Make Ahead Slow-Cooker Asian Braised Beef Short Ribs

SERVES 4 TO 6 
TO PREP 15 MINUTES 
TO COOK 9 to 10 HOURS ON LOW OR 6 to 7 HOURS ON HIGH
TO FINISH 10 MINUTES
Why This Recipe Works: For a boldly flavored, ultrasatisfying dinner, we slow-cooked short ribs until meltingly tender in an Asian-style sauce that tasted sweet, spicy, and savory all at once. The well-marbled ribs cooked down significantly, so to compensate we started with 5 pounds of ribs for four to six diners. The duo of hoisin sauce and chili-garlic sauce provided an intensely flavored sauce with a nice sweetness and subtle heat, and a small amount of chicken broth worked to thin the mixture slightly. To ensure an ultraclingy sauce by the end of the cooking time, we stirred in 1 tablespoon of tapioca. Thinly sliced scallion whites gave the sauce an aromatic presence. Once the ribs were tender, we defatted the sauce, then stirred the ribs back in and sprinkled the finished dish with scallion greens for freshness and a burst of color.
You will need a 5 1/2- to 7-quart slow cooker for this recipe. Serve with egg noodles or rice.
1/4 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup hoisin sauce
3 scallions, white parts minced, green parts sliced thin
4 teaspoons Asian chili-garlic sauce
1 tablespoon instant tapioca
5 pounds bone-in English-style short ribs, trimmed
Salt and pepper

TO PREP

1. Combine broth, hoisin, scallion whites, chili-garlic sauce, and tapioca in slow cooker. Season short ribs with salt and pepper and nestle into slow cooker.

TO COOK

2. Cover and cook until beef is tender, 9 to 10 hours on low or 6 to 7 hours on high.

TO FINISH AND SERVE

3. Transfer short ribs to serving platter, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Skim excess fat from surface of sauce. Pour sauce over short ribs and sprinkle with scallion greens. Serve.

NIGHT TIME PREP

• Scallions can be prepared; refrigerate.
• Short ribs can be trimmed and seasoned; refrigerate.

 http://makeaheadbook.com/recipes/