Both jwa and I had short ribs recently at Tabla (New Year’s Eve, I believe) and ever since, I’ve wanted to make some. I finally gave it a try last weekend and was pretty happy with the results. The cooking liquid here is deeeeee-licious! And the meat was pretty good too! The meat just fell off the bones, nom-nom-nom-nom.

The original recipe said to make the ribs the day before you eat them, just re-warming before serving. An advantage to that is that you can pull some of the solid fat off the top. I didn’t do that, but I did cook it in the morning, let it cool, refrigerated for a couple of hours and was able to spoon some of the fat off the top that way.

But really, you’re eating a big pot of red meat, are you really concerned about the extra fat? So, you could probably time this to just be done when you want to eat it and not worry about it at all, or just try to skim some fat off while it’s still hot.

Braised Short Ribs
Recipe adapted from Michael Symon
5-6 Servings
2 tbsp olive oil
3 lbs meaty beef short ribs on the bone
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 fresh thyme sprigs
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
1 tsp anchovy paste (or 1 anchovy)
1 bay leaf
1 head garlic, cloves separated
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup dry red wine
2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large enameled cast iron casserole or big, heavy pot. Season the ribs with salt and pepper. Add half of the short ribs to the casserole and cook over moderately high heat until browned, about 6 minutes. Transfer the ribs to a plate or bowl. Repeat with the remaining oil and ribs.

Add the celery, carrot and onion to the casserole and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 7 minutes.

Turn the heat down to low. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until glossy, about 2 minutes.

Add the herb sprigs, anchovy paste, bay leaf and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Next, add the stock, wine and vinegar and bring to a boil.

Return the short ribs to the pot, then cover and braise in the oven at 325 degrees F for 1 hour. Drop heat to 225 degrees F and cook for 3.5 - 4 more hours or until meat is tender.

Let cool and then refrigerate until read to serve. When you are about ready to eat, skim as much fat from the top as you can and rewarm the pot of ribs over medium heat.

This was delicious with some polenta and roasted broccoli!

We got dinner & lunches the next day and one more dinner out of this!

This is a meal inspired by a dinner that jwa had at his parents house a little while ago. He had gone down there to help them with some things and returned with tales of steak with garlic in it. Mmmmm…garlic in steak. I was intrigued. Such a great idea!

So, we grilled some up, with the addition of chimichurri sauce and some grilled veggies.

This was also a great opportunity to use out new outdoor grill — I still love it!

For the Argentinian Chimichurri Sauce:
Adapted from a recipe from Bob Blumer, The Surreal Gourmet
1/2 cup lightly packed chopped flat leaf parsley
1/2 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves
3 to 5 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp chili pepper flakes
2 tbsp shallot or onion, minced
3/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp sherry wine vinegar, or red wine vinegar
1-2 tbsp lemon juice

Steak:
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
3 tbsp kosher salt
2 1/2 pounds rib-eye, New York strip, or sirloin steak, 1 1/2 inches thick
3 cloves of garlic, cut into slivers

Preheat your grill. You could also do this inside on a grill pan. If you cook on a grill pan, omit the salted water/cayenne mixture. Just salt the steak before cooking.

Place all chimichurri sauce ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse until well chopped, but not pureed. Reserve.

Dissolve cayenne pepper and salt in 1 cup hot water. Transfer to a squeeze container (or transfer to a bowl and use a basting brush.

Using a small knife, make slits in each steak and push the garlic slivers into the slits. Brush a little olive oil on the steaks.

Place the steak directly over a hot grill (oil the rack first), and cook for 6-7 minutes per side for medium rare. Baste 1-2 times with the salt/cayenne mixture. This will also help keep flare-ups under control. (But you’ll still get a nice crust).

When you turn the steak, that’s a good time to add your veggies. We did bell pepper, zucchini and portobello mushrooms.

Spoon chimichurri sauce over steak. Serve with the grilled veggies and baguette.

It’s really good!

And if you are really lucky, there will be some leftovers to put on a baguette from Little T’s and make a steak sandwich!

Be sure to slather a little chimichurri on there and perhaps even some horseradish mayo!

I know I said there would be salad rolls next. I lied. Those will be soon Wednesday(!) because oh my, this meal was delicious and it bumped the salad rolls. You’ll notice the title image even has a bite taken out of it. Yeah. And I’m not sorry about it either.

The rack of lamb is from Trader Joe’s and is probably one of my most favorite products that they carry — the seasoned, Frenched, frozen rack of lamb from New Zealand. This was about $14 and some change for 1.3 pounds. Score. It has a garlic, sesame seed, rosemary marinade already but it’s not so strong that you can’t add more things to it. Like this pesto, for instance. All together, there’s only six ingredients here, which is also nice.

