The 48-Hour Cooked Short Ribs with Rocoto Mustard is a luxurious and indulgent dish that’s perfect for a special occasion or a hearty winter meal. The slow-cooked short ribs are tender, melt-in-your-mouth juicy, and packed with deep, savory flavors from the long cooking process. The unique touch of Rocoto mustard, with its spicy and tangy kick, elevates the rich meat, adding complexity and a hint of heat that cuts through the richness.
Cooking the ribs for 48 hours ensures that they are incredibly tender and flavorful, with every bite offering a balance of smokiness, spice, and savory goodness. Pair them with roasted vegetables or mashed potatoes for a dish that brings comfort and sophistication to the table. Best enjoyed in the colder months when you’re craving something warming and satisfying.
Ingredients
Method
- Take the ribs out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking and pat them dry with paper towels.
- Heat the oven to 150°C (300°F).
- Season the ribs lightly with salt on all sides; the soy sauce adds more salt later.
- Heat the oil in the pot over medium-high heat and brown the ribs for 2–3 minutes per side, until deep brown all over.
- Pour off the fat, then add the 100 ml sake, the 2 tbsp soy sauce and the water; the liquid should come about halfway up the meat.
- Bring to a simmer on the stove, cover with the lid and move the pot to the oven.
- Braise for 3–3½ hours, turning the ribs once halfway, until a skewer slides into the meat with almost no resistance but the pieces still hold their shape.
- Lift the ribs onto a plate and let them cool for 20 minutes, so they firm up and slice cleanly.
- Skim the fat off the liquid left in the pot and keep 4 tablespoons of the liquid for the glaze.
- If you are cooking ahead, as the chef does, refrigerate the ribs in their liquid for up to 3 days and bring them to room temperature before glazing.
- Raise the oven to 200°C (400°F).
- Cut the eggplants into thick batons and toss them with the broccoli, shiitake, olive oil, salt and pepper on the lined baking sheet.
- Roast the vegetables for 20–25 minutes, turning once, until the eggplant is soft and the broccoli is browned at the tips.
- Mix the 3 tbsp each of sake, sugar and soy sauce for the glaze.
- Pour the glaze and the 4 tablespoons of braising liquid into the wide frying pan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Add the ribs and cook for 3–4 minutes, turning them and spooning the glaze over, until it is syrupy and coats the meat; lower the heat if it starts to smell of burnt sugar.
- Let the ribs rest for 5 minutes, then cut them into thick slices.
- Stir the rocoto paste into the mustard and spoon it into four small dipping bowls.
- Arrange the vegetables on each plate, lean the sliced beef against them and spoon over any glaze left in the pan.
- Serve with the rocoto mustard on the side.
- Vacuum pack the short ribs, and cook sous vide for 48 hours at 60C.
- Once ready, plunge in ice water. Store in the fridge until use (for up to 3 days).
- When ready to use, remove meat from the bag and leave on bench for 30 min.
- Then place the meat in an oven at 180C for about 10 minutes.
- Use a thermometer and check core temperature. It should reach 50C.
- Then remove from the oven and place in a hot pan with the combined soy glace.
- Let the mix reduce and then glace all sides of the meat.
- Once finished, set aside and rest for 5 minutes before slicing into thick slices.
- Roast the eggplant, broccoli and shitake (mushrooms) in the oven with olive oil, salt and pepper.
- For the rocoto mustard, combine the ingredients and place directly in a small dipping bowl with one for each guest.
- First place the meat on the plate; then arrange the beef nicely, so it leans on the vegetables.
- Serve the rocoto mustard on the side.
What we changed for home
- Sous vide at 60°C (140°F) for 48 hours replaced with a covered braise at 150°C (300°F) for 3–3½ hours Few home cooks own a circulator, and a two-day cook ties up the kitchen. Short rib is a braising cut, so a low oven melts its connective tissue in a few hours. The meat is brown through instead of the chef's pink, but it stays juicy and soft.
- A braising liquid of water, sake and soy sauce added In a sealed bag the meat cooks in its own juices; in a pot it needs liquid about halfway up so the top does not dry out.
- Meat raised from 400 g to 800 g and the vegetables doubled Short ribs lose about a third of their weight when braised, and the chef's 100 g per person is a tasting-menu portion. 800 g gives four main-course plates.
- Glaze raised to 3 tbsp each of sake, sugar and soy and loosened with braising liquid There is twice as much meat to coat. The braising liquid gives the glaze body and keeps the sugar from burning before it thickens.
- Oven temperature and time given for the vegetables: 200°C (400°F) for 20–25 minutes The original only says to roast them.
- Rocoto paste can be any hot chilli paste, such as sambal oelek Rocoto paste is sold mainly in Peruvian and Latin American shops, and the chef allows another hot chilli paste himself.
The dish in the photograph was cooked by the restaurant for this story. Photo: Oleksandr Slyadnyev.
Screen stays on while you cook