Description
Korean Short Ribs, also known as Kalbi Beef, is a flavorful, tender slow-cooked beef dish infused with a sweet and savory marinade of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and aromatic spices. Slow cooking the ribs ensures melt-in-your-mouth texture, perfect for serving with rice and garnished with green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
Ingredients
Meat
- 4-6 pounds beef short ribs
Marinade and Sauce
- 1 cup soy sauce
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tablespoon ginger, minced
- 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional) or 2 tablespoons Gochujang
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup cold water
Garnish
- 2-3 green onions, sliced on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Prepare the Ribs and Onion: Arrange the beef short ribs at the bottom of the slow cooker and sprinkle the thinly sliced onion evenly over the ribs to add flavor during cooking.
- Make the Marinade: In a bowl, mix together soy sauce, beef broth, rice vinegar, dark brown sugar, black pepper, sesame oil, minced garlic, minced ginger, and red pepper flakes or gochujang if using. Pour this mixture over the ribs and onions in the slow cooker.
- Slow Cook the Ribs: Cover the slow cooker and cook the ribs on low heat for 6 to 8 hours or on high heat for 3 to 4 hours until they become tender and flavorful.
- Thicken the Sauce: When the ribs are nearly done, whisk the cornstarch into cold water until smooth, then pour this slurry into the slow cooker. Stir gently to combine with the cooking liquid and cover. Cook for another 20 minutes to thicken the sauce.
- Serve: Carefully remove the ribs from the slow cooker and transfer to a serving platter. Sprinkle sesame seeds and sliced green onions on top for garnish. Use a fat separator to remove excess fat from the cooking liquid, then serve the sauce alongside the ribs and steamed white rice for drizzling.
Notes
- For a spicier flavor, substitute red pepper flakes with gochujang, a Korean chili paste.
- Using a fat separator helps reduce excess fat in the sauce to keep it flavorful but less greasy.
- Serving this dish with steamed white rice balances the rich flavors and provides a classic Korean meal experience.
- This recipe works best with bone-in short ribs for maximum tenderness and flavor development during slow cooking.
- If short on time, cooking on high heat for 3-4 hours will also yield tender ribs.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 hours 10 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Slow Cooking
- Cuisine: Korean