I was able to find one happy sprig of rosemary on one of plants outside, so that made me quite relieved! Our rosemary did not like all the snow, that’s for sure. Walking around town I see some rosemary bushes that seem perfectly fine. I hope all of ours comes back okay this Spring, because after 7 years, I am just not used to buying rosemary anymore…

Now the directions on the package say to defrost and cook on 350 for 25 minutes. I never do this. I think I always cook it higher than that…but do defrost the day before you’re roasting it. Also, if you don’t live by a Trader Joe’s just use a plain rack of lamb — that kind is not important, just a great deal.

On the side: goat cheese polenta with artichokes and green olives and some roasted broccoli.

Rosemary Pesto Rack of Lamb
Adapted from a recipe in Bon Appétit
1/2 cup (packed) parsley leaves and stems
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary plus rosemary sprigs
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 garlic clove
3 tbsp olive oil
1 1 1/2-pound rack of lamb

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Place parsley, chopped rosemary, grated Parmesan cheese and garlic in processor. Process to coarse paste. With machine running, gradually add olive oil. Season pesto to taste with salt and pepper.

Place lamb on small rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread all pesto over rounded side of lamb.

Roast 25-30+ minutes. The internal temperature should be around 135 for medium rare. I pull it then and let it sit, covered with foil for about 5 minutes.

Cut lamb between bones into chops. Divide chops between 2 plates; garnish with rosemary sprigs.

I saved all the bones and threw them into a pot with maybe 6-7 cups of water, some onion, carrot, and garlic. Simmered (I don’t think it was ever actually boiling) for about 3 hours. Strained.

Lamb stock. Tasty, tasty liquid gold.

I’m going to use it Thursday to make some lentil soup!

PS: I like this wine quite a bit. Around $10 at Fred Meyer. Not with the lamb, but I had a glass of this while making the lamb.

Happy Holidays! I hope everyone had nice meals, presents and what-not. We did. On Christmas we had Beef Wellingtons — thank you cow, again, you were delicious!, this awesome cauliflower gratin and some braised brussels sprouts. Our snow is almost melted now, which is good as I really need to go to work Monday!

Okay, so the cauliflower recipe is based on one by Bobby Flay, but I changed some stuff. Also, our head of cauliflower was on the small side. Adjust amounts as needed for your amount of cauliflower.

Cauliflower Goat Cheese Gratin
Adapted from Bobby Flay
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 clove garlic, peeled, cut in half
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, coarsely grated
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
2 green onion, chopped
3 ounces goat cheese, cut into small pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Add the cream to a small pot with the garlic and bring to a simmer. Turn off heat and let the cream infuse and cool for about 15 minutes.

Toss the cauliflower, Monterey Jack, parmesan, green onion and lemon zest in a shallow casserole dish. Season with salt and pepper. Strain the cream over the cauliflower and top with the pieces of goat cheese. Add another grind or two of pepper to the top.

Roast for 20 to 30 minutes or until the cauliflower is soft and the sauce has thickened slightly and become golden around the edges. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Assorted Christmas Dinner Images — (Beef Wellington recipe here)

Dinner wine, a Christmas gift from jwa’s parents

Beef Wellington with a “pastry bot” on top

Mmmmmmm! Beeeeeeeef!

Pastry bot must be eaten!

First off, this was amazingly good. I mean I expected it to be tasty but it totally and completely surpassed my expectations. Especially the slaw. And it is finally almost Summer here in Portland. Woo!

Hey — I just realized that while I halved the steak and the slaw portions below, I made a full recipe of the marinade. Hmmm, I used some of that to brush on the meat while cooking, but I probably didn’t need as much marinade as I had, so I think the ratios below are just fine. And, I let the steak marinate in the fridge for about 5 hours. Reviews on epicurious.com also mentioned letting it go overnight. Good advice, I will probably do that next time.

New: Printable recipe pdf!

Grilled Asian Flank Steak with Sweet Slaw
Adapted from Bon Appétit
1/4 cup soy sauce
5 tbsp vegetable oil
5 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger, divided*
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 1 1/2-pound flank steak
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
1-2 red jalapeños, diced finely
1/2 tsp orange zest
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
10 ounces of shredded cabbage mix
1/2 cup chopped green onions, divided

Mix soy sauce, oil, 3 teaspoons ginger, and garlic in resealable plastic bag. Add flank steak and seal bag; turn to coat. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes, turning occasionally. Or marinate up to overnight in the refrigerator.

Stir sugar and vinegar in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves; remove from heat. Add jalapeños and remaining 2 teaspoons ginger. Place cabbage, cilantro, orange zest and green onions in medium bowl. Pour vinegar mixture over and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand while grilling steak, tossing occasionally.

Prepare barbecue (medium heat) or a grill pan over medium-high heat. Grill steak until cooked to desired doneness, about 6 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer to work surface. Let rest 10 minutes.

Slice steak thinly against grain and serve with the slaw. Use extra cilantro as a garnish if desired.

* I keep my ginger peeled and in the freezer in 1-inch pieces. This works well for me and I always have usable ginger in the house. Here I used a microplane grater to deal with the ginger quickly, which is fast becoming my favorite way to mince ginger.