribs for 10 minutes. Drain, refill with fresh water and repeat the 10-minute blanch, then drain again.
- 02
In a food processor, pulse the onions, 6 garlic cloves and ginger until finely chopped, but not paste-like.
- 03
Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based pot. Add the onion mixture and stir-fry over medium heat until softened but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the drained ribs and fry, stirring often, for another 10 minutes.
- 04
Add the soya sauce, sesame oil, crushed dried chilli, sugar and 600 ml water. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook for 1 hour. While the ribs cook, soak the shiitake mushrooms in 600 ml warm water for 30 minutes, reserving their soaking water.
- 05
Prepare the cucumbers: trim the ends and cut into 8 cm pieces. Stand each piece on its end and slit down the middle without cutting through the base. Turn a quarter-turn (90 degrees) and slit again to form four joined quarters with room for the filling. Sprinkle all over with the salt and drain in a colander for 30 minutes.
- 06
Mix the chives, 2 garlic cloves, ginger, diced carrot, fish sauce, dried chilli flakes, lemon juice and sugar. Wipe the salt and released water off the cucumbers with a clean tea towel. Gently open the slits and stuff the spicy filling as far into the cuts as possible, using all the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or overnight; these are quick kimchi-style cucumbers, not a room-temperature fermentation.
- 07
Back to the ribs: add the carrots, shiitake mushrooms and their reserved soaking water. Cook uncovered for a further 30 minutes, until the carrots are cooked and the sauce has reduced. Check the ribs — if not yet tender, continue gently simmering until tender, adding a little water if the sauce reduces too far.
- 08
Just before serving, add the 150 g shimeji mushrooms and put the lid back on. They wilt fast, so watch carefully and cook until softened and heated through. Serve the ribs, carrots, mushrooms and sauce with the chilled spicy kimchi cucumbers.
Keep cooking
