Asian five spice short ribs

How can 6 hours of sitting on the couch watching football be productive? When you're also using that time to braise beef short ribs, of course! In the end, the meat literally falls off the bone, and a knife is barely necessary. The perfect combination of tenderness and extreme meatiness.

The first step is to lightly coat the short ribs with a spiced flour mixture, then quickly brown them on all sides, making sure not to crowd the pan. When the ribs are done, a braising liquid is made in the same pan, consisting of caramelized vegetables, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and beef broth. The ribs are added back to the pan and braised for 3 hours. The meat will shrink and retract from the bone, resulting in tender chunks of beef that just barely hold together.

Next, a quick five spice-honey glaze is made in a small saucepan, simmering on low heat until syrupy.
The ribs are coated with the glaze and placed under the broiler for a few minutes on each side, creating a sweet crust. We paired the short ribs with garlic mashed potatoes.

Asian Five Spice Short Ribs
From The Nourish Network
Serves 6

2 tsp vegetable oil
3 Tbsp five spice powder, divided
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
6 pounds bone-in beef short ribs
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
3 cloves minced garlic
2 Tbsp chopped ginger
1/2 cup soy sauce, divided
1/2 cup rice wine vinegar, divided
1 cup beef broth
1/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 300. Heat oil over medium-high heat in large pot (oven-proof, if possible). Mix together 2 Tbsp five spice powder, flour and salt. Dredge ribs in the flour mixture, tapping off excess, and brown on all sides, making sure not to crowd the pan. Remove to a plate when done.

Add onion, carrot, garlic and ginger to pot and brown for 8-10 minutes. Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar and beef broth and bring to a boil. If your pot is oven-proof, add the ribs, cover and transfer to the oven. If not, transfer the ribs and everything else into an oven-proof dish. Braise for 3 hours and remove from oven.

When the ribs are almost done cooking, mix together honey and remaining 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar and 1 Tbsp five spice powder in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and reduce glaze until syrupy, about 10 minutes.

When ribs are done, transfer to a cookie sheet and turn the oven to broil. Brush ribs with half the glaze and broil for 3 minutes. Turn over, brush with remaining glaze and broil another 3 minutes.