BBQ Beef Ribs

BBQ Beef Ribs
Sally Ryan for The New York Times
Total Time
4 hours
Rating
5(332)
Notes
Read community notes

Just before being served, these ribs are grilled, imparting a crisp, charred crust and an inviting whiff of wood smoke. —Steven Raichlen

Featured in: For These Chefs, Even Fire Can Be Improved

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
  • Print Options


Advertisement


Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

    For the Ribs

    • Four 1-pound beef short ribs
    • Sea salt
    • 2tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for grill grate
    • 1medium onion, finely chopped
    • 2carrots, finely chopped
    • 5cloves garlic, peeled
    • 5stalks lemon grass, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
    • 1two-inch piece ginger, cut into ¼-inch slices
    • 1cup soy sauce
    • ½cup dark brown sugar
    • ¼cup rice vinegar

    For the Glaze

    • ¾cup ketchup
    • ½cup dark brown sugar
    • ½cup rice vinegar
    • 2tablespoons mirin
    • 2teaspoons soy sauce
    • 3cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed with side of knife
    • 3¼-inch slices fresh ginger
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

1659 calories; 128 grams fat; 53 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 59 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 69 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 48 grams sugars; 55 grams protein; 4254 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. For the Ribs

    1. Step 1

      For the ribs: Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Season the ribs all over with salt. In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Add the ribs and brown on all sides, turning with tongs, 5 minutes a side. Transfer to a platter and pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat.

    2. Step 2

      Add the onion, carrots, garlic, lemon grass and ginger to the pot. Cook over high heat until lightly browned, 3 minutes. Stir in the soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar and 3 cups water, and bring to a boil. Return the ribs to the pot, immersing them in the liquid. Tightly cover and bake, turning the ribs once or twice until very tender, about 3½ hours. Let the ribs cool in the liquid, then drain well. (Ribs can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.)

    3. Step 3

      For the glaze: In a heavy saucepan, combine all the glaze ingredients and simmer over medium heat until thick, about 10 minutes. Strain.

    4. Step 4

      Prepare a grill for direct grilling over high heat. Brush and oil the grate. Cook the ribs until dark brown all over, 3 to 5 minutes a side, basting with the glaze. Serve with the remaining glaze drizzled on top or passed separately in a bowl.

Ratings

5 out of 5
332 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.

Cooking Notes

Amazing dish - I served over rice with corn on the cob and a salad. I could not barbecue the ribs, when I pulled them out of the braising liquid the were a bit too tender to stand up to the grill. Instead I oiled a broiling pan, and glazed them and popped them under the broiler for two- three minutes per side. It worked out perfect - still got those little charred/carmelized bits, but with less work. Also easier in winter.

2191 calories, 172 grams of fat, 72 grams saturated fat, 4319 milligrams of sodium PER SERVING? Perhaps that was for the whole recipe and the figures are in error? Even one quarter would push the boundary of acceptable amounts of fat and sodium, but braised ribs are a treat.

I have made this several times, either as above as part of a selection of Chinese dishes or adapted it to make more Western style food but leaving off the glaze and serving the short ribs with a rich red wine sauce and mashed potatoes or making into chilli con carne or a ragu for pasta. It's sublime. Thank you for introducing me to this delicious cut of meat.

Simply the best grilled short ribs I have ever made. I landed some really nice, thick and meaty short ribs. I did have the butcher cut them into shorter pieces to simply handling them. I made exactly as written and finished on a charcoal grill. A comment on the nutrition content by another reader. If you punch the numbers into a recipe analyzer , the salt and fat content are high but you are not actually consuming very little of the cooking liquid . It ribs were not salty.

It was way too hot to cook indoors tonight. Followed the recipe except cooked everything (even cornbread) on the gas grill just like it was the oven. Browned the ribs over the grill per the recipe. Next time I will double the glaze. I want to try it on some grilled chicken, too.

Good. Except the glaze. Took the meat of the bone and served it in lettuce cups. Broth very Asian flavoured

The flavor is delicious. Used smaller beef ribs and they were perfectly tender at 2hrs. Let it cool down and grilled exactly as stared. I served this with a Japanese short grain rice and quick pickled daikon jalapeno. I did feel bad about dumping the braising liquid as it was very flavorful

Very good recipe. I used low sodium soy sauce for the braising liquid. Strained and removed the fat from it and reduced to use as a gravy on the mashed potatoes I served with ribs. Yum!

I bought beef ribs at Costco last weekend and found this recipe when I got home. Fantastic flavors! Like another commenter, I also finished them under the broiler.

Simply the best grilled short ribs I have ever made. I landed some really nice, thick and meaty short ribs. I did have the butcher cut them into shorter pieces to simply handling them. I made exactly as written and finished on a charcoal grill. A comment on the nutrition content by another reader. If you punch the numbers into a recipe analyzer , the salt and fat content are high but you are not actually consuming very little of the cooking liquid . It ribs were not salty.

Only baked 2 hours and they were perfectly tender but still stood up nicely to the grill. After searing and before adding to the liquid, I cut the ribs into individual serving sizes. Had not done that before but highly recommended it for presentation, ease of serving and added flavor. Did not have mirin, carrots or ginger on hand but the recipe was still delicious and flavorful!

Only baked 2 hours and they were perfectly tender but still stood up nicely to the grill. After searing and before adding to the liquid, I cut the ribs into individual serving sizes. Had not done that before but highly recommended it for presentation, ease of serving and added flavor. Did not have mirin, carrots, lemongrass or ginger on hand but the recipe was still delicious and flavorful!

I made this tonight and it was a hit with everyone. I used less ginger than suggested because I only had a small piece left in the fridge and didn’t have any lemon grass on hand so I did without that as well. The flavor was still wonderful. I also only had time to keep it in the oven for two hours and it seemed be the perfect amount of time. No need to grill or broil after unless you really want it to be more crispy on the outside. We served it with mashed potatoes and corn on the cob.

Have done these ribs twice. I noticed that over 3 hours of cooking will make the ribs too hard to grill. This is why the few comments bellow state putting them in a broiler. Makes sense. Has anyone found a good timings so the ribs are not too tender? The ribs I had were trimmed to 1/4 inch. I feel bad to get rid of the broth/stock. Any thoughts of what to do with it? I am currently reducing it to use to as a sauce.

We made this tonight, and it was terrific. Lots of flavor. We couldn't find lemongrass, so we used lemongrass paste in a tube, worked great. And we put the ribs under the broiler rather than the grill to crisp up at the end, and they came out terrific. Served over a bed of basil fried rice, spectacular.

This recipe is delicious and a welcome surprise. The depth of flavor is amazing.

Made this as directed until it came out of the oven. The meat was so well done and the sauce was so good - I did not think it needed anything else. I pureed the sauce with a little added banana vinegar. Served the meat (with the fat cut off) over brown jasmine rice and sautéed chard. It was delicious!

I have made this several times, either as above as part of a selection of Chinese dishes or adapted it to make more Western style food but leaving off the glaze and serving the short ribs with a rich red wine sauce and mashed potatoes or making into chilli con carne or a ragu for pasta. It's sublime. Thank you for introducing me to this delicious cut of meat.

Amazing dish - I served over rice with corn on the cob and a salad. I could not barbecue the ribs, when I pulled them out of the braising liquid the were a bit too tender to stand up to the grill. Instead I oiled a broiling pan, and glazed them and popped them under the broiler for two- three minutes per side. It worked out perfect - still got those little charred/carmelized bits, but with less work. Also easier in winter.

Private notes are only visible to you.

Credits

Adapted from iNG in Chicago

Advertisement

or to save this recipe.